Mt. St. Michael is the Tru-Ballaz Champ
BRONX, NY – The Tru-Ballaz Pre-H.S. Classic started out with many of the top high school programs in New York but when the dust settled there were only two unlikely suspects remaining. Iona Prep battled Mt. Saint Michael’s on Tuesday at a packed FDA III H.S. in the championship round.
The two Catholic schools went tit for tat from start to finish to finish and left it all on the court but it was the Mountaineers who closed out strong. Led by senior Elijah Buchanan ‘17 and freshman Ibrahim Watarra ‘20, Mt. St. Michael’s edged out the Gaels, 67-65.
The Mountaineers moved out-front at the top of the opening quarter behind perimeter shot from Buchannan and sharpshooter Mike Krause ’18. Iona Prep recovered with Zadrak Ferrell ‘18 and Nick Brennan ‘17 put up shot. The Gaels pulled to within a point with 1:37 left but another offensive surge by Buchanan gave the Mountaineers a 7-point advantage to begin the second quarter.
As the second quarter got underway, Iona Prep gained momentum. Bryce Wills ‘18 finally pushed the Gaels ahead aided by buckets from Souleymane Koureissi ‘18. An 11-2 Iona Prep run left the Mountaineers in the dust and behind by 9 points with 2:13 remaining in the first half.
Mt. Saint Michael’s freshman point guard Mike Green ‘19 ended the Gaels progress and started to move the needle in the direction of the New Rochelle school. The half ended with Iona Prep still ahead 38-31 as the third quarter commenced.
The Mountaineer’s momentum continued into the third quarter as Krause, Green and Buchanan caught fire and pulled to within two points. Buchanan eventually tied the game at 53 with 1:30 left in the quarter. This time, Mt. Saint Michael’s got the upper hand as Wattara began utilize his athleticism in scoring and rebounding above the rim. A buzzer beater by Krause put the Mountaineers up by four points as they headed into the home stretch.
Wattara and Buchannan turned it up in the fourth quarter for Mt. Saint Michaels increasing its lead to 7 points with 5:42 left to play. Iona Prep made a final push as Josh Alexander ‘18 pulled the Gaels to within a point. A missed shot by Buchanan opened the door for Iona Prep with 37.5 left on the clock but Koureissi also missed for Iona Prep. When the Mountaineers secured that rebound as time ran out.
Buchannan paced Mt. Saint Michael’s with a game high 22 points with Krause adding 12 points. Wattara’s 10 points were scored in the second half. Koureissi was the high scorer for Iona Prep with 18 points with Brennan contributing 14 points.
