Lincoln Is Ready for the Boros
BROOKLYN, NY - It’s been a winding road for the Abraham Lincoln Railsplitters this season. After losing Rutgers-bound Jahlil Tripp, the centerpiece of its team to ineligibility issues, Coach Dwayne Tiny Morton’s team has already suffered six regular season losses, more than it has in years. But with two of his players peaking at just the right time, Morton believes his Railsplitters are already primed and ready for another City chip even as they head into the Brooklyn Borough Championship.
After a somewhat shaky start against Westinghouse on Thursday during the semifinal round of the Brooklyn Borough Championships, Rakym Felder '16 (8 points & 6 assists) and Cahiem Brown '16 (22 points) tag teamed the Warriors and eventually sent them packing from the playoffs, 54-43.
Morton blamed the slow start in the warm-up quarter that led to G-House taking a brief 5 point advantage after the end of the first stanza on temperament. “We were a bit too emotional going into the game,” he said but shucked if off to the team emulating the persona of its coach. “I’m emotional myself,” he added. The Railspitters would eventually go up by as many as 15 points en route to a pretty routine victory.
This season, Coach Morton said although offense is important, he’s hanging his hat on defense and believes his #2 seeded Railsplitters are ready for Sunday’s borough championship grudge match against Thomas Jefferson, the number one seed in Brooklyn. His confidence is based on his entire team with two players leading the way.
“Rakym is the best point guard in the city by far,” said Coach Morton. “He brings maturity and he’s coming with a jump shot this year.” In addition to his veteran leadership, Morton feels that Felder has better embraced the position by becoming more vocal. “He’s the X-factor. 100%”
Brown is another important cog in the Coney Island team's wheel. The senior, who transferred from St. Raymond HS, is coming into his own as the meat of the playoffs begin. Morton sees all the hoopla surrounding Jefferson’s Shamorie Ponds '16 as just smoke and mirrors but sees Brown as the real deal. “If you wanna count Jefferson letting Shamorie score points... but I’m trying think of who’s playing better than Cahiem. [Brown’s] overall game is solid.”
Coach Morton has his sights set on a bigger prize, the PSAL City Championship and sees Sunday’s 1:00 PM game at York College as just a means to an end. “We’ve got a couple more games before the [city] championships. We’ve got Jefferson in the Boroughs. Then we have Hudson Catholic (NJ) on the 16th.”
