Ambrosio, Great Neck South advance
Stephen Ambrosio's basket with 6:29 left in the game gave No. 5 Great Neck South (14-4) the lead for good in its 59-54 home win over No. 12 Herricks in the first round of the Nassau Class AA boys basketball playoffs on Friday night.
Ambrosio's hoop gave Great Neck South a 45-43 lead after it trailed 35-24 early in the third quarter. Adam Warner scored 11 of his 18 points in a 20-11 fourth quarter, while Daniel Belmont added 12 points. Ambrosio scored 10 and Stav Sofi had nine points and 10 rebounds. Great Neck South will play at No. 4 East Meadow at 2 p.m. Tuesday in the quarterfinals.
Andrew Fellus led Herricks (8-11) with 21 points, but was held to just two in the second half.
Bellmore JFK 51, MacArthur 45: Joey Karo, who finished with 14 points and five rebounds, hit two free throws with five seconds left to give No. 8 Bellmore JFK (12-6) a 48-45 lead. Brian O'Gorman finished with 11 points, 10 rebounds and 12 blocks, and Will Colon scored 12 points. Bellmore JFK will play at No. 1 Baldwin at 7 p.m. Tuesday. Gerard Cunningham led No. 9 MacArthur (9-9) with 15 points.
Hempstead 49, Massapequa 41: Ismael Pierre had 17 points, 10 rebounds, six steals and five assists for No. 6 Hempstead (12-6), which outscored Massapequa 21-13 in the third quarter. Jonathan Valery added eight points. Hempstead will play at No. 3 Freeport at 3 p.m. Tuesday. Matt Smocovich's 14 points led No. 11 Massapequa (11-7).
Uniondale 64, Calhoun 48: Roderick Epps had 23 points and 11 rebounds for No. 7 Uniondale (12-6). Shaquille Mosley added 16 points and six assists, and Barry Robinson had 10 points and three assists. Uniondale will play at No. 2 Elmont 1 p.m. Tuesday. John Wigand's 18 points led No. 10 Calhoun (9-9).
Eastport-South Manor 43, Smithtown East 39: Curtis Smith scored 13 points for No. 17 Eastport-South Manor (13-6) in an overtime victory in a Suffolk Class AA outbracket game. Nick Gratto and Ryan McCormick each scored six points, while Daulton McCarthy added five points and 11 rebounds. Eastport-South Manor plays at No. 1 Half Hollow Hills West Saturday at noon. Jon Feiler scored 14 points for No. 16 Smithtown East (9-10), which outscored ESM 13-4 in the fourth quarter to force overtime.
Southampton 53, Babylon 50: Shaundell Fishburn scored 16 points and Onajja Browning added 14 for No. 4 Southampton (12-7) in a Suffolk Class B outbracket game. Colin Buonillo scored 11 points. Southampton will play at No. 1 Center Moriches at 6:15 p.m. Tuesday in the semifinals. Nahari Jenkins led No. 5 Babylon (6-13) with 15 points.
Chaminade 77, St. John the Baptist 52: James McCaffrey scored 16 points for Chaminade (8-3) in CHSAA. Kevin Sheehy added 15 points, and Richard Zoller had 14 points and four blocks. Dante Thompson-Smallwood led St. John the Baptist (4-6) with 16 points.
Waldorf 71, Solomon Schechter 62: Sean Proctor, who finished with 17 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists, had a tip-in with three seconds left in regulation to tie the game at 58 and force overtime for No. 1 Waldorf (17-3) in the IPPSAL final on Thursday. Landon Twine led the Wolverines with 28 points, while Brandon Verise-Kohan added 14. Danny Eiber led No. 2 Solomon Schechter (10-4) with 19 points.
