On March 3 at Elmcor, No. 3…
By Dylan Butler
The date Jan. 31 brings back bad memories for Francis Lewis girls’ basketball coach Mike Eisenberg. It was the day Lewis was thumped by division rival August Martin, 81-40, his worst loss in eight years on the Patriots’ bench.
On March 3 at Elmcor, No. 3 Francis Lewis (22-3) has the opportunity to avenge the loss as the two teams square off in the PSAL ‘A’ quarterfinals at 2 p.m. The winner advances to play in the semifinals at St. John’s University on March 10.
“Hopefully, we will be angry when we play them this time,” Eisenberg said. “I’m sure my girls will remember the 41-point loss and I’m sure their girls will remember too and have a tremendous amount of confidence.”
Not if you ask August Martin head coach Joel Ascher.
“It’s a game I’m not looking forward to,” he said. “They’re going to be looking to get back at us.”
No. 6 August Martin (15-6) has been a much better team since the return of guard Cherita Gray, who was academically ineligible for most of the season. Since her return, Gray has averaged 23 points per game and scored 21 in the Angels’ 78-51 win over McKee/Staten Island Tech last Wednesday in the first round of the playoffs.
Eboni Williams and Yashika Williams are also key components for Martin.
Francis Lewis will look to push the ball down court, but in a controlled manner. On a team with no go-to player, Eisenberg said the play of Teresa Rozza and Jasmine Lawrence will be key for the Patriots, whose only other two losses were to top-seeded Murry Bergtraum and No. 2 Sheepshead Bay.
The Martin/Lewis grudge match is one of two All-Queens games in the next round of the playoffs. The other is in the PSAL boys’ ‘A’ division when arch-rivals Campus Magnet and Cardozo battle Wednesday at 4 p.m. at Hunter College in the second round.
No. 8 Magnet (19-4) snapped the Judges’ 47-game division winning streak on Dec. 6 and one month later, the Bulldogs defeated Cardozo again.
Leading the way for senior-laden Magnet is the combination of Devon Ray and Elvis Belone. Newcomer Mike Simonds has played well in the absence of guard Mark Arrington, who became academically ineligible last month after averaging 15 points per game.
“Campus Magnet has a lot of talent and they have guys on that team who have waited four years to beat us,” said Cardozo head coach Ron Naclerio. “The two teams are closely matched.”
For No. 9 Cardozo (19-6), strong efforts by Darryl Hill and Dana Townsend are key. The play of Danny Philips and freshman guards John Forbes and Duane Johnson should also be a factor in the game.
Two of the top guards in the PSAL will lock horns as Shavonne Roundtree and Cardozo face No. 2 Sheepshead Bay and Natassia Boucicault in a PSAL ‘A’ quarterfinal game March 3 at Elmcor at 4 p.m.
“What’s going to be incredible is that matchup,” said Cardozo head coach Larry Carradine. “It’s going to be a great, great show. Both players are fearless.”
Roundtree raced the length of the court for a layup with three seconds left in overtime to lift No. 10 Cardozo (18-6) past seventh-seeded Stevenson in the first round while Boucicault scored 41 points in the Sharks’ (17-5) 65-50 win over Manhattan Center.
After rallying to defeat Sheepshead Bay in a PSAL boys’ ‘A’ first round game, No. 13 Hillcrest (19-4), who have won 14 straight games, faces yet another tough Brooklyn team in No. 4 Lincoln (18-7) Tuesday at 4 p.m. at Hunter College.
Hawks guards Jon Caban and Mike Thompson will have to deal with arguably the best backcourt in the city in freshman phenom Sebastian Telfair and sharp-shooting John Quintana.
“We’ll see what my kids can do,” said Hawks head coach Ken Gershon. “We have to worry about their two, but I feel they have to worry about my five.”
No. 21 Newtown (16-9) had the biggest upset of the first round, defeating defending city champions John F. Kennedy, 54-52. Pat Torney will look for some of the same magic from the likes of Johnny Carter, Tristan Verette, Tamer Gabriel and Jamel Moye as the Pioneers face No. 5 Park West (19-3) Tuesday at 6 p.m. at Hunter College.
Torney points toward a Jan. 4 loss to Bryant as the turning point of the year for the Pioneers. After that game, Newtown has played an unselfish brand of basketball which has translated into wins.
But Torney knows his squad will have its hands full against a high octane Park West squad led by guards Knowledge Miller and Ramel Bradley.
“They like to run the floor. They’re really athletic,” he said. “We’re going to try and do our best to stop them from doing that. We’re going to try and make them work for their shots more than they’re accustomed to.”
In the PSAL boys’ ‘B’ division, second round matchups include: No. 2 Banneker (21-3) against No. 15 Bowne (15-9) Thursday at Lehman College at 4 p.m.; No. 4 Bronx Science (22-2) against No. 13 Townsend Harris (18-4) at Elmcor Wednesday at 4 p.m.; No. 5 CMSP (20-2) against No. 12 John Adams (15-10) at Elmcor Wednesday at 6 p.m.; No. 6 Aviation (19-3) vs. No. 11 Hunter (18-7) at Elmcor Thursday at 4 p.m.
Girls’ ‘B’ quarterfinal games include: No. 1 Adams vs. No. 8 Julia Richman at Elmcor next Sunday at 10 a.m. and No. 3 Cleveland vs. No. 6 Bronx Leadership at Elmcor next Sunday at 2 p.m.
Reach Associate Sports Editor Dylan Butler by e-mail at Timesledgr@aol.com or call 229-0300, Ext. 143.
