The final weekend of regular season pool play in the Funsport Junior Pros tournament at JHS 113 in Brooklyn saw several teams on the "bubble" battle for playoff spots while four pool leaders finish unbeaten at 5-0 to secure the top seeds in the upcoming playoffs. Sixteen of the original 30 teams will now begin a single-elimination playoff round, leading to the January 3 Championship Finals at Madison Square Garden.
Gauchos-Mapp needed two wins on Saturday to qualify as the third seed in Pool C, and they got it done, edging Future Ones 52-51 and defeating Riverside Blue 50-22. The game against Future Ones was close throughout with the Gauchos getting the "W" when Kelvin Riley (Mount Carmel, NYC) converted an inbounds pass underneath with 30 seconds left. DeAnte Burton (Williamsburg, New London CT) topped the Gauchos (3-2) with 12 points and steady play at the point, while Riley, Devonte Green (Robert Moses, Babylon LI), and Jaquan McKennon (Allen AME, Queens) added 10 points apiece. Anton McNeil (Environmental Science, NYC) netted a game-high 27 points for Future Ones (2-3), which fell out of playoff contention with the loss.
The City also punched their playoff ticket with a pair of victories, giving them a 4-1 record and the second seed in Pool B. Their big win was a 59-54 decision over Riverside-8 behind a clutch fourth quarter performance from Michael Williams (Mott Hall IV Middle, Brooklyn). Williams gave The City the lead for good with two putbacks early in the final period, saved the lead with a key block down the stretch, and sealed the win with a driving left-hand layup with 38 seconds left. He recorded 8 points and 7 rebounds in the fourth quarter, finishing the game with 15 points and 9 rebounds. Teammate Eric Paschall (Dobbs Ferry Middle, NY) scored a game-high 20 points while Riverside (3-2) was led by Zach Boscar (Birch Wathen Lenox, NYC) with 18 points and Stephen Milhaven (Weber Middle, Port Washington LI) with 13.
C-3 Elite grabbed the last playoff spot with a 3-2 record in Pool A, downing New Heights-Red 54-32 behind Lamont Peebles (IS 323, Brooklyn) with 27 points and 11 rebounds, and Adam Goldsberry (IS 323, Brooklyn) with 21 points.
Above and Beyond (Pool E) became the first team to reach 5-0 with a forfeit win over Team Flagrant (1-4) while Brooklyn Ballers-A (Pool C) also got to 5-0 on Saturday with a 49-44 triumph over LI Lightning, despite being outscored 17-3 in the fourth quarter. Tyrone Johnson (IS 184, Brooklyn) and Neuby St. Hillaire (IS 62, Brooklyn) topped the Ballers with 15 points apiece while Johnson also recorded 7 assists and St. Hillaire grabbed 11 rebounds. The Lightning (0-5) received 13 points from Makai Ortley (Trinity Lutheran, Hicksville LI) and 12 points from Jamel Whitehead (MS 571, Brooklyn).
On Sunday, both Starrett City (Pool A) and NJ Pirates (Pool C) easily swept two games to also head into the playoffs as undefeated first seeds. Starrett spotted St. Mark's a 6-0 lead before taking control with 15-0 run en route to a 64-29 triumph. Isaiah Whitehead (IS 288, Brooklyn) took off in the third quarter with 14 points and 7 boards, finishing with a 23-point, 12-rebound double. Chancellor Ellis (Allen AME, Queens) had 3 three's among his 21 points while Marquis Morton (IS 288, Brooklyn) set a new Junior Pros season-high with 11 assists. Marvin Prochet (IS 14, Brooklyn) topped St. Mark's (3-2) with 12 points. Whitehead later had 16 points and Morton added 15 in an 80-23 romp over New Heights-Red (1-4).
Mike Silverthorn (St. Mary's, Hackettstown NJ) had back-to-back 21 point games, leading the Pirates past F.Y.A. (56-30) and LI Lightning-McNeil (56-49). John Hilliman (Franklin Middle, Somerset NJ) added 13 points against Lightning-McNeil, which received 18 points from Janvier Johnson and 10 points from Raven Owens.
In other results: The final game of the regular season was a down-to-the wire affair as Brooklyn Ballers-B overtook LI Lightning-McNeil in the final quarter and held on for a 36-35 decision. Darius James (MS 88, Brooklyn) had 13 points for the Ballers, who nailed down the second seed in Pool D with a 4-1 record. Jared Wilson had the game-high of 16 points for Lightning-McNeil, which dropped to 2-3 and the third seed in the pool. . Team Underrated (4-1) clinched the second seed in Pool E with a 42-29 triumph over Team Flagrant (1-4). Brandon Tolliver (Riverhead Middle, LI) recorded 12 points and 11 rebounds, Kyle Williams (Freeport Middle, LI) had 8 points and 12 boards, and Chris Davis (Scholars Academy, Queens) added 11 points with 8 rebounds for the winners. . . Abyssinian finished pool play at 2-3, receiving a game-high 19 points from Jaquan Hickman (MS 379, NYC) while holding off New Heights-Blue 39-35. Adonis Delarosa (MS 399, Bronx) led New Heights with 15 points and 10 rebounds. . . Earlier, Delarosa had 20 points and 13 boards as New Heights-Blue earned their first win (1-4) with a 67-49 defeat of the Brooklyn Patriots. Aaron Walker (St. Gregory, Brooklyn) dropped a game-high 24 points to top the Patriots (1-4), which led 19-10 after the first quarter. New Heights rallied behind the hot shooting of Kyle Goldfard (Poly Prep, Brooklyn), who knocked down six three-pointers and matched Delarosa with 20 points. . . Ty Jerome (Masters, Westchester NY) netted five three's for Riverside-7 (2-3) in their season-ending win over Elite NYC (1-4).
