The weekly look at the New York City metro area's PSAL, CHSAA and AIS schools for the New York State Sportswriters Association is compiled by Mike Libert:

1) St. Raymond (17-4)- It wasn't easy in the Ravens one game they had this week 
when on Friday afternoon they travels to Bronx rivals Mount St. Michael. Trail-
ing by 10 after three quarters, St. Ray's rallied back with an extra session 
needed to settle this one. In the end the Ravens got 22 points from sophomore 
guard Malachi Smith '21 to help them to a 79-77 victory which helps them main-
tain the top spot yet again this week. A pair of home games are coming up on 
the schedule this week as St. Francis Prep will start things off for St. Ray-
mond on Tuesday before a visit in from Iona Prep comes on Friday.

2) Bishop Loughlin (19-1)- Winning their two games this past week by a combined 
four points shows that while the Lions are very good this season the CHSAA will 
always provide test after test. A road game on Sunday afternoon against Arch-
bishop Molloy was more of a challenge then many thought as it was 22 points 
from Julian Champagnie '19 leading the way in a hard fought 55-53 win, and then 
on Friday night it was back in Queens, and another big Champagnie performance 
as he had 25 in what was a 70-68 OT victory over a very good Christ the King 
team. Just one game will be awaiting Bishop Loughlin this week and it comes on 
Tuesday at home against a young Iona Prep team.

3) Cardinal Hayes (18-4)- Three games and three wins for the Cardinals who took 
league wins over St. Peter's and St. Francis Prep, both of which came on the 
road before a strong outing on Saturday's Senior Night allowed them to blow 
past Class A power Nazareth 94-77 in a non-league game that saw a junior rise 
up in Shemani Fuller '20 as the big man had a career high 24 points to lead 
Cardinal Hayes to the victory. It's a one game week coming up here for the 
Cardinals as they will once again hit the road, a common theme for them as of 
late, to take on a still improving Msgr. Scanlan that could be a sneaky game to 
watch on Friday night.

4) Thomas Jefferson (18-5)- Coming back from a long break isn't always easy as 
proven by the Orange Waves struggle to a 54-51 victory over Boys & Girls this 
past Tuesday in their only game of the week. Jaquan Carlos '21 had 21 points 
while Kevin Tabb '20 added a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds in 
the win that puts Thomas Jefferson in the pole position for the PSAL Brooklyn 
AA regular season title. Just one game on the schedule this week but it's a big 
one on Thursday evening as Jefferson will go on the road to take on South Shore 
in a game where the winner claims the regular season crown.

5) South Shore (19-4)- For a while it looked like South Shore would cruise to 
the PSAL Brooklyn AA title, but that all changed last Tuesday when the Vikings 
went on the road and fell to Abraham Lincoln 78-73 in a game where Kadary Rich-
mond '19 scored 25 points, though South Shore couldn't rally past a poor third 
quarter in falling for the second time in league play this year. It's a winner 
take all game this coming Thursday when the Vikings host Thomas Jefferson in a 
game that will see the victor take the Brooklyn AA regular season title.

6) Christ the King (12-8)- When you look at the pieces that the Royals have been 
missing so far this season it's amazing to really see just how well they have 
played. That was backed up again this past Sunday when Christ the King rallied 
from a late fourth quarter deficit to find a way to get the game into OT and 
defeat Xaverian on the road 61-58 behind the 18 points and 12 rebounds of Nate 
Curry '19. A home win over Holy Cross followed that up before a tough 70-68 loss 
to our #2 Bishop Loughlin team in a loss that did show that the Royals can com-
pete and play with anyone in the league this season. A tough home game is coming 
up on Tuesday for Christ the King in Mount St. Michael before a Friday night 
road game at Archbishop Molloy.

