(Park's Brandon Smith rises up over a defender / Photo:Harry Scull,Buff News)
(2) Park 62, (1) Canisius 54
The Park School proved to be WNY's top program this season, knocking off the three-time defending champions who came into the game ranked #1 in the area, to win its first Manhattan Cup in Class A. Brandon Smith earned Manhattan Cup MVP honors, scoring a game-high 22 points, with 13 of those coming in the first half. The shots Smith was knocking down were impressive, as was the Pioneers defense, the play inside from Julian Eziukwu, Quentin Nnagbo, & John Orogun, and the constant dribble penetration and distribution by Noah Hutchins. Park never trailed in the second half and had an answer for every shot Canisius managed to knock down, tempering any late game dramatics. They will face St. Anthony's in Long Island this Saturday for the right to advance to the CHSAA state championship game in Class A.
Park 13 - 15 - 14 - 20 = 62
Canisius 13 - 12 - 13 - 16 = 54
Point Totals
Park: Brandon Smith 22, Dan Scott 13, Quentin Nnagbo 9, Julian Eziukwu 9, Noah Hutchins 7, John Orogun 2
Canisius: Jayce Johnson 17, Austin James 14, Nick MacDonald 8, Dwayne Vass 8, Ryan Bradley 7
****** ****** ****** ******
(3) Niagara Catholic 73, (1) Cardinal O'Hara 65
Niagara Catholic entered the tournament as the #3 seed, but took down the two teams seeded ahead of them to earn the 2018 Manhattan Cup in Class B, the first time the school has ever earned the honor under that name. When the school last win a Manhattan Cup in 1962, it was named Bishop Duffy.
Freshman Jalen Bradberry earned Manhattan Cup MVP, scoring a game-high 27 points in the championship victory and providing a pair of highlight flushes at the rim in the process. Haakim Siner scored 17 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for the Patriots, who started five underclassmen all season under the guidance of head coach Giulio Colangelo. Niagara Catholic began to gain some separation in the third quarter, gaining contributions from Raejuan Smith, Jaemon Turner, Avion Harris, and Mehki Starks. The win earns a chance at a CHSAA state championship in Class B on March 10th against the winner in NYC.
Niagara Catholic 13 - 20 - 18 - 22 = 73
Cardinal O'Hara 13 - 16 - 15 - 21 = 65
Point Totals
Niagara Catholic: Jalen Bradberry 27, Haakim Siner 17, Jaemon Turner 9, Raejuan Smith 9, Mehki Starks 7, Avion Harris 4
Cardinal O'Hara: Justin Hemphill 23, Nasir Benton 20, Jaedin Cottman 11, Jermaine Haynes 9, Joseph Turri 2
-centercourt
Always good to see some balance brought back to the force and in this case the MMAA. Congrats Park! Time to restore some competitive balance. Hopefully Timon, Frannies and Joes can bet back in there too, Nothing better than seeing multiple excellent teams battling for the Cup.
Posted by: hoopster | Wednesday, February 28, 2018 at 05:29 PM
Imagine swapping in St. Joes for Park in the battles with Canisius the last few years....would be a whole lot more meaningful and exciting. Canisius is far and away the elite program in WNY but Park has been able to match them in talent the last few years. Next year will be interesting with a depleted Canisius roster. Don't be surprised if there are some new additions to CHS next year.
Posted by: Ballislife | Thursday, March 01, 2018 at 11:16 PM
Congrats to Jaylen Morris...St.Joe's grad. He is getting minutes with the Atlanta Hawks.
Posted by: Music | Saturday, March 03, 2018 at 04:36 PM
Egads! Villa Maria?!?! That’s the abolute worst location for a state championship Sunday double header. The parking is miserable. The venue isn’t as good as some high school gyms. Why not Canisius? Buff State? Daemen? Niagara? Each of these have been used in the last 10-12 years. Villa would be fine for a mid season game, but not for a state final!!
Posted by: hoopster | Sunday, March 04, 2018 at 10:25 PM
Villa is the only place that offers a reasonable rate for their facilities. Parking is a nightmare anyplace that fills up. Daemen's parking is way worse & a lousy atmosphere with fans stuck on one side. The Catholic finals are a weird animal anyway considering the B teams have to wait a week to find out which end of the state the game is played. Meet in the middle, play in Syracuse. Faced with that, Villa sounds like a welcomed option. Canisius and Buffalo State are perfect is money is no object.
Posted by: Russ | Monday, March 05, 2018 at 08:14 AM
Thanks for your take Russ. Some of the best high school basketball ever played in WNY has been at the state catholic finals. I go back as far as the early 2000s when St. Joes played the NYC champ at Niagara. Joes had two guys that went on to play D1 college football and a host of other wonderful players like Devon Dawson. The action was fierce. It was an up and down super exciting game. It’s a shame the MMAA has to settle for Villa. They need to rise to the occasion. If money is the issue then raise the entry a few bucks to pay for the increased cost or get a few more sponsors. They’re really aren’t any excuses. For me anyway, I’ll be watching for CC’s updates rather than going to the games.
Posted by: hoopster | Monday, March 05, 2018 at 02:31 PM
Huge gap from A and B levels this year. Park blasted NC by 40 during the year. Still NC is an exciting team to watch. Russ Great breakdown. Wish these local colleges would be appreciative of the moment. Even treat it like a mini tour of sorts for visiting parents. Not just for athletics but the whole school...
Posted by: Dorian Phillips | Monday, March 05, 2018 at 09:29 PM
Dorian, Not so much an A and B gap Dorian it is a Canisius and Park gap this year. NC lost to Timon by 6 . Next year will be interesting Ohara and NC can be top 4 teams overall in the division if teams don't lose or gain players
Posted by: MMAfan | Wednesday, March 07, 2018 at 02:20 PM
Yeah agreed MMA fan. Hope for good games this weekend. Johnson from West has shown he might be the best guard in WNY on a team I believe can compete with anyone!
Posted by: Mac Hinton | Wednesday, March 07, 2018 at 06:31 PM
Agree MMAfan, Canisius and Park were a cut above other locals this year. Having said that I think that Timon, NC Health Sci and Niagara Falls would have a very good shot at beating WSW. WSW did not play anyone outside of their league schedule (probably due to the last minute coaching change and player transfers).
Also I would be very surprised if Canisius doesn't bring in a couple of transfers since they graduate 7 of their top 8
Posted by: PJB | Friday, March 09, 2018 at 12:41 PM
Canisius better bring in some transfers or their done again next year. If the 5 seniors couldn't win anything they have no chance with what's left because Park has everything back. I think the period of dominance is over for them. Great run but by next year at this time we'll be saying the rest of the league has caught up.
Posted by: Jasper | Friday, March 09, 2018 at 02:51 PM
Canisius had an undefeated freshmen team and JV team that went 21-1 so I wouldn't be as quick as some here with "predictions" on next year ...
Posted by: AMDG | Friday, March 09, 2018 at 05:24 PM
There are only one or two kids from Canisius JV that will contribute. JV in this area is so bad let alone Freshman. Canisius will be average unless they get transfers. They have no scoring or shooting coming back on Varsity. Park will dominate area and Timon ,WSW will be next in line.
Posted by: Jason | Friday, March 09, 2018 at 07:39 PM
The season isn't even over and we're still talking about Canisius HS basketball. That's how relevant that program is in WNY. Every year everyone wonders "What will Canisius do?" The answer is simple. The best players, who want to play for the best coach, in the best league, in the best facilities and receive the BEST education will go to Canisius. They'll retool like they have done so many times in the past and remain relevant.
Let's talk about the playoffs, forget about "poor" Canisius.
Posted by: St. JOE | Saturday, March 10, 2018 at 09:04 AM
JUST iso irrelevant. I believe WSW is top 3 team and Johnson is top 3 guard in WNY.
Posted by: James Valentine | Monday, March 12, 2018 at 09:15 PM