Undefeated regular season Monsignor Martin Champions. Manhattan Cup Champions. CHSAA State Champions. And now, Federation Champions! The Canisius Crusaders have officially climbed to the top of the Class A high school basketball world and are the undisputed Kings!
LaTerrance Reed opened the NYS Class A Federation Championship game by burying a 3-pointer to give Canisius a lead they would never let go of. They played like champions and now they are, following a 48-44 win over Albany Academy.
It's the first ever Federation Championship for Canisius, who knocked off the last two teams to win it, on consecutive days, and did so on their turf. The tournament was held at University at Albany's SEFCU Arena. Albany Academy and Scotia-Glenville, who the Crusaders ousted in the semifinal to end its state-leading 53-game winning streak, are less than 20 miles from the U of Albany, when you combine distance.
Reed was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player, scoring a combined 33 points in the two wins. Josh Huffman scored 32 points in the two outings, while Stafford Trueheart added 23 points in the tournament.
Canisius jumped out to a 7-0 to start the game and held leads of six points at halftime and following the third quarter. Their largest lead of the game came with 4:10 left in the fourth quarter, when Reed and Huffman hit back-to-back 3-pointers, which put the Crusaders up by 12 points, 44-32.
Albany Academy got to within three points with 14.3 seconds left in the game, but Huffman secured the victory for the Crusaders at the stripe, giving them a two possession lead with 12.8 seconds remaining.
The championship caps a breakthrough season for the program. While the Crusaders have dominated the Monsignor Martin over the past seven seasons, to the tune of a 94-7 record against league opponents and five Manhattan Cups, that was the extent of their success until this season. Canisius is the first team since Nichols in 2010 to win a Federation Championship. Prior to that, Niagara Falls won it in 2005, in Class AA.
-centercourt
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