Both boys and girls varsity basketball teams from several North Shore high schools took to the floor this past week. Here are the results:
Great Neck South Boys: The Rebels finished the season 8-4 in the Nassau AA-III Conference and 12-7 overall. They concluded their last two regular season games with wins against Calhoun and Long Beach on Feb. 6 and 10. Against Calhoun, they won by a final of 65-46. David Kimmel led the Rebels with 17 points, seven assists and seven rebounds. Sheldon Henry added 13 points and Philip Silverstein chipped in with nine points. In the finale against Long Beach, the boys dominated, 74-39. Caleb Ponce recorded 13 points and Kimmel added 10. The Rebels started their postseason campaign on Feb. 12 as the ninth seed against eighth seeded Valley Stream Central in the Class AA first round. They would drop their opening round match, 58-50. The Rebels were up 43-39 going into the fourth quarter. Valley Stream would go on a 9-0 run late in the final quarter and hold on to the lead sealing the victory and ending the Rebel’s season. Kendall Francis and Kimmel would finish the game with 14 and 12 points, respectively.
Great Neck South Girls: The Lady Rebels finished the 2015-16 season with an 8-4 record in the Nassau AA-III Conference and 13-6 overall. They finished their last week of the regular season by taking two out of their final three games. On Feb. 2, they defeated a tough Mepham squad 53-47. The girls rallied back after trailing 36-15 at the half. Jessica Vissichelli record 18 points and 12 of those came during the second half comeback. Madison Solomon scored 16 points and collected 10 rebounds in the win. Their next game was against Calhoun on Feb. 4. They would lose this one 49-37. Kristen Renta would lead the team with 10 points in the match while Vissichelli mustered eight points in the loss. Their season finale on Feb. 8 ended on a high note against Long Beach. In the 59-42 victory, Vissichelli would take charge as she recorded 21 points and 13 rebounds. Renta and Christine Vissichelli would finish with 11 and 12 points respectively. The 10th seeded Lady Rebels squared off against seventh seed Hicksville in the Class AA first round on Feb. 13. They would come up short 75-57 to put a stall on their playoff run. Renta and Jessica Vissichelli would finish with 22 and 18 points respectively.
Manhasset Girls: The Lady Indians went 9-5 in Nassau A-1 and 11-8 overall. They ended their season with a five game winning streak and look to ride that momentum into the postseason. Their last game came on Feb. 9, where the girls edged out Jericho 47-44. In the finale, Erin Barry converted on two foul shots with 16 second remaining in the game to secure the victory for the Indians. Barry recorded 13 points and four assists in the game while Lauren Merola led the team with 16 points and six rebounds. The Indians head into the Class A first round as the thirteenth seed. They edged out fourth seeded South Side, 54-51, on Feb. 12. Merola would put up a three pointer with 1:30 left to play to put the Indians up 50-45 and they would never relinquish the lead. Merola finished with 14 points and four rebounds while Barry put up 14 points and eight assists. “This win was very rewarding but not unexpected to us like it might have been to some” said Head Coach Lauren Sadeh. “I’m very proud of these 13 young ladies for our success thus far but we all know our work is not done.” The girls will move on to face fifth seeded Garden City in the quarterfinals.
Roslyn Boys: The Bulldogs ended their regular season by finishing 11-3 in the Nassau A II conference and 13-6 overall. They finished their final two games strong with wins against Wantagh and New Hyde Park. In the game against Wantagh on February 6, the Bulldogs came out on top 88-70. Their big guns Keandre Augustine and Omar Burns shined in the penultimate game. Augustine finished with a team high 28 points, seven assists and three rebounds. Burns recorded 15 points and chipped in with eight rebounds and five assists. In the February 9 home finale against New Hyde Park, the Bulldogs escaped with a 70-63 win to end their regular season campaign. Augustine followed up his previous performance with 27 points, 10 rebounds and four assists in the match. Burns finished the game with 15 points and nine rebounds. The boys, who are ranked seventh going into postseason play, went toe to toe with tenth seeded Sewanhaka on Feb. 13 in the Class A first round. The Bulldogs would lose a tough one in the waning seconds 65-62 ending their playoff run. Augustine recorded 23 points as Burns added 13 points in the loss.
Wheatley Boys: The Wildcats finished 4-7 in the Nassau ABC Conference and 6-13 overall. Prior to their regular season finale win against Malverne, the boys had dropped their previous two games against East Rockaway and Oyster Bay. In the 81-68 win against Malverne, Anthony Cutinella led the Wildcats with 32 points and 12 rebounds. Hunter Pomerantz finished with 23 points and Brian Doria collected eight. The third seeded Wildcats drew second seeded Carle Place in the Class B Semifinals on Feb. 13 at C.W. Post. They had lost both of their meetings against Carle Place on Jan. 9 and 29, respectively. This time, the outcome would be different for the Wildcats as they would go on to dominate their opponents, 56-17. Cutinella took command with 14 points and 13 rebounds. Mike Baltzer added nine points while Pomerantz would finish with eight points and nine rebounds. Johnny Karikas collected eight in the win. The boys will move on to face the top seeded Oyster Bay on Thursday, Feb. 18 at LIU Post. Head Coach Jim Curcio believes it will take several key factors to win the County Championship. From solid defense to minimizing turnovers and cashing in on the free throw opportunities.
Wheatley Girls: The Lady Wildcats finished their season 3-7 in Nassau ABC Conference play and 8-9 overall. They would snap a six game slide with a dominating 47-29 win against Malverine. In this game, Hannah Woodward posted up 21 points, six assists and made three steals. Allison LaMonica finished with 20 points and five assists to give the Wildcats the win. Julia Braito and Ariana Turkalj chipped in with 10 and eight rebounds respectively. The Wildcats drew Oyster Bay, who they lost to twice in the regular season, in the Class B Semifinals February 14. Unfortunately for the Wildcats, they would come up short for the third time by losing a heartbreaker, 47-44. Lamonica finished with 22 points and Woodward collected 17 points.
