Gauchos Skewer Hawks; Get Metro AAU Chip
The New York Gauchos came into Wednesday evening's Metropolitan AAU championship game as heavy favorites against the Westchester Hawks. The Bronx-based squad proved it with a 94-55 victory over Coach Phil Diasparra's squad.
The Gauchos used their athleticism early on to run their way to quick baskets off the fast break. The full court pressure defense from Coach Dwayne Mitchell's squad forced the Hawks into several early turnovers, which the Gauchos turned into buckets. However, the Hawks would show life early on and would get back into the game. A three pointer from Greg DeSantis of Notre Dame High School (CT) cut the Gaucho lead to 14-11 with 9:47 to play in the opening half.
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However, the Gauchos would soon take complete control of the championship game. A jump shot from Rice's Shane Southwell with 7:20 left in the first half opened the lead to 24-15. The Gauchos would continue on their 17-3 run, capped off by a James Stukes lay-up to give the New York City squad a 34-18 lead with under four minutes to play in the first half.
Coach Mitchell's team would go into halftime with a dominating 42-21 lead over the Westchester-based squad. Archbishop Molloy junior guard Russ Smith led the way for the 'Chos with 10 points, while Bishop Loughlin's Trevon Hamlet and Christ the King's Sean Johnson chipped in with 8 points. New Rochelle High School's Jon Calarco led the Hawks with 7 points in the opening half.
Just as they did in the beginning of the first half, the Hawks opened the second half with a 7-2 run to give themselves life in what was turning into a blowout. However, the Gauchos soon left no doubt as to the result of the match. Back-to-back buckets by highly touted Rice junior Durand Scott gave the Gauchos a 56-37 lead with just over 9-and-a-half minutes left in the game. The squad made up of New York City-standouts cruised from there, going on to a 94-55 victory. Trevon Hamlet and Russ Smith led the way with 20 points for the 'Chos, while Vaughn Allen of Mt. Vernon led the defeated Hawks with 13 points.
This game along with the girls championship game is currently being webcasted on:
The High School Basketball Network
Just register to view for free at www.HSBnetwork.TV
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