Leading off today: Seven boys and six girls are finalists for the top player awards presented by the Basketball Coaches Association of New York.
BCANY released its lists of finalists for Mr. New York Basketball and Miss New York Basketball on Thursday. The winners of the awards for the state's top seniors will be announced next month.
The Mr. Basketball finalists are:
• Jose Alvarado, Christ the King: The 2016 CHSAA Class AA player of the year is averaging 17 points and 5.8 assists a game for the Royals. He's committed to Georgia Tech for the 2017-18 season.
• Elijah Buchanan, Mount St. Michael: Buchanan is averaging 24 points a game this season and 20.7 a game in his career for the Bronx school. He's reportedly deciding between offers from Fairfield and St. Peter's.
• Gregory Calixte, Mount Vernon: The Section 1 standout is averaging 14 points and nine rebounds a game for the Knights.
• Tyler Lamport South Kortright: The school's all-time leading scorer is averaging 33 points and eight rebounds this winter.
• Isaiah Washington, St. Raymond's: The University of Minnesota recruit is averaging 26 points and six assists this season.
• Dominick Welch, Cheektowaga: The Section 6 star is averaging 27.8 points and 12 rebouds a game. He's gone over 2,000 points and 1,200 rebounds for his career.
• Hameir Wright, Albany Academy: The MVP of the 2016 Federation Class A tournament is averaging 17.2 points and 9.2 rebounds as a senior.
The finalists for Miss Basketball are:
• Katherine Cain, Pine Bush: A University of Delaware recruit, she's averaging 25.2 points, 12.3 rebounds and 7.9 blocks a game.
• Andra Espinoza-Hunter, Ossining: Espinoza-Hunter, a UConn commit who returned after three seasons at Blair Academy in New Jersey, is averaging 37 points and seven rebounds. She has four 50-point games this season and is over 2,000 for her career.
• Annabelle Hinds, Northstar Christian: After averaging 26 points as a junior, the Section 5 standout is averaging 26.1 a game this winter.
