By Anthony Bosco
Two Queens Catholic league teams vying for city championships at Iona College Friday lost in their respective title games when last-second shots did not fall. St. John's Prep fell to Xavier, 56-52, in the CHSAA Class B championship and Cathedral Prep lost to Moore Catholic, 40-37, in a battle for the Class C crown.
University of Connecticut signee Taliek Brown did not have a banner day, hitting just 4-of-13 from the floor for 13 points, but his team was still in it at the end. A McDonald's All-American this year, Brown needed teammate Trevor Bryant to carry the team late.
Bryant scored nine of his 17 points in the fourth quarter and all but single-handedly kept the Red Storm close down the stretch. The 6-foot-1 senior guard hit a jumper with 2:54 remaining that tied the game at 49 and helped give St. John's a one-point lead, 52-51, with 1:38 left.
But Xavier was not done. Brian Riley scored and after Brown missed a layup, Keith Sullivan hit two from the charity stripe to push the lead to three for the Manhattan team.
With less than 20 seconds remaining, St. John's came back upcourt looking for the tie. The ball went to the hot-handed Bryant, who fired a three-pointer that rattled in and out. Xavier got the rebound and added a single free throw to ice the game.
St. John's Prep, which finishes with a 21-6 record, had defeated Xavier twice during the regular season en route to the Class B regular season title.
In the Class C championship game, coach Jim Dilg's Cathedral Prep Crusaders rallied from an eight-point deficit, 36-28, in the final period, going on a 9-3 run that cut Moore Catholic's lead to two, 39-37, in the final minute.
Moore's T.J. Brynes sunk 1-of-2 from the line to give his team a three-point cushion with 11.6 to play. Wojtek Branach got the ball for Cathedral, but his three-pointer at the buzzer came up short.
Gary Lombardo led Cathedral with 12 points. The Crusaders led after the first quarter 11-4, but allowed Moore to go on a 16-6 run to close out the first half and lead 19-17 at halftime. Cathedral trailed by five after three, 27-22, after scoring just 11 points over the second and third quarters.
Cathedral finishes the season with a 19-6 overall record.