7) Xaverian (15-5)- So close to defeating Christ the King for a second time on 
the season, Xaverian got 26 points from one of the best sophomores in NYC in 
Nick Folk '21, but it wasn't enough as they would fall in heartbreaking fashion 
61-58 in overtime. The Clippers held the lead for a large chunk on this one mak-
ing the loss even harder but they did respond well just a couple days later with 
a 55-50 win on the road at Iona Prep. Having a fantastic year that not many ex-
pected coming in, Xaverian will look to get a big road win on Tuesday when they 
go to Stepinac before a Saturday afternoon contest back at home against Holy 
Cross ends the week.

8) Mount St. Michael (13-8)- Going on the road and downing Msgr. Scanlan on 
Tuesday 67-65 was a great jolt for the Mountaineers as it was their 8th win in 
a row, a far cry from a rough stretch to end 2018. They then hosted our No. 1 St. 
Raymond team looking to make it 9 wins in a row, and even though they held a 10-
point lead going into the 4th quarter Mount couldn't hold on as even though Mike 
Green '19 poured in a game high 29 points the Mountaineers would fall in OT, 79-
77. We will learn even more about this season's Mount St. Michael team this week 
as on Tuesday they go on the road to take on Christ the King, and then on Friday 
will again be away from home when they visit Stepinac.

9) Thurgood Marshall Academy (16-4)- At the beginning of the season if you asked 
a good number of people if the Panthers would be considered among the best in 
New York City this season not many would've said yes to that, but here they are. 
Wins over the likes of Wings Academy and Curtis have put Thurgood Marshall in 
this position and this past Friday in TMA's only game of the week they kept up 
their strong play with a 90-53 win over Gompers. Coming up its a busy three game 
week as on Tuesday the Panthers will go to Manhattan Center, and on Friday it's a 
home date with Truman. In between though is the PSAL Manhattan AA game of the 
year as Thurgood Marshall will host WHEELS with the winner of that one more than 
likely winning the regular season.

10) Msgr. Scanlan (9-10)- Again you have to look beyond the record here to see 
just what the Crusaders are as a team this season. On Sunday afternoon they were 
able to rally back and defeat one of the best in the PSAL Brooklyn AA in Brook-
lyn Collegiate 73-67 as Matt Mayers '19 had 18 points and 12 rebounds in the 
victory for Msgr. Scanlan. That win was followed just 48 hours later though by 
a 67-65 loss to Mount St. Michael, and then on Thursday it was a blowout loss on 
the road against one of New Jersey's best this season in Don Bosco Prep. Hoping 
to get back on track, Scanlan will host Iona Prep on Sunday afternoon, then it's 
a game at Molloy on Tuesday, before home games on Wednesday and Friday with Ste-
pinac and Cardinal Hayes close out what will be a very busy next seven days.

11) Brooklyn Collegiate (14-8)- No doubt a very up and down week for the Lions 
who started things off on Sunday afternoon with a disappointing 73-67 loss at 
Msgr. Scanlan in a game that saw Brooklyn Collegiate in front by 6 going into 
the final quarter. They couldn't hold onto the lead though in a game that saw 
senior guard Glen Anderson '19 score his 1,000th career point. That loss was 
followed up by a league win over Eagle Academy II 68-55, but on Friday it was a 
trip to Long Island Lutheran that ended poorly in a 90-58 defeat to one of New 
York's best. Another non-league game on Saturday gave the Lions a 65-36 win over 
Campus Magnet to even up their week overall at 2-2. Monday will see Brooklyn 
Collegiate go out of league again for a senior night game against Truman before 
finishing the regular season on Thursday at George Westinghouse.

12) Curtis (18-6)- Going on the road on Staten Island is never easy, especially 
when playing a solid foe on a Thursday night like the Warriors did this week 
when they traveled to St. Joseph by the Sea. Not easy by any stretch, Curtis did 
get a strong second half from Adeleye Oyekanmi '19 as he scored 23 points to 
lead the way for the Warriors in a 61-46 victory. That was the only game of the 
week for Curtis, and their final game of the regular season as they now await the 
schedule for the SIHSL playoffs, for which they are among the favorites, which 
get underway later in the week.

13) St. Peter's (15-6)- Starting out this past week on Sunday with a disappoint-
ing 67-48 loss at home to Cardinal Hayes, the Eagles were able to come back with 
a strong 77-60 non-league win on the road at Chaminade on Sunday in a game that 
saw Chris Clancy '19 from his lead guard spot score a career high 32 points to 
lead St. Peter's to the win and really show just the kind of potent offensive 
team they can be moving forward. For St. Peter's the regular season is over with 
the SIHSL playoffs to start later on this week with a schedule still to be 
announced.

14) McKee/Staten Island Tech (14-7)- No games were on the docket over the past 
seven days for the Seagulls who found a way to climb into Class AA by claiming 
the last of two spots with a 52-51 win over New Dorp in a game about 10 days ago 
now that was a winner take all type of game with the loser being pushed down to 
Class A. Kalique Mitchell '19 has put together a phenomenal season to date as he 
is among the PSAL's top overall scorers, and he will look to keep that play up 
this week when the SIHSL playoffs get started with MSIT getting their tournament 
play going on a date till to be announced.

15) Cardozo (19-2)- Without question the Judges have a glowing win/loss record 
this season but it's the lack of quality wins in a down PSAL Queens AA this sea-
son that keeps them where they are just barely squeezing in at the No. 15 spot. 
The loss a couple weeks back to Curtis really set Cardozo back, though they are 
working their way back up to a stronger position now as they took down Francis 
Lewis 83-77 on Tuesday, and then knocked off John Bowne in OT 77-70 putting the 
Judges in a strong position to claim the Queens AA regular season title. Clos-
ing the week out on Saturday with a 70-61 win over JFK out of the Bronx in the 
Cardozo Classic, the Judges finish league play on Thursday with a game at H.S. 
for Construction before a non-league game at PSAL Class A school H.S. of Envi-
ronmental Studies ends their regular season on Friday.

 

	


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Class A

1) Brooklyn Law and Tech (18-3)- Getting a pair of double-doubles from Joseph 
Pena '19 who had 17 points and 10 rebounds, and Davonta Cook '19 with 16 points 
and 10 assists, the Jets were able to cruise past Lafayette in league play this 
past Wednesday 65-32 as Law and Tech proves they can beat teams with great de-
fense along with being a dangerous offensive team as well. Three games over the 
next seven days will end the regular season for the Jets as on Monday they will 
host Millennium before going on Tuesday to play Midwood at the Barclays Center, 
and then Brooklyn Law and Tech will finish things up on Friday with a road date 
at Bedford Academy in what's become a fun rivalry matchup.

2) All Hallows (15-6)- As close to a perfect week as you will find, the Gaels 
were able to defeat both Msgr. Farrell and Fordham Prep this past week, bumping 
them all the way up to the #2 spot as they look ready for a big playoff charge 
with some great late season play. Nick Johnson '19 had 18 points in a 57-50 win 
over Farrell to open the week and then he would follow that up with the game 
winner with three seconds left to help All Hallows defeat Fordham Prep 54-52. 
The Gaels then finished the week with a 73-65 win at Kennedy Catholic in setting 
themselves up in a great spot as we wind down the regular season. The week ahead 
will close the regular season out for All Hallows as they go out of league on 
Monday for a home game with PSAL AA school WHEELS, and then it's road dates on 
Tuesday and Friday against Msgr. McClancy and Cardinal Spellman before their 
playoff run begins.

3) Nazareth (15-6)- This season has been full of non-league games meant to test 
the Kingsmen and prepare them for what they hope will be a CHSAA Class A champ-
ionship season. This week backed that up again as even though they did defeat 
Xavier in a league game 63-57 on Thursday, it was the non-league battles with 
St. Benedict's of New Jersey and powerful CHSAA Class AA power Cardinal Hayes 
that set Nazareth back twice this week. They lost to St. Benedict's 86-53 on 
Sunday, and then on Saturday it was a 94-77 setback to Hayes though you have to 
commend Nazareth for stepping up and taking on these kinds of challenges. Wed-
nesday of this week will see the Kingsmen host LaSalle in a league matchup be-
fore again going our of league on Saturday for a Primetime Shootout game against 
Bishop Ahr of New Jersey.

