St. Mary's joins LuHi in Federation final
Saint Mary's Charles McCann dunks the ball during their game with Midwood at the 2010-2011 NYS Federation Basketball Championships in Albany N.Y. (March 25, 2011) Credit: Pat Orr
ALBANY -- It will be an all-Long Island state Federation Class A final on Saturday night. It also will be a rematch.
Newsday's No. 1-rated boys basketball team, St. Mary's, used a 13-0 fourth-quarter spurt to defeat New York City PSAL champion Midwood, 67-44, Friday night in a semifinal game. The Gaels (29-0) will face Long Island Lutheran, Newsday's No. 2 team. The Crusaders beat Jamesville DeWitt earlier Friday, 75-71.
"I'd be lying if I said we weren't looking forward to the rematch," St. Mary's coach Bill Harkins said. "They showed how tough they were . Two great teams. It's nice to see two Long Island teams in the finals."
That hasn't happened since St. Mary's beat Amityville, 65-61, in overtime in the 2001-02 Federation Class B final.
Friday night's victory over Midwood allowed St. Mary's to set the Long Island boys record for victories in a season, surpassing the mark of 28 by Westhampton in 1997-98. The Gaels defeated LuHi in a thriller, 57-55, on Jan. 13.
Chavaughn Lewis, who led St. Mary's with 30 points, was particularly outstanding in the second half. He scored off a dazzling steal and behind-the-back pass from Khalif Chaplin to complete a 10-0 run that gave the Gaels a 45-32 lead.
Midwood scored the final six points of the third quarter to cut the deficit to seven, but Lewis broke it open with a marvelous fourth quarter that displayed his myriad skills. He opened the period with a steal, then glided through two players to finish for a layup. On the next possession, he sank a corner three to make it 50-38.
Then he scored on a breakaway dunk and step-back three to make it 59-42 as St. Mary's coasted to the finish line.
"That's his game. That's how he plays," Harkins said. "He makes us go. He played both sides of the ball. What stat box didn't he fill?"
Lewis had nine rebounds, four assists, three blocks and three steals. He also had seven turnovers. "I can live with that," Harkins said. "That's what happens when you play at that pace."
Charles McCann, who picked up three fouls in the first half, had nine points and 12 rebounds for St. Mary's. Point guard Dante Agnew also played a spotless floor game with 10 points and eight assists. "He's a pass-first point guard. That makes a coach look good," Harkins said.
A gaggle of Gaels did that for Harkins Friday night. Especially in the second half, when St. Mary's turned a 30-28 game into a routine rout.
Said Harkins, "That's when we made things happen."
