LuHi downs Mt. Vernon; Advances to Fed T.O.C. Chip
GLENS FALLS, NY- Having fallen in the NYS Federation Class AA Semifinals for each of the past two years, the desire was there for Long Island Lutheran to get back to a once familiar place for them, the Championship Game.
With this Federation Tournament meaning everything for the Crusaders there is always a sense of added pressure on them to get the job done, but it's been a number of years now since they have been able to take the title back to Long Island.
Just getting the chance to play for a title is what LuHi were aiming to do on Friday when they took on Mt. Vernon, and while it was a struggle at times in the early going, a dominating and convincing second half was enough to propel the Crusaders to a 67-57 victory.
Unlike the CHSAA, PSAL, and NYSPHSAA winners, Long Island Lutheran, who represents NYSAIS, only had this as their main goal. The Federation Tournament is the title they aim for each and every season, and in a sense according to guard Brandon Jacobs '17, that does add a little bit more pressure on what they do up in Glens Falls.
"There is definitely because we have just been practicing for a whole month and we have just been playing ourselves and we didn't want to come here and not win this time," Jacobs explained. "We hadn't won in a while and we want to go out on top."
It's been since a Class “A” Championship in 2012 that LuHi has brought home the hardware but even with the pressure on them, the Crusaders got off to a strong shooting start with Jacobs and Chris Coalmon '17 each knocking down shots from the outside helping them grab a quick edge on Mt. Vernon, but that proved to be short lived as the Knights started to find their way inside.
Essam Mostafa '19 picked up 2 quick fouls and that allowed the Knights to take command of the paint and get Greg Calixte '17 touches inside that he was able to finish with authority to give them their first lead with just under two minutes to go in the 1st quarter.
The bench was also making their presence felt for Mt. Vernon as Derrick Hamlin '17 scored 4 straight points early in the 2nd to push the Knights lead to as big as 4, but with Mostafa back on the floor, and with Donatas Kupsas '18 able to take his defender off the dribble and score, LuHi didn't let the game get away from them and with Jacobs burying his second late triple late in the half, the Crusaders deficit was just 32-30 going into the locker room.
It wasn't the quarter that Crusaders head coach John Buck was looking for his team as they ended up going into the locker room behind, but he felt that with improved defense and a concerted effort to get to the basket more than things could turn around for his group.
"Trust," Buck stated. "We talk about a lot about trust and in the few years past, similar situation, and even thought everyone wants to win really bad they don't always trust their teammates and I just said trust your teammates. We withstood a run from them and when we kept it at 2 at the half I felt really good."
With Buck harping on his team to pick up the energy level as well, the Crusaders came out with a purpose in the 3rd quarter as Jacobs connected on a pull up jumper off the dribble to tie things up, and then a Mostafa spin in the lane was followed up by a three from the right wing from Jacobs and LuHi was back in front and in control of the pace and the game once again.
Everything Long Island Lutheran did in the 3rd quarter seemed to be working, specifically when Jacobs had the ball in his hands. The Pace bound guard had 8 points in the 3rd and admitted that he was looking to pick up his game to lead his team to what he hoped would be a trip to Saturday's title game.
"I knew I needed to come out more aggressive because last year I only had 3 points in this game," Jacobs said remembering back to last year's Federation Semifinals. "I knew if I came out aggressive I would have a good chance, and the team would have a good chance."
Heading into the 4th quarter up by 7, Jacobs again would drain a midrange jumper, and when Kupsas scored on back to back possessions, both of which were because of great LuHi defense on the other end, the lead for the first time was double digits with the Crusaders going up 57-46 with 5:11 to go in the game.
LuHi smelled blood at this point and were wanting to close the deal and not give the NYSPHSAA champions any hope so it was all about getting to the basket and having either Jacobs or Kupsas either finish down low, or do what it took to get to the FT line.
Mt. Vernon did have their moments where they looked as if they would crawl back into the game, especially with Noah Morgan '17 beginning to heat up from long range, but FT's late by Jacobs would ultimately seal the deal and move LuHi to their first Class AA Federation Tournament Championship in 3 years by defeating the Knights 67-57.
A complete second half performance, Long Island Lutheran was led by Jacobs with his 23 points and 5 assists, while Kupsas added 17 points, with Coalmon chipping in with 16 points as well in the win.
Not the ending that Mt. Vernon wanted to their season, the Knights still accomplished an NYSPHSAA Championship and were among the best team in New York. Calixte had 20 points and 8 rebounds to pace the Knights in the defeat, with Morgan scoring all 18 of his points in a strong second half performance.
It may have been a while but Long Island Lutheran are now heading back to the Federation Tournament title game to be played on Saturday at 9pm, and for a senior like Coalmon who has waited for this moment, he is excited to get back out on the floor and have the chance to finally get that elusive championship he has wanted for so long.
"This would mean everything because I haven't won anything in high school so it would mean a lot not just me for me but for the school, and for everyone."
