STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Stanley Kushnir scored a team-high 20 points, including the go-ahead three-point play in the final minute, as CSI/McCown pulled out a 67-63 PSAL 3A division victory over host Eagle Academy SI at the Dreyfus Intermediate School in Stapleton on Monday.
In addition to Kushnir, who scored 19 of his 20 markers after halftime, Xavier Farley (14 points, 17 rebounds, five blocks), Daniel Zajonc (11 points, three treys), Patrick Tucker (10 points, five assists) and Saed Gheith (10 points, five steals) also made big-time contributions for CSIM. The Dragons improved to 4-2 overall, including 3-1 in league play.
Armani Perez paced Eagle (2-4, 1-2) with a game-high 24 points while Juneek Daniels and Justin Webley added 10 points apiece.
CSIM overcame double-digit deficits in both the first and third quarters, according to head coach Danny Lee.
“Hard fought comeback victory,’’ said Lee. ”We had five guys in double digits which helped make up for the loss of (starter) Danny O’Connor, who was out with the flu.’’
The Dragons trailed 37-26 midway through the third quarter when they started hitting on all cylinders. Kushnir led the way with 10 points, Tucker added four and Zajonc gave the visitors significant momentum when his late three put CSIM ahead 44-42 entering the final eight minutes. It was the visitor’s first lead of the game.
Although the fourth quarter was nip-and-tuck, CSIM scored 23 points during the final eight minutes behind Kushnir (nine points) and Zajonc (five points).
After Perez hit a trey late to put Eagle up 63-61, Kushnir responded by completing a three-point play to give the Dragons a one-point lead with just 55 ticks left. CSIM proceeded to get a pair of stops in the final minute while Tucker and Kushnir teamed for three free throws to help solidify the victory.
“At halftime, the coaching staff told (Kushnir) he needed to be aggressive offensively and he came through big time,’’ concluded Lee.
Tottenville 50, MSIT 45
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Senior guard Danny Garcia poured in a season-high 30 points and the host Pirates held off the short-handed Seagulls to earn the PSAL 3A division victory in Huguenot.
Shiloh Ezderman added 11 points and Elias Souleidis chipped in with six markers for Tottenville (4-1, which won its fourth straight to improve to 3-0 in league play.
MSIT (2-4, 2-2), which played without leading scorer Nizayah Jordan (injury), were led by Terence legrand (12 points), Jayden Lin (11 points) and Christian Evans (nine points).
Garcia, who missed his career high by one point, finished with a season-high six three-pointers. He scored 17 points over the first three periods to help the Pirates carry a 33-25 lead into the fourth quarter.
Garcia then helped protect Tottenville’s lead by burying his final three triples and both of his free-throw attempts during the final eight minutes.
Ezderman sank 4 of 6 freebie attempts and also drained a three-pointer.
SIA 58, Berkeley Carroll 56
BROOKLYN, N.Y. — The Tigers stayed perfect on the season with a hard-fought 58-56 victory over ACIS foe Berkeley Carroll on Monday in Brooklyn.
Trailing 25-19 at the half, the Tigers erupted for 23 points in the third quarter, as point guard John Elefterakis drained a trio of three-pointers and scored 11 of his career-high 16 points in the period. Senior guard Danny Nowak scored six in the same period on his way to a game-high 18 points.
“Look up ‘winning ugly’ in the dictionary and you’ll probably see a recap of this game,” quipped SIA head coach, Mike Mazella. “There were stretches in the game when we probably completed as many passes to Berkeley Carroll as we did to our own teammates. Luckily, (Elefterakis) caught fire in the second half and really gave us the boost we needed.”
Fighting from behind for most of the middle quarters, the Tigers finally clawed to a 31-29 lead when Elefterakis canned a three midway through the third period. After BC countered with its own three-pointer, Ayden Howe answered with a driving score and Gabe Moschella (11 points) converted off a steal and assist from Elefterakis to make it 35-32, Tigers.
Senior Luke DeVito scored six in the final period and got a key steal and assist to Elefterakis as the visitors’ lead would balloon to 50-40 with 5:00 remaining in the final quarter. However, a host of Tigers turnovers allowed BC to creep back into the game, and the hosts trimmed the Tigers’ lead to 52-51 before Nowak found Elefterakis alone in the corner for a clutch three to restore a four-point lead for SIA.
“That was a big-time shot,” Mazella noted. We were careless with the ball against their pressure, and they did a really nice job of trapping, rotating, and cutting down passing lanes on the small court. Luckily, Danny found John, and he hit the biggest shot of the game.”
BC, though, would not quit, and after the Lions tied the game 55-55, Moschella earned a trip to the foul line and converted both free throws to give SIA a 57-55 lead. A free throw by BC cut the lead to one before another freebie from Moschella with three second left gave the Tigers their final margin of victory.
“Our assistant coach [Joe Nesci] called it ‘learning while winning,’” Mazella explained. “We always talk about taking a positive and learning something from a loss, but sometimes you can learn important lessons about staying together and persevering even when you’re not playing your best. And if you’re lucky, you can escape with a win.”
And it was a win the Tigers were more than willing to take.
SIA (4-0 overall, 2-0 ACIS) is right back in league action Tuesday when it visits Leman in an ACIS matchup in Manhattan.
Junior varsity
Petrides 52, Port Richmond 46
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Deen Wyne paced a balanced attack with 17 points, including three three-pointers, as the Panthers held on for the PSAL 1A division victory over the visiting Raiders in Sunnyside.
Hamza Abuzahrieh (16 points) and Evan Duran (15 points) also contributed offensively for Petrides, which improved to 2-1 in league play.
Mike Konczynski finished with 15 points, including a pair of treys and a conventional three-point play, for the Raiders. Jozyah Ortiz and Cameron Smith added 12 and 10 points, respectively for PR.
The Panthers owned a slim 33-32 lead at the end of three periods when Wyne headed a charge that helped them get some separation. The sophomore scored eight points, including a 4-for-4 performance from the free throw line, while Abuzahrieh and Duran teamed for another 11 markers to help Petrides hold on.
Tottenville 67, MSIT 60
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Lucas Souleidis finished with a game-high 26 points to lift the Pirates to the PSAL 1A division overtime victory over the visiting Seagulls in Huguenot.
Souleidis, who buried three treys, scored five points in OT to help Tottenville pull out the victory.
Blair Tadros chipped in with 20 points and Adam Musleh added 14 — all in the second half — for the Pirates. Raymond Markis, meanwhile, had a monster game on the backboards with 17 rebounds (seven offensive).
Adam Kaba finished with a team-high 19 points and James Thomas added 13 (three treys) for the Seagulls.