4) Fordham Prep (17-5)- After beginning the week with a 54-52 loss to All Hal-
lows on the road in a game that saw Matt Filipowski '21 put in 18 points and 10 
rebounds in the defeat, the Rams rallied for a couple of wins after that as they 
defeated Truman in a non-league contest on Thursday 66-56 as Avni Mustafaj '19 
had 20 points to lead Fordham Prep to the win, and then on Saturday afternoon it 
was Class B power Regis that gave the Rams all they could handle, but with Alex 
Russo '20 scoring 22 points it was a 58-52 Fordham Prep win. Tuesday will next 
see the Rams take the court when they go to the Bronx to play Cardinal Spellman, 
and then on Friday it will be a senior night game against Kennedy Catholic at 
home to close out the regular season.

5) Msgr. Farrell (16-4)- Losing a tough 57-50 contest at All Hallows opened up 
the Lions week, but after that it was a lot of great defense and strong wins as 
Farrell were able to rally back from the defeat and come away with wins over 
St. Edmund prep on Tuesday 44-31, and then on Friday against one of their main 
Staten Island rivals in St. Joseph by the Sea, 41-36. Anthony Clemenza '19 aver-
aged 14 points per game over the three games this week to pace the Lions as they 
will look to keep their spot among NYC's best in Class A this week with a Monday 
road game at LaSalle, and then later in the week on dates to be determined it 
will be the start of the SIHSL playoffs in which a deep run will be expected 
from a gritty and tough Farrell team.

6) New Dorp (15-4)- Officially a Class A team the rest of the way off of their 
hearts topping 52-51 loss over a week ago now against McKee/Staten Island Tech, 
the Cougars closed out their regular season this past week on a strong note as 
they held off a late Tottenville charge for a 68-64 win that saw Latrell Thomp-
son '19 score 19 points to help New Dorp to the victory. The regular season has 
now come to a close for the Cougars who will await their opening round matchup 
later on this week in the SIHSL playoffs, with the schedule still to be 
announced.

7) Xavier (16-5)- An up and down week for the Knights saw things start out on a 
good note as they downed Msgr. McClancy on Monday 58-49 behind the 16 points of 
Joseph McGrane '20. Then a visit from Nazareth saw them fall behind early and 
not be able to rally enough late in a 63-57 defeat. The week closed out strong 
though as a visit from Cardinal Spellman allowed both McGrane and Blair Thompson 
'21 to score 14 points a piece, leading Xavier to a 53-44 victory. On Tuesday 
the Knights will play host to St. Joseph by the Sea in league action, and then 
it will be a non-league contest on Friday afternoon against one of the best in 
the PSAA this season in Martin Luther out of Queens.

8) Beacon (18-1)- It has been quite the run here as of late for the Blue Demons 
as they have solidified themselves as one of the best in the PSAL Class A Div-
ision again this season with a pair of league wins this week over Graphics Cam-
pus and West 50th Street on Wednesday and Friday respectively, both coming in 
convincing fashions. Saturday then saw a non-league home date with Susan Wagner 
from Staten Island, and with Samuel Pohlman '21 scoring 20 points Beacon found a 
way to claim a 64-55 win. Three game in three days to finish out the regular 
season are coming up for the Blue Demons as they go on the road for all three, 
at West 50th Street on Tuesday, then it's on the road for MLK Jr. on Wednesday, 
before closing things out on Thursday with a trip to H.S. of Environmental 
Studies. 

