STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — New Dorp head coach Pat Hopkins didn’t mince words while describing first-year varsity player Sergio Batista.
“He’s a very aggressive player by nature — and a very streaky player too — so when he’s feeling it, sometimes I got to give him the green light,’’ the long-time mentor said with a smile. “Let him roll a little bit because he can score points in bunches.’’
The junior gave a first-hand example on Monday.
Batista scored a career-high 25 points, including 10 during the pivotal fourth quarter, as the Centrals pulled awar for a 65-49 closer-than-it-looks PSAL 3A victory over visiting McKee/Staten Island Tech.
Batista, who also buried a career-high five three-pointers, helped ND move into a first-place tie with Tottenville with identical 7-1 records in the Island division. The Centrals (9-4 overall) will visit the Pirates for a first-place showdown in Huguenot on Thursday (6 p.m.).
In addition to Batista, New Dorp also received offensive contributions from Elijah Pizarro (13 points, three treys), Billy Fraser (12 points, two treys) and James Flores (11 points).
Terence Legrand and Ray Guerriero scored 15 and 14 points, respectively, for the Seagulls (5-3 PSAL, 9-6 overall), who saw their six-game winning streak snapped.
“The kids dug deep and played really, really hard, especially in the second half after we made some adjustments because (Guerriero) was hurting us in the first half,’’ said Hopkins, who only received limited playing time from senior starters Omari Onwe and Josh Carter because of flu-like symptoms. ”I thought Billy Fraser did a fantastic job defensively and rebounding tonight. He’s a glue guy and we needed it knowing that (Onwe and Carter) were limited.’’
When Fraser canned a pair of free throws 13 seconds into the fourth quarter, New Dorp held a 45-41 lead. But Legrand responded almost immediately when he nailed a right-corner trey to make it a one-point game.
But if the Centrals were feeling the heat, they didn’t show it as they staged a pivotal 14-3 run that was the difference in the game.
New Dorp senior Billy Fraser squares up before releasing a three-point attempt against McKee/Staten Island Tech on Monday, Jan. 5, 2026. He finished with a pair of shots from behind the arc, thus giving him a total of 29 on the season.(Advance/SILive.com | Charlie De Biase Jr.)
Pizarro hit a three of his own, followed by a Flores bucket in transition. Guerriero nailed a trey to cut ND’s lead back to three (50-47), but Batista scored the next seven points in a 1:03 span.
The junior nailed a left-wing jumper, hit a driving layup in the lane and then electrified the crowd with a step-back, top-of-the-key three that made it 57-47 and had MSIT head coach Charlie Donohue signaling for time with 4:33 on the clock.
“I was feeling confident with how I dribbled and shot. Everything was just flowing for me,’’ said Batista through a translator. ”I wanted to take a shot anytime I could get one.
“When I hit (that step-back) three, I could feel the energy and was really feeling a boost of confidence.’’
“He’s definitely not afraid,’’ added Hopkins. ”He can put the ball in the basket and he really was a one-man wrecking crew out there, but I also credit the other guys on the floor with him because they weren’t just standing around waiting for him to make plays. We really moved well without the ball in the fourth quarter and it’s one of the reasons why we went on that run.’’
Flores, who tied his career high, upped ND’s lead to 12 after scoring on drive with 2:25 to go, but the Seagulls finally broke a 3:47 scoring drought when Lucas Gavin scored an interior basket.
Batista and Flores, however, put the icing on the cake when they hit back-to-back treys in the final 1:25 to help provide the final score.
NOTES: New Dorp finished with a whopping 11 three-pointers … The Centrals and Seagulls took only two free throws apiece in the contest (MSIT was 1 for 2) … Nizayah Jordan and Gavin added eight points apiece for the Gulls … New Dorp’s victory was greatly aided by taking care of the basketball as the team only committed nine turnovers, including three in the second half. MSIT had 23 miscues … The Seagulls won the battle of the boards, 31-29. Dalton Cherubin (nine), Guerriero (five), Legrand (five) and Gavin (five) paced the visitors while Fraser (six), Batista (five) and Sabian Green (five) led New Dorp … The Centrals swept the regular-season series after winning 55-44 at MSIT last month.