Leading off today: There are certainly other obstacles awaiting -- most notably Newburgh Free Academy and Half Hollow Hills West -- but you have to like the odds of the Section 1 survivor in the NYSPHSAA boys Class AA basketball tournament.

   New Rochelle, Poughkeepsie and Mount Vernon were all ranked in the top 10 this week by the New York State Sportswriters Association, and North Rockland checked in at No. 23.

   Yesterday, No. 4 New Rochelle kicked off a tough stretch on its schedule with a 62-58 victory over No. 10 Mount Vernon, overcoming a 13-point deficit in the fourth quarter. Antoine Mason (22 points) tied the score with a steal and a dunk with 1:38 left then made two free throws with 11.3 seconds left for the go-ahead points.

   The Huguenots will take on Iona Prep, ranked second in Class A, on Saturday. And then comes the rematch at Mount Vernon two days later.

   "We thought this would be a week where we find out where we stand in the section," coach Bill Murphy told The Journal News "Let's face it, Mount Vernon's always going to be the team you test yourself up against."

   Mount Vernon, which would be riding a string of 10 straight Section 1 championships if not for New Ro in '05, got 22 points from Jabarie Hinds -- but only two in the second half.

   "This team does not have a great identity yet for closing games," Mount Vernon coach Bob Cimmino said. "We gave up a nice lead to All Hallows and lost at our place, also. I like what I see for a majority of the game. We just have to step up at crunch time."

   Tough sledding: Peekskill is going to stand out a little bit in the next set of Class A rankings because it seems a bit early in the year for a five-loss Class A team to be ranked. Considering, though, that the setbacks before yesterday's 75-67 loss to Poughkeepsie were to Iona Prep, Long Island Lutheran -- both ranked in Class A -- and Xaverian and Wings Academy, the Red Devils (9-5) still get the benefit of the doubt as they aim for their sixth straight trip to Glens Falls.

   Which isn't to say that coach Lou Panzanaro isn't concerned.

   "We're just not executing, and we've been harping on that all year long," he said. "We just make one bad play and let the close games get away from us. And I'm sure we're going to be in close games in the playoffs."

   Poughkeepsie's Nate Gause was the star of the afternoon, scoring 39 points. Dayvon Whitaker chipped in with 23 to help offset Peekskill's Kenny Bradshaw (23).

   End of the line: Though the schools are just seven miles apart, Maple Hills and Ichabod Crane may have played their last basketball games against each other for quite some time.

   The combination of Ichabod Crane's impending move to the Colonial Council and enrollment differences means they won't meet in league or sectional contests, leaving

Road To Glens Falls boys hoops site

just increasingly rare non-league slots on the schedule as possibilities.

   The schools had a varsity boys/girls doubleheader yesterday. Christopher Despart led Maple Hill with 17 points and Sean Danaher added 12 in a 51-39 boys triumph. The victory avenged its only loss of the season, a 44-37 defeat at Ichabod Crane Jan. 14.

   Both teams are 13-1, with Ichabod Crane ranked 15th in the state in Class A and Maple Hill sixth in Class C.

   Earlier in the day, junior Katie Roth scored 27 points in a 42-35 win, Maple Hill's 60th straight in the Patroon Conference. Ichabod Crane is 12-2.

   Sunday reading: Two excellent reads from this weekend on vastly different topics:

   Leading off, there was a look at the topic of concussions this morning by Kevin Witt at The Times Herald-Record. His story -- told through the eyes of athletes, coaches and medical experts -- does a good job of explaining how perceptions have changed in recent years.

   "Back in the day, it was thought you needed to get knocked out to have a concussion," Witt wrote. "If a kid got his bell rung, ask him a few questions. If he gets them right, send him back in the game. But experts at local, state, national and international levels are saying proper diagnosis and treatment of concussions must override the notion of playing through the injury. Especially with children, whose brains still are developing."

   The story is pegged to tomorrow's forum in Houston, where the U.S. House Judiciary Committee will look at how high school and colleges are handling the issue of head injuries.

   On another topic, Zach Braziller of The New York Post caught up with Jose Rodriguez and Joey Delarosa, who bolted St. Raymond's in favor over sharpening their skills at Impact Basketball Academy and Trinity International High in Las Vegas    According to the story, NBA players including Kevin Garnett and O.J. Mayo routinely drop by in the fall to work on their games.

   "I was like, 'Oh my god,'" Rodriguez said. "I’m getting the best training I possibly can."