Recommitted Molloy Takes Down Iona Prep
BRIARWOOD, NY – The Archbishop Molloy Stanners seem to be in a good place since taking an unexpected loss to unranked Holy Cross last week. They’ve got their starting point guard Cole Anthony ‘19 back from injury and man in the middle, 7’2” Moses Brown ’18, who committed to UCLA on Monday, seems recommitted to bringing the pain.
Molloy, who has fallen to the #6 spot in the NYCHoops.net ranking, had their first real test on Tuesday against a ranked opponent when they hosted Westchester/Upstate #3 ranked Iona Prep. Although Anthony was curtailed due to early foul trouble, the Stanners still galvanized as a team to take down the Gaels, 73 – 61.
"When Cole steps away, that's a major part of our team," Stanners' Head Coach Mike McCleary confessed. "I don't think any one player can overcome it. We need all of them to contribute to get to that point."
Khalid Moore ‘18, who helped spearhead Molloy’s win, said the recent losses especially to Holy Cross were a wake-up call. “After our team came off a few losses, we really picked it up this time. We realized that you can’t come out and doubt the other team. You have to come out and play aggressive and that’s what we did today.”
The Stanners got the party started early as buckets and dunks from Anthony, Brown and Moore pushed Molloy out to an 8 – 2 advantage. American University-bound forward Josh Alexander ‘18 along with Romar Reid ‘18 helped close the gap for Iona Prep but the home team still held onto a 2-point lead and the momentum going into the second quarter.
Brown stepped up his game in the second quarter, demanding the ball and finishing strong at the rim. On one occasion the senior administered an emphatic dunk on Alexander followed by a stare down. With solid play from Jade Tse ‘18 when Anthony picked up two early fouls along with solid work from role players Orrin Barfield ‘18 and Danny Braster ‘19, the Stanners increased its lead to 40 – 33 as both teams headed to their respective locker rooms at the half.
The Gaels mounted a comeback in the third quarter as Alexander and Reid singed Molloy with perimeter shots. Bryce Wills ‘18 also found openings and with 4:10 left in the quarter an 11 – 4 Iona Prep run tied the game at 44. The Stanners regained the lead to start the final quarter but only held on to a 3-point edge.
The lead ping ponged throughout the top of fourth quarter but Brown along with Anthony, Moore, Tse and Braster punted Molloy into the driver’s seat for good and a 10-point gain with only 2-minutes left in regulation. Iona Prep was unable to recover.
Brown’s philosophy was simple in terms of how Molloy was to get back on track. “I’ve just gotta dominate the game on offense and defense and now that we’ve got Cole back we should be back to normal.”
The UCLA-bound center practiced what he preached, scoring a double-double (23 points & 14 rebounds). Moore netted 18 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists while Braster contributed 13 points and 7 rebounds. Iona Prep was paced by Alexander who scored 22 points & 5 rebounds with Wills adding 14 points & 7 rebounds.
Molloy’s record improves to 10 – 6 while Iona Prep falls to 13 – 4.
