The 'Burbs team, comprised of players from Long Island and the Hudson Valley area, has beaten the New York City team in two of the first three Metro Classic games.
However, with a New York City lineup that was stacked with high-major division one talent, it looked as though the "Boro" team should have no problem beating the less talented Suburban team. The Suburban team couldn't quite come out on top, but they did give the City team all they could handle in an 89-85 game won by the City boys.
The game, which remained close wire-to-wire, didn't feature a single stand out player scoring wise for either team, although the star coming down the stretch had to be University of Connecticut commit, Kemba Walker. With the City team up by a score of 86-85 with 11 seconds remaining, Walker was sent to the line to shoot free throws. After converting 1 of the 2 free throws, Walker made an extraordinary steal on defense and laid the ball up at the buzzer to secure the 4-point win for the City. Christ the King guard Erving Walker also played a large role down the stretch, as he was able to single handedly maneuver his way through the Suburb team press and direct head Coach Ruth Lovelace's (Boy's & Girls High School) offense. Thomas Jefferson junior point guard Keith Spellman also played well in the backcourt for the 'Boros. Lance Stephenson and Sylven Landesberg, arguably the two best players featured in the game, had impressive moments in the game and played within the flow of the City teams offense. One of the highlights of the game came in the second quarter when Landesberg was handling the ball, beat his man off the dribble and took off for a powerful dunk, a play that he is now able to make because of his improved athleticism. Bishop Loughlin big man Jayvaughn Pinkston led the 'Boros in rebounds with 11. A major key in the win was arguably the 'Boros bench which out scored the 'Burbs bench by 18pts.
The suburb team was lead in scoring and rebounds by 6'11" Port Chester big man Jordan Henriquez who scored 16 points and 12 rebounds. Henriquez, who has been offered by Drexel and Rhode Island, made several impressive defensive plays as well for the 'Burbs team. Mookie Jones, who was playing in his first game since committing to Syracuse last week, struggled from the floor and never was able to get into flow of the game.
High Scorers for 'Boros was Sylvan Landesberg with 17pts. & 10 rebs. followed by Christ the King's Ryan Pearson with 13pts. & 6 rebs. The high scorers for the 'Burbs was Jeriel Henriquez from L.I. Lutheran with 16pts. followed by Mt. Vernon's Kevin Jones with 15pts.
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