iS8/Nike Spring Classic Quarterfinal Recaps

SOUTH RICHMOND, NY – The iS8/Nike playoffs is in the home stretch with the quarterfinal rounds taking place on Sunday at the Boys & Girls Club. Eight teams entered the gym on Sunday but only four advanced to this week’s semifinal round to be held in the legendary iS8 gym.

A balanced scoring attack by PD Nation led by Taj Anderson (Cardozo ’19) and Dwight Reed was enough to edge NE B’ball club in the opening quarter. Buckets by Idan Tretout (Wilbraham & Monson, MA '19) and Zach Freemantle (Bergen Catholic, NJ '19) kept PD Nation out front 42 – 40.

After only scoring a field goal per quarter in the first half, Syracuse-bound Joe Girard ‘19 perked up a bit in the second half which kept NE Basketball Club in the hunt. A strong finish by Kavontay Williams (St. Benedict’s NJ ‘2) and Bernard Kouma (Our Savior Lutheran ’19) would eventually put PD Nation over the top.

Kouma and Williams led PD Nation with 18 points apiece with Anderson contributing 16 points. Tretout led Northeast Basketball Club with a game high 30 points followed by Girard with 21 points.

Bolstered by a momentum building warm up quarter by Hassan Drame (Our Savior New American ’19) followed by a strong second quarter by his twin brother Fousseyni Drame ‘19, the D1 Stars displayed a balanced attack in the first half. LPAC still managed to maintain a 39 – 35 advance at the start of the third quarter due to an 18 point second quarter explosion by Eli Wynn (Wadleigh '19).

Third half offense from the perimeter by Kalel Camera and Iowa-bound Joe Toussaint ‘19 extended LPAC’s lead 15 points with 2 minutes left to play but that soon changed. The tandem of Jordan Riley (Brentwood ’20) and F. Drame tied the game at 83 with 25 second remaining in regulation. Unable to produce any buckets from that point on, LPAC was taken into overtime and toppled by two buckets and two free-throws in OT.

Riley paced D1 Stars with 24 points with F. Drame adding 22 points. Riley led all scorers with a game high 27 points.

With star players arriving late, the Vikings (aka South Shore), down 6 before the game even began, got pummeled in the first quarter by Goldminz powered by Nariq Chisolm (Martin Luther '19) and Malachi Smith (St. Raymond ’21) led 22-8. As their full roster trickled in during the second quarter, the Vikings made up for lost ground as teammates Kadary Richmond ‘19 and Isaiah Richards ‘19 Goldminz would relinquish its lead briefly with 2:30 left in the half but Goldminz still led 37 – 32 at the midway point.

Richmond and Richards sparked up again in the third and once again snatched a three point advantage for the Vikings at the start of the third quarter. Chances of the Vikings beating the odds evaporated in the fourth quarter as a 19 point monsoon by DaShawn Davis (Our Savior Lutheran '19) solidified the win for Goldminz.

Davis was high man for Goldminz with 29 points. Richards paced Vikings with 16 points.

The final score was not indicative of the disparity between the two combatants. Clearly shorthanded, Above & Beyond appeared to be nothing more than chum in shark infested waters as they tried to absorb a 14 – 0 2GZ run.

Above & Beyond finally got up off the proverbial mat and began offering some offensive pushback but defensive lapses and a counteroffensive spearheaded by Miami-commit Isaiah Wong (Monsignor Bonner ’19) gave 2GZ an 11 point cushion at the onset of the second quarter. As the PA based team tried to tread water, 2GZ began to smell blood.

Noel Echeveria (Eagle Academy ’22) and Jacob Toppin (Woodstock Academy (CT)) joined Wong as 2GZ pillaged Above & Beyond. At the half, 2GZ was comfortably ahead 67 – 35. At the end of three quarters, even with added scoring from 6’11” Brandon Stone (Christ School ’19 (NC)) and Nylan Hyland, Above & Beyond was in a deeper hole, down by 32 points. The fourth quarter was merely a lay-up drill.

Wong led 2GZ with 39 with Echeveria and Toppin contributing 23 points and 20 points respectively. Powell paced Above & Beyond with 36 points with Stone adding 27 points.