By Jim Stout
Maxpreps.com
The talk had been considerable this season about the rise of the White Plains High boys basketball team and its ability to compete at the same elite level as storied Section 1 rival Mount Vernon.
Sherrod Wright of Mount Vernon said he'd heard enough.
"I was tired of hearing everybody talk about (White Plains) and how they could beat Mount Vernon," Wright said. "I wanted to come out here and beat them by 20. We were giving them no slack. I don't want to hear that hype anymore."
For now, Mount Vernon doesn't have to.
Sparked by the brilliant play of Rutgers-bound senior guard Michael Coburn, Mount Vernon remained undefeated and ran its home court winning streak to 81 games as it thrashed White Plains, 91-68, before a capacity crowd and a MSG-TV audience last Friday.
Mount Vernon, the defending state Class AA champions, has won 17 games in a row overall and has beaten White Plains (10-2) 12-straight times. Mount Vernon (9-0) is ranked 17th in the nation by USA Today.
With Rutgers coach Fred Hill in attendance, Coburn hit 15 of 20 shots from the field and scored 34 points, while dishing out seven assists. He helped sparked a 15-2 third-quarter run by Mount Vernon that turned a relatively tight game into a 20-point lead for the Knights entering the final period.
Mount Vernon coach Bob Cimmino also received stellar play from his bench, using 10 players in the first quarter alone and 11 in the first half.
Coburn, however, stole the show for the most part. He is averaging 20.4 points per game in his last five outings against White Plains.
"Wow; that's all I can say about (Coburn), just 'Wow,' " Cimmino told the Journal News. "(White Plains) came into his house and he was up to the task. This is his house. Michael just let's us share it."
Said White Plains coach Spencer Mayfield: "(Coburn) had his way today. He was outstanding. We couldn't stop him. We couldn't stay in front of him. We couldn't double him. We had no answers for him."
White Plains had no answers, either, for Mount Vernon's depth, which helped keep the game at a furious pace and eventually wore down the Tigers.
"I'm gonna (use a lot of players)," Cimmino said. "We like to play on big, long courts. It means we've got a lot of players, we've got some interchangeable parts and they all play hard. We'd like to win the game in the fourth quarter. The fourth quarter is the one that counts and we feel that if we play more guys, we're going to be fresher when the time comes."
Sean Kilpatrick scored 27 points for White Plains, whose only previous loss this season was to nationally-ranked Mater Dei of Santa Ana, Calif.
Mount Vernon and White Plains meet again Feb. 5 at White Plains. Mount Vernon will play Norcross, Ga., on Monday in Springfield, Ma., as part of the Hall of Fame Hoop Classic.
Ossining Runs Out of Steam
Ossining nearly enjoyed a week for the ages last week, first scoring a landmark win over Stepinac, then jumping out to a 17-point first-half lead against defending state Class A champ Peekskill.
But Peekskill cut its deficit to nine by halftime and produced a strong third quarter before pulling away for a 70-63 victory, thus handing Ossining its first loss of the season.
Elliot Watson provided the third-quarter heroics for Peekskill, scoring seven points and grabbing seven rebounds in the period to cut the deficit to 48-44. Watson, a 6-foot-5 junior, finished with 14 points, 11 rebounds and six blocked shots.
Standout junior Mookie Jones and De'Von Beaufort highlighted a 10-0 rally to start the fourth quarter that gave Peekskill the lead for good. Beaufort had 18 points and five steals.
"We knew if we held our heads up and held our ground early on, we'd be able to fight back," Jones told the Journal News. "That's what Peekskill does, we keep fighting and we never stopped running."
"We were ready for this game; we just couldn't make a couple of key plays down the stretch that we needed," Ossining's Kenny Horton said.
"We've got to cut back on the turnovers and little mistakes. We've got to stop fouling. If we're fouling, then we're slacking off on defense. If we pick up our defense, we'll be all right."
