It took the John F. Kennedy Knights more than three quarters to grab their first lead over borough nemesis Wings Academy in Sunday's PSAL Bronx Championship.

Once JFK surged ahead though, it would never trail again. The Knights used an explosive fourth quarter to gut out a 61-58 victory, claiming Bronx bragging rights.

Wings jumped out in front early, as guards Ronald Baker and DaShaun Wiggins led an 8-2 run to open the game. Kennedy's Naquan Pierce kept the Knights afloat though, tallying six points in a low scoring first quarter. Wings led 11-9 after one.

A transition lay-up by forward Jeffrey Short briefly tied the game for Kennedy to open the second. Wings, however, began to step into JFK passing lanes on seemingly every possession, scoring seven points off of fast breaks during an 11-2 spurt.

The Knights scored four straight in response, but had yet another pass picked off, this time by Wings guard Dylan Ennis, who scored easily at the other end. Wings led 24-18 at half.

Wiggins sank a three-pointer to give Wings a 31-23 with 5:01 remaining in the third, but Pierce and Short answered with back-to-back triples that would be a harbinger of things to come. Another three by guard Ross Vizcaino pulled JFK to within 35-32 at the 1:17 mark, but Wiggins scored five straight for Wings to push the lead back to eight.

Short hit a long three just before the end of the quarter, a shot that would prove crucial in giving Kennedy momentum towards the fourth.

The junior wing canned another long ball to open the final quarter, then, after Wiggins split a pair at the line, Pierce went coast to coast, cutting the Kennedy deficit to one. Pierce then drained two free throws to give JFK its first lead, 42-41, with 5:15 remaining.

After guard Drimir Ferguson missed the front end of a one-and-one for Wings, Short converted consecutive three-point plays, quickly inflating the Knights' lead to seven.

Baker dropped in a three and Wiggins hit two free throws to bring the score to 48-46, but JFK was riding too high to give back the lead. Guard Jeffrey Arzu scored on a drive to the hoop following a nifty crossover, Short hit two more at the line, and Vizcaino sank another three, putting the Knights ahead by nine with 1:43 left.

Wings made one final push, trailing 60-53 with 17.3 seconds to go. Forward Krystian Foriest hit two freebies, then after two misses at the line by Vizcaino, Wiggins drilled a three to cut the Kennedy lead to two with 1.7 seconds left.

Pierce split a pair of free throws, allowing Wings one final prayer, but a half court shot by Ferguson was errant.

Short played what he called his best game of the season, scoring 24 points that included several key shots and 7-for-8 free throw shooting. Pierce chipped in 15 for the Knights, while Wiggins paced Wings with 21 and Baker added 16.

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