9) Lehman (21-2)- While they just had one game over the past week it was another 
impressive result for the Lions as they went on the road to Evander Childs, the 
second place team in the Bronx A East, and came away with a 71-60 victory. 
Isaiah Ramirez '19 was the high scorer in the game for Lehman as he had a sea-
son-high 20 points for the Lions who will next play on Monday in their regular-
season finale which comes at home against Alfred E. Smith, with a win locking up 
one of the best seasons in recent Lehman history.

10) Benjamin Banneker (18-3)- New to the Top Ten this week are the Warriors who 
nearly entered last week after a 69-66 win over Transit Tech at the PSAL Class A 
Showcase. They just missed then but come in now after a pair of tough league wins 
this past week over both Harry Van Arsdale and New Utrecht, 61-56 and 51-50. Ty-
ler Gordon '20 helped rally Banneker past a late deficit against New Utrecht as 
he had 14 points and 21 rebounds to help secure a win, and a place in this week's 
rankings. Unbeaten in league play, Banneker will look for a perfect regular sea-
son league mark when they travel to Sunset Park on Wednesday.

 

	


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Class B

1) Uncommon Charter (17-1)- You can make a case for a couple of teams to be in 
the No. 1 spot this week in the Class B New York City rankings but for us it's 
Uncommon Charter who have non-league wins over our No. 2 South Bronx Prep team, 
along with a win over a CHSAA Class AA school in Archbishop Molloy just under 
two weeks ago. Combine that with just one loss on the season and it's no shock 
that the Sabers have ascended to the top spot. This past past they downed Will-
iam Maxwell 110-30 as Joel Paisley '19 had 20 points and 14 rebounds in the win, 
and then it was a victory over Spring Creek Campus 59-47. To finish out the reg-
ular season this week Uncommon will play host to Clara Barton on Monday, and 
then end things with a road game on Thursday at East New York Family.

2) South Bronx Prep (22-2)- The other team in Class B who can make a strong case 
for being the No. 1 team, the Cougars have a win over our No. 3 Fannie Lou Hamer 
team, while this week adding another big win as Jordan Agyemang '19 had 25 points 
and 12 rebounds in a 61-56 win over PSAL Bronx AA school James Monroe on Saturday 
afternoon. That is South Bronx Prep's first Class AA win of the season, a win 
that should no doubt help them moving forward with momentum and confidence as on 
Friday the Cougars will close out what has been a great regular season when they 
go on the road to take on Jane Addams 

3) Fannie Lou Hamer (19-3)- Regardless of classification there may not be a bet-
ter defensive team in New York City than Fannie Lou as it doesn't matter how 
they are looking on the offensive side of the ball, you know that the Panthers 
will always give you a fantastic effort defensively. That rang true again this 
week in their three wins limiting Hyde Leadership to 41 points, Metropolitan to 
35 points, and then in 2 OT's holding Salesian to 50 points in a 57-50 win on 
the road that saw Anthony Rose '20 give Fannie Lou 20 points and 10 rebounds. 
Going on the road on Wednesday will see the Panthers go up against a PSAL Class 
A Bronx power in Adlai Stevenson before closing out league play on Thursday with 
a trip to Morissania. 

4) Bronx School for Law, Government, and Justice (16-1)- Getting 20 points each 
from Kevin Bimpey '19 and Azriel Almodovar '20, with Almodovar also adding 10 
assists, the Jaguars were able to hold off a good fight from Frederick Douglass 
Academy III and take a 62-47 win on Wednesday as Law, Government, and Justice 
continue to prove themselves as a team that will be right there as a team to 
reckon with come playoff time in the PSAL. Just one game left on the docket be-
fore the end of the regular season and it comes on Wednesday when the Jaguars 
will hit the road to take on Bathgate in what is one of the must see Class B 
games of the week.