Notre Dame-Utica Reaches Juggler Final
Six-foot-5 all-state forward Kendrick Pollard registered 22 points and five assists and 6-5 teammate Steve Campbell added 12 points and eight rebounds as tournament host Notre Dame of Utica reached the finals of the 34th annual Juggler Classic with Saturday's 67-54 victory over Westhill at SUNYIT's Campus Center Gym.
Notre Dame, 12-2 and ranked 14th in the state's Class A poll, plays Fayetteville-Manlius (9-3) - a 50-47 winner over East High of Buffalo - in the final. Westhill (8-4) and East High (8-2) meet in the consolation game.
"(Westhill) put a lot of pressure on our guards, so we tried to focus on getting the ball down low because we have a little size advantage," Pollard told the Utica Observer-Dispatch.
"They played well defensively. They made us start our offense in places we aren't used to, but we relied on getting the ball down low and we got some easy baskets. Getting the ball inside is what we worked on all week and tonight, it proved to be effective."
Fayetteville-Manlius beat Buffalo's East High - ranked No. 3 in the state's Class B poll - on Meril Tili's three-point play with eight seconds remaining. Patrick Lee led F-M with 14 points and Damien Goodwin scored 18 for East High.
Finney's Marchard Tops 50-Point Mark
Senior Andy Marchand scored a school record 51 points on Friday as Finney defeated Webster Christian, 86-55, in a non-league game.
"My team did a great job of getting me open," Marchand told the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle. "I had a lot of points in the first half. My teammates kept feeding me the ball and I was feeling it."
Marchand shot 19-of-28 from the field, including 6-of-10 from 3-point range. He also hit seven of seven free throws.
"We played great defense that allowed us to get those fast-break transition points," said Marchand, who has more than 1,500 career points. "They did a great job running the plays to get myself open."
Marchand scored 15 points in the first quarter, five in the second, and 17 in the third.
He then scored 14 consecutive points in the fourth quarter before coming out of the game with 4:12 remaining.
Gavin Spuck grabbed 11 rebounds and had five steals for the Falcons (9-3).
Niagara Falls Star In McDonald's Game Running
Jonathan Flynn of the Niagara Falls has been nominated for one of the 24 spots on the McDonald's All-American team. Flynn is among 2,500 male and female nominees, but is considered a strong candidate to make the team. Final rosters will be announced on ESPN in February.
The 30th annual game will be played March 28 at Freedom Hall in Louisville, Ky., and broadcast live on ESPN. Flynn, a 5-foot-11 senior point guard, averages about 30 points and five assists for the Wolverines.
Injuries Halt Orchard Park-Williamsville North Game
An injury to two Orchard Park players resulted in the suspension of last Thursday's ECIC I contest against Williamsville North.
With the score tied, 35-35, with 1:49 left in the third quarter, seniors Jim Brewer and Andy Buyea collided while going after a rebound. While ambulance personnel strapped both players onto immobilizing back boards, the coaches agreed to suspend the game.
Both players were taken to Erie County Medical Center. Brewer was treated for neck injuries and was released. Buyea was kept overnight for observation. The results of a CT scan were negative.
"Both teams were pretty shaken," North coach Chuck Swierski told the Buffalo News. "I talked to (Orchard Park coach) Bob Rumschik and we agreed there were more important things to do than finish the game."
Horseheads Coach Wins No. 200
Horseheads' coach Steve Monks won his 200th career game on Friday as his team rallied in the second half and handed Binghamton its first loss in Southern Tier Athletic Conference play, 78-71.
Horseheads (12-1) went ahead to stay, 72-70, when 6-foot-4 Derek Lewis tipped home a teammate's misfired three-point attempt with just over two minutes remaining.
Binghamton (8-3) dropped to a STAC Metro Division-leading 6-1 despite a combined 50 points from Brian Johnson and Azim Griffin. That pair teamed for 39 points in the first half before Horseheads adjusted on the defensive end and limited the two to three second-half field goals.
"(Defensive-minded JV coach) Jeff Limoncelli turned to me after the first quarter and said, 'Coach Monks, this is your kind of game, 25-24. It's going to be in the hundreds,' " Monks told the Binghamton Press and Sun-Bulletin. "I told him, 'I don't care if it's 99-98 so long as Horseheads got to 99.'
"We gave a lot more (defensive) help in the second half," Monks added. "We doubled down with everybody and we took our big man and left him right in the paint, told him to stay right there."
O'Rourke Wins No. 400 at Webster Thomas
Bill O'Rourke, Jr. of Webster Thomas won his 400th career game in a 56-50 triumph over visiting Greece Arcadia as his team overcame a 6-for-33 shooting performance in the first half.
Arcadia had a 28-21 lead at halftime.
"We were getting good shots, but missing point blank; nothing was going in," O'Rourke told the Democratic & Chronicle. "I don't know if they were feeling the pressure or if it was a combination of things, but we came out in the third with a 16-3 run."
Thomas led 42-37 after three quarters and held on.
"My only regret in the whole wonderful thing is that my dad couldn't have been here to see (win No. 400)," O'Rourke added, referring to his late father. "He passed away in May. But ... maybe he took the lid off the hoop in the second half. Who knows?"
O'Rourke received a basketball signed by the team and engraved with his name and the 400th win. More than 100 fans attended a reception in his honor afterward.
Watervliet Maintains Hold On First Place
Rahiem Smith and Jason Keevern combined for all five Watervliet points in overtime Friday as the Cannoneers defeated Albany Academy, 61-59, in a Colonial Council showdown at Albany Academy.
"I have to call them Mr. Smith and Mr. Keevern now," Watervliet basketball coach George Mardigan told the Albany Times-Union. "I have to show them a little more respect. I've been calling them some nasty names in practice."
Watervliet (9-2, 6-1) remains atop the league standings, one game ahead of Cohoes and Lansingburgh. Albany Academy (8-4, 6-3) drops into a fourth-place tie with Schalmont.
Fredette, Glens Falls Continues to Roll
With an 83-70 win over Gloversville, Glens Falls (11-1, 6-0) has rattled off seven straight victories, earning a No. 2 state ranking in Class A. Jimmy Fredette, who has a full ride to play basketball for BYU, is a major reason why.
After a 29-29 draw at intermission, Fredette, who is seven points shy of reaching 2,000 points for his career, caught fire in the third quarter. He shook off a 5-for-14 first half from the field and nearly outscored Gloversville (9-3, 4-2) on his own, netting 15 of his 32 points. The Dragons did just two better than Fredette in the quarter. He finished the game shooting 12-for-25.
Corning East Finds Its Basketball Legs
Corning East, which struggled early in the season following a championship football run by the school, won its seventh game in a row on Friday with a 91-67 rout of Ithaca.
The Trojans matched a modern-day school record with their 91 points and improved to 7-3 overall, 5-2 in the STAC.
Senior Shawn Roe, who played an integral role as a two-way starter for East's state championship football team, once again led the way for the basketball Trojans, netting five 3-pointers and a game-high 28 points.
Roe even made a run at the single-game school scoring record he set just two weeks ago, but sat out the entire fourth quarter as East led by 25 after three periods.
"I'm not going to take anything away from the state (football) championship; the boys earned it and I'm really proud of them," East coach Bill Hopkins told the Corning Leader.
``But the fact that they won the state championship, it truly had an impact on our (basketball) start, when your best player is a member of the state championship squad. So Shawn looked like a different player those first three games. He's a much more complete player now in the middle of January than when we started on December 1."
Jim Stout is the MaxPreps.com master photographer for the Massachusetts/Rhode Island area and a Northeast region columnist. He may be reached at j.stout@jmstout.org