Christ the King opened their 2007-08 season to rave reviews. The defending CHSAA ‘AA’ city champs handily dispatched Harlem’s Wadleigh, 71-49, last Saturday night at Baruch College in the Big Apple Challenge, the annual showcase that pits the city’s best public schools versus their Catholic league counterparts.
In his return to the point guard position, senior Erving Walker shined, scoring 20 points on 8-of-11 shooting and dishing out eight assists. Junior guard Sean Johnson had 16 points, George Mason-bound senior forward Ryan Pearson added 15 points, and sophomore center Roland Brown chipped in with 15 points and 12 rebounds.
Many had questioned if Walker could play the position, even though he was a point guard upon entering the Middle Village school and led the freshman team to a city championship.
“All that does is motivate me,” he said.
“He’s a point guard,” CK Coach Bob Oliva emphatically said.
Walker moved over to shooting guard the last two years because of the presence of Malik Boothe, now at St. John’s University.
Besides Walker’s performance and the contributions of Johnson and Pearson, the play of Brown opened eyes. The burly 6-foot-8, 245-pound pivot dominated inside, putting up a double-double in just 21 minutes — barely more than a half — of action.
Last year, the undersized Royals depended on 6-foot-5 center Andrew Gabriel, a currently at Manhattan College. With Brown, not to mention 6-foot-6 sophomore Dominykas Milka, the paint shouldn’t be a problem.
“He’s been getting better and better for us,” Walker said of Brown. “He’s going to be key, especially late in the season.”
The chic pick to win Queens isn’t quite living up to expectations. Forget taking over the borough. Edison should concentrate on winning consecutive games.
Just 2-2 in Queens ‘AA,’ the Inventors’ luck has yet to improve in the non-league portion of their schedule. Edison fell to 3-5 overall, falling to Cardinal Hayes, 53-49, at Baruch College last Saturday afternoon.
“I thought we’d come out a little more focused and a little more motivated to prove ourselves this year,” Edison Coach John Ulmer said. “They’re giving it full effort, but the focus isn’t there.”
Senior guard Allan Thomas was the only player in double figures, finishing with 17. Junior point guard Stephon Hodges had more turnovers (7) than points (five) as the Inventors coughed up 24 giveaways - 12 by Thomas and Hodges — and center Presano Bell Jr. shot a ghastly 1-of-9 from the field contributing to a paltry five-point effort.
“We just haven’t clicked yet on all cylinders,” Ulmer said. “One day we look good and another day — turnovers are killing us right now. If we just clean up that, we’ll be fine.”
