Pressure, intensity spur New Ro to win

Earlier in the season, after a successful mid-winter trip to take on teams in Tennessee, Huguenots basketball coach Bill Murphy commented on the strengths of his team, citing unselfishness and a raging competitive fire—a refusal to submit to defeat.