5) Regis (13-3)- Starting out the week strong with a 56-38 win on the road up 
in Yonkers against Sacred Heart, that gave the Raiders 12 wins out of their 
last 13 games leading into Saturday afternoons showdown with one of the best in 
the CHSAA Class A Division in Fordham Prep. Going on then road saw Regis hand 
tough most of the way as Joe Manfredi '20 had 18 points to help the Raiders stay 
close, but they ultimately would fall 58-52 in what even in the loss was a 
strong effort from start to finish. A very busy four game week is ahead for 
Regis as on Monday they will host St. John's Prep, then it's a road game on 
Tuesday up in Westchester against another Class A team in Kennedy Catholic be-
fore getting Sacred Heart at home on Thursday and a road trip on Friday at 
Salesian.

6) Achievement First (18-4)- Having underestimated Achievement First for some 
time this season, that is now over as their 4 losses have come to a pair of 
Class A teams in Xavier and Canarsie, and their other two came in league play 
to our No. 1 Uncommon Charter team by a combined 8 points. Truly one of the 
best in Class B, Achievement First got a huge win on Friday as they took on 
our previous No. 1 team in Summit Academy and led from start to finish in a 
63-49 victory that saw Emmanuel Smith '20 lead the way with 21 points. They 
also won a league game this past week over Teachers Prep in blowout fashion 
75-26. Holding a Class AA win as well this year over Wadleigh, Achievement 
First will finish out the regular season with a pair of road league games. 
Monday will see them go to Medgar Evers, and then it's a Thursday date on the 
road at Spring Creek Campus.

7) Bathgate Educational Complex (13-2)- Call it a week to remember for junior 
Jordan Agyeman '20 as he had 18 points in a 75-59 win to start the week over 
Comprehensive Model on Wednesday, but that was just the start as on Friday the 
Bulldogs squared off with Marie Curie School for Medicine, Nursing, and Health 
Professions with Agyeman going off for a career high 42 points as he shot 19-
for-29 from the floor in a 112-40 victory. With a lot of momentum and still 
wanting that big signature win, Bathgate has that chance this coming Wednesday 
when they host our No. 4 Bronx School for Law, Government, and Justice team in 
both teams final regular season game.

8) Summit Academy (17-2)- Things were looking great for a Summit team that com-
ing into this week was ranked as our No. 1 Class B team in New York City. Wins 
to begin the week over Adams Street Academy on Monday and Brooklyn Collaborative 
Studies on Wednesday continued to back that up as Philip Grant '22 had a game he 
will never forget against Brooklyn Collaborative as the freshman had 44 points 
in a 85-44 victory. Friday though saw Summit Academy go to Achievement First and 
never really get going offensively as they struggled from start to finish in 
what would be a 63-49 loss that sends them down the rankings a bit this week. 
Looking to rally before the end of the regular season, the Eagles will close 
things out on Tuesday with a non-league date against PSAL Class A Queens school 
Far Rockaway in a game to be played at the Barclays Center.

9) Dalton (14-3)- A marquee showdown with Riverdale was wiped out this past Wed-
nesday because of some frigid temperatures in New York City with that game to 
be made up now on Feb. 9. That meant the only game Dalton had this past week 
would be Friday's night's contest at home against Trinity. Mark Engel '20 took 
control early on for the Tigers as he had 27 points to help Dalton coast to a 
72-46 win. Alone in first place in the Ivy League right now, the Tigers will 
look to stay there this week though it won't be easy. Monday will see them go to 
Brooklyn to play Poly Prep, then it will be a Wednesday home contest against 
Fieldston, before a Friday evening home date with Collegiate closes out a 
three-game week.

10) Riverdale (13-2)- Because of bad weather in New York City on Wednesday the 
Falcons lone game of this past week against Dalton was postponed until Feb. 9 
when the two teams will meet for a game that could decide the Ivy League reg-
ular-season title. Sam Klores '20 has been playing fantastic ball all season 
for Riverdale as he will look to lead his Falcons team this week and keep them 
within striking distance of first place Dalton when they host Berkeley Carroll 
on Monday, then welcome in Poly Prep to them on Wednesday, followed by another 
home contest on Friday against Hackley, before ending the week with a game at 
Manhattan College on Saturday against the Falcons archrivals in Horace Mann.