Three Massachusetts natives combined for 74 points as the Tilton School (NH) concluded its best-ever season (29-2) by winning the 2008-09 National Prep School Championship within a week of winning its second straight NEPSAC Class B title.
UConn-bound Jamal Coombs-McDaniel (Dorchester) finished his outstanding prep career by being named tourney MVP for the school's first national championship, scoring 30 points and grabbing 13 rebounds in a 97-93 victory over Hargrave Military Academy (VA). Junior guard Gerard Coleman (West Roxbury) had 25 points and 6-9 senior forward Alex Oriachi (Lowell) had 19 points and 17 rebounds. Alex Kershaw (North Easton) also had 10 points and 8 rebounds.
Oriachi, another UConn recruit, is on the roster for two national elite invitational tournaments: the 2009 McDonald's All-American Game on April 1 in Miami and the Jordan Brand Classic to be held at Madison Square Garden on April 18.
Tilton earlier dispatched Marianapolis (CT), 87-78, in overtime for the NEPSAC Class B championship with tourney MVP Oriachi (28) and Coombs-McDaniel (23) once again dominating. It was the third straight NEPSAC Class B runner-up finish for Marianapolis, which had a superb 33-point performance by postgrad guard Chris Flores (O'Bryant).
Murphy and Lubick spark St. Mark's School to NEPSAC Class C title
Florida-bound Erik Murphy, a 6-9 senior center (Wakefield, RI), concluded his career at St. Mark's School (24-6) by contributing 18 points in an 86-53 victory over Holderness School (NH) to defend their NEPSAC Class 'C' title. St. Mark's also had contributions from Murphy's 6-6 freshman brother Alex, who had 13 points; Nate Lubick with 15, Melsahn Basabe with 14 and Dave Johnson with 11 points and 12 assists.
Lubick, a 6-8 junior forward commited to Georgetown, was named 2009 Massachusetts Gatorade Player of the Year for an award honoring athletic excellence, academic achievement and exemplary character on and off the court. Lubick averaged 17.6 points, 9.3 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 2.7 blocks and 1.5 steals per game. He also volunteers for the Special Olympics and is a Marlborough Boys and Girls Club mentor.
Murphy will play in the Reebok All-American Game on April 18 in Washington, D.C.
New England High School All-Star Boys Basketball Challenges in Springfield
The first annual New England High School All-Star Challenge organized by Basketbull, LLC and featuring the best public school players from all six New England states was won by the South, 111-99, at Springfield College.
For the South squad two members of the Windsor CT, Class LL state champions shined with game-high efforts of 19 points by Adrian Satchell and Tourney MVP Steven Samuels, MVP who added six assists and five steals. Other top efforts on the winning squad were by Billy Baron of Bishop Hendricken (RI), 13 points; Tom Knight, Dirigo (ME), 13; Chris Evans, Stamford (CT), 12 and Eric Jean-Guilleme, Trinity-Catholic (CT) 10.
The North was led by Ike Azotam of O'Bryant (14) and Louis Montes (12), Brockton, both headed to Marianapolis Academy next season and by Danny O'Keefe of Lexington (Bentley) and Kyle Stockmal of Watertown, each with 11. The Stockmal twins, Kyle and Corey, (also on the North squad) will play for New York University next season.
Behind 21 points by MVP 6-2 senior guard Sam Martin of of Worcester Academy (West Warwick, RI/ Yale), the West defeated East, 107-100, in the Prep School All-Star game. Ben Crenca of Exeter, RI, a 6-9 Worcester Academy center headed to Vermont, added 12 points and 9 rebounds. Flores netted 14 and Brimmer and May's Kyle Casey (Harvard) scored 13 points and had eight boards.
The East was led by Coombs-McDaniel (16 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists) and St. Sebastian's star Greg Jacques (16 points and 3 assists). Brian Fitzpatrick (UPenn) had 14 points. Springfield native Preye Preboye of Winchendon School scored seven points and Rashad Wright, formerly of Cathedral and a post-grad at South Kent Prep (CT), had 10 points and eight rebounds for the East.
Abdul-Quaadir named Massachusetts Girls Gatorade Player of the Year
Bilquis Abdul-Quaadir of New Leadership School in Springfield was named Massachusetts Gatorade Girls Basketball Player of the Year. The 5-3 point guard became the state's all-time leading boys and girls scorer with 3,070 points by averaging 42 points this season. Next year she joins the NCAA Division I University of Memphis squad as a scholarship player.
The award recognizes athletic excellence and high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the court. Abdul-Qaadir and Lubick are now finalists for the Gatorade National Basketball Players of the Year in the girls and boys divisions to be announced later this month.
Rivers is NEPSAC Class B Girls champion
The Rivers School girls’ basketball team (18-6) won the NEPSAC Class B championship by defeating Pomfret, 50-44, at Loomis Chaffee (CT). Tayra Melendez had 19 points, 10 rebounds and four assists to earn tournament MVP honors.
Pingree School is NEPSAC Class D1 Boys champion
Pingree School of South Hamilton earned the NEPSAC Class D1 boys basketball title with a 63-47 victory over Bancroft School in Suffield, Connnecticut. Guard Allen Williamson of Saugus, named tourney MVP, had 19 points and 11 rebounds to lead Pingree to the title. Teammate Lemarre Rey (Medford) also had 19 points for Pingree (25-7) and won the Eastern Independent League for the third year in a row. Pingree, the No. 4 seed, beat defending champion Hyde (Conn.) School, 56-47 and top seed Boston Trinity School, 61-54.
