By Maurice Wingate ; NYC Hoops.net @nychoops

HEMPSTEAD, NY – Since 2015, the Nassau/Suffolk CHSAA Class "AA" Championship has flip-flopped between the Chaminade Flyers or the St. Anthony’s Friars. According to the order of succession, it was the Friars turn to be it for 2018.

However, a win by #10 ranked St. Anthony’s this season was not expected as they were a team that had bounced in and out of the rankings throughout the regular season. As a result, the South Huntington, NY squad had a host of naysayers and were the underdogs against the #7 ranked Flyers. That is until St. Anthony made everyone believers again albeit with a narrow 63 – 60 win over a tough Chaminade on Tuesday at Hofstra University.

“So many people doubted us,” said a tearful Tyrone Lyons ‘18. “Just for us to be here was a big opportunity but for us to win means so much to me and especially the team.”

The Flyers came out flying in the first quarter with Mike O’Connell ‘20 lighting up the scoreboard from the perimeter. After the first quarter, Chaminade had built up a 15-point advantage with their long-distance game showing no end in sight but St. Anthony’s had been to this rodeo before.

“I’ve seen it before. That’s what they do,” said Friars Head Coach Sal Lagano. “We weathered the storm. It’s like losing five black jack hands in a row. You gotta play the sixth [hand].”

In the second quarter, St. Anthony’s made significant headway as PG Jon Harewood ‘18 and Lyons began puncturing Chaminade’s zone. An 18 – 0 Friars run ensued as the Flyers shots fell short and ended with 19 seconds remaining in the half as Antonio Lopez ‘18 tied the game at 25 apiece. A buzzer beater by Kieran Dorney ‘20 gave Chaminade a two-point lead at the midway point but for all intent and purposes it was zero-zero again.

In the third quarter, Chaminade head coach Robert Paul recalibrated and threw in a different defensive zone at the Friars. Their long-ball once again found its mark as Brendan McGuire ‘18 and Robert Connors ‘18 chimed in along with O’Connor. St. Anthony’s tried to counter as Makhai Murphy ‘19 found some offensive daylight but they once again fell behind by 9-points as the championship quarter got underway.

As with any game of chess, it's all about moves and countermoves. While Coach Paul made his initial move changing his zone, Coach Lagano’s counter ended up being the checkmate of the game. “[The taller] Tyrone switched positions and went to point guard when we were struggling with the one-three-one [zone] so we could see over it. It gave Harewood a chance to really step up [offensively].”

A clutch shot by Mike Regan ‘19 set off St. Anthony run and with 2:20 left to play a drive by Lyons put the Friars back in front, 58 -57 and that is as close as Chaminade would get. Harewood, who’s St. Anthony’s point guard and fearless leader ,earned MVP honors, closing out the game with big shots and without missing a free-throw but credited his teammates for the win. “Its easy when I have a teammates and coaches who believe in me. It makes my job much easier. I’m so proud of my guys.”

Harewood scored 22 points for St. Anthony with Lopez and Lyons contributing 13 points and 12 points respectively. O’Connell led Chaminade with 21 points with Connors adding 16 points.

Photo by James Escher
By Gregg Sarragregg.sarra@newsday.com  @Gregg_Sarra

While everyone in the Mack Sports Complex roared, Jonathan Harewood stood at the free-throw line composed. He blocked out the noise and focused on the basket.

The can’t miss senior had hit all five free throws earlier on Tuesday night and here he was looking to seal St. Anthony’s claim to the boys basketball title in the Nassau-Suffolk CHSAA.

Harewood hit nothing but net on both free throws with 19 seconds remaining to give St. Anthony’s a four-point lead in a 63-60 win over Chaminade, the league’s defending champion before a boisterous crowd at Hofstra.

It was the Friars second title in three years under coach Sal Lagano. Harewood finished with a game-high 22 points to earn the MVP and send St. Anthony’s into the state CHSAA semifinals against the Buffalo representative at noon on Saturday at LIU Post.

Chaminade’s last gasp shot at a tying three-point attempt came up well short of the rim as time expired.

“We work on free throws all the time and nothing bothers me when I’m at the line,” Harewood said. “We were down and never quit. We showed so much character and so much determination against a great team that could shoot the lights out. And our guys just lifted each other and kept coming back.”

Chaminade (20-6) looked like it would run away with this one. The Flyers went on a 15-2 blitz, buoyed by two consecutive three pointers off the right hand of sophomore Michael O’Connell, to open a 22-7 lead after one quarter. O’Connell finished the quarter with a steal and a length-of-the-court dash for a layup before time expired. He finished the quarter with 12 points and the Flyers in full control.

