Jordan Suburban 104, Jordan City 89
by Matthew Moll
NEW YORK – The regional game of the Jordan Classic featured some of the best high school basketball players of the New York metropolitan area. The invitational pitted standouts from the five Burroughs against suburbanites who were also successful this past season. Jordan Suburban held off a late second half push by Jordan City to prevail 104-89.
Six Suburban players scored in double figures, including 23 from Craig Austrie and 17 from Alvin Mofunanya, who were named co-MVP’s of the invite. Austrie recently reconsidered his commitment to UMass after the Steve Lappas firing and is now headed to play for Jim Calhoun and the Connecticut Huskies while Mofunanya is heading to the A-10 via St. Joseph’s.
The City team overcame a four-point first half deficit to tie the game at 49 with over 17 minutes remaining. But the Suburban team would not relinquish the game they had owned for the majority of the night. Jordan Suburban used a late 13-7 run to pull away for good, and their final lead of 15 was their second-largest through out the contest.
Pittsburgh-bound Mike Davis pulled down 13 boards for the City team to lead all players. Coach Oliver Antigua of St. Raymond High School in the Bronx was the victorious coach. Antigua was joined in the game by two of his players, Ricky Torres and Chris Bethel.
Sites and sounds
- Austrie and Mofunanya may have taken home the hardware, but several other players captivated the crowd with improv passing, delicious dishes, and head-turning dunks.
- Terrence Grier was this game’s Mr. Excitement, keeping opponents’ heads on a swivel. The 6’0″ turbo-charged guard from Cranford, NJ had five assists in the game, three of which were alley-oops that awed players and fans alike. Grier also had dunks of his own, completing an alley-oop from Monmouth bound Tyson Johnson, and a thunderous dunk with under 1:21 that brought those in attendance to their feet for the rest of the contest. Grier also made his case for the And1 Mixed Tape Tour with his fake pass into a dribble between his legs that dropped his only defender and freed the lane during a fast break in the first half.
- Ricky Torres began the on-court theatrics with a pass to himself, which ended with an exclamation point of a dunk early in the first half. Torres’ used his passing to wow the Garden, once saving a loose ball between his legs to a wide-open teammate and late tossing a perfectly timed ball off the backboard for an Akeem Gooding finish.
- Herbie Allen, the newest guard for Tim O’Toole’s Fairfield squad, went for 19 points, including hitting 4-for-9 from beyond the arc. But Allen’s most memorable plays will not show in the box scores. Twice Allen’s cross over broke the ankles of his opponents and awoke the oft-obstinate NYC audience.
- Tyson Johnson’s inside-outside game will be well utilized at Monmouth next season. Johnson also was able to use his 6’5″ frame to cause an eruption in the crowd after taking lob pass from Grier, but also showed his range with an effortless jumper.
- Qa’rraan Calhoun was the recipient of a Grier lob pass, which received complementary acknowledgement early in the first half, but his high-wire act began with a breakaway reverse slam after a Suburban steal in the first.
Deserve a second look
- Thirteen of the 18 participants in the Jordan Classic Regional game are slated to compete at the NCAA level while others took the opportunity to increase their stock for next season or give schools something to think about as they choose to go the Junior College or prep school route.
- Grier’s flash frenzied the fickle fans, but his ability to score and create will get him some attention for the next level. He is listed at 6’0″, which is tall enough to play point at many schools, but his quickness is good enough for any.
- Calhoun impressed early with his hops, but showed he could do it all in the second half dropping three dimes and caroling five caroms. The 6’7″ small forward shot 60 percent from the field largely because of his ability to find openings on the floor for easy lay ups, the New Jersey native was also a perfect 5-for-5 from the line. Athletic and quick, a year getting stronger could put him at a high level in 2006.
Ready to contribute now
- With the loss of Brooklyn’s Chris Taft, Pitt will need to add depth in the middle to fill the 6’10” void. Mike Davis looks as if he can provide such depth grabbing 13 rebounds in 20 minutes. The 6’9″ Davis only weighs in at 215 which is not enough for the bigs of the Big East, but his knack for finding the ball should score Davis minutes.
- Phil Martelli is getting a versatile forward in Alvin Mofunanya who showed he can block shots (4) and find the ball (eight boards) in a game which less than encouraged defense. Mofunanya showed offensive range as well going 5-for-9 from the field including 2-for-4 from beyond the arc.