“We weathered the storm,” Lagano said. “They have some extremely good perimeter shooting. And we hung in there, switched our defense up and created more offense inside. I thought our five seniors contributed in the second half and made this run at the title possible. It was certainly a wild finish.”

St. Anthony’s (19-7) extinguished all the Flyers first quarter momentum when the Friars defense forced seven second quarter turnovers to get back in the game. The suffocating defense helped the Friars go on a 13-1 run and draw within 23-20. Harewood led the charge with nine points in that span.

“We wanted this championship so bad,” said senior Tyrone Lyons Jr., who had 11 points and 11 rebounds. “There were so many doubters. And this was an opportunity to prove them wrong. We had so much heart late in the game and I could feel it going our way.”

Chaminade senior Robert Connors hit his fourth three-pointer of the game with 2:58 left to give the Flyers a 57-50 lead. St. Anthony’s responded with a 10-0 run keyed by two hard driving baskets from Antonio Lopez for the 60-57 lead with 1:37 left.

The Friars closed the game with a 13-3 run for the title.

“Down the stretch we had guys like Michael Regan, Corey Bernard, Tyrone and Antonio contribute and they’ll never forget this,” Lagano said. “This was a total team effort.”

And a guy named Harewood who never missed a free throw.

Varsity earned a #5 ranking in the Class A Division by the New York State Sportswriter Association
with the help of seniors:

#1 G. Jonathan Harewood
?#24 G. Michael Regan
#35 G/F Tyrone Lyons, Jr.
#13 F. Anotnio Lopez
#11 G. Corey Bernard

come support the Friars tonight when varsity tips off at 7:15pm vs. Holy Trinity

https://nychoops.rivals.com 

NYCHoops.net ranked St. Anthony's #2
1 Long Island Lutheran
#2 St. Anthony's
#3 Chaminade
?#4 Amityville
#5 Bellport

By Jr Friars Greg Law and Gabe Angieri

The St Anthony’s boys’ varsity basketball team is revamped and poised for a successful 2017-18 season. With conference games starting this week, the Friars are filled with determination and grit, ready to take on the league.

The Friars have high aspirations for this upcoming season, and they look to build off the success that they’ve had in prior years. Coach Lagano emphasized the teams high expectations, “Anytime you set out in a season you’re looking to get to a championship. I think our expectations are for us to stay on top of the rankings in Long Island.”

Assistant coach Brian Reichert reiterated Lagano’s expectations, “We believe this team will win the title this year and compete for a state title.” Reichert also noted, “Defense and ball movement are the most important things the team needs to do to be successful.”

The Friars will be led by double-double machine, Tyrone Lyons, and sharpshooter Jon Harewood. The two seniors averaged 13.9 and 16.7 points per game respectively. Harewood scored in double figures twenty times and Lyons posted eleven recorded double-doubles last season. Harewood scored a season-high 36 points and Lyons grabbed a season-high 20 rebounds in a 64-62 overtime victory thriller at Chaminade. This powerhouse duo will lead the Friars this season, hoping to make it to another State Championship.

One of the more intriguing matchups on the schedule is against St. Anthony’s longtime rival, Chaminade. Lagano describes described the game as “a big matchup.”

The Friars’ season last year ended abruptly when Chaminade, defeated the Friars by a final score of 66-50 in the CHSAA semifinals. Losing in the playoffs is never easy; losing to your rival is even worse. The defeat has fueled the team’s passion and has motivated them to reign victorious once again in the CHSAA. The Friars are eager for the start of a new season, and they would love nothing more than to see a different result in the playoffs.

St. Anthony’s and Chaminade are ranked second and third in the rankings on Long Island respectively. NYC Hoops gives high praise to this robust Friars squad. St Anthony’s is ranked #3 in the preseason ranking and this is just another prime example of how talented this roster is. This team is universally recognized as a force-to-be-reckoned-with.

However, the season will not come without its obstacles—the Friars already lost senior Conor Ryan to a shoulder injury. Coach Lagano had nothing but high praise for Ryan. Lagano pointed out, “Conor is an emotional leader out there, he’s the hardest working kid in the gym. We will miss him daily more than just on game day.” It won’t be easy to replace Ryan, but the Friars will need someone to step up and fill that void.

It should be a fun year with expectations through the roof. These Friars have their eyes on the prize and will not let anything get in their path. This team has the talent and athleticism on the court, the leadership of the coaching staff, and the support of the Friar Faithful.

Boys: 
Fri Nov 10: Varsity      8-10am
                    Frosh    2-4pm
?                       JV      4-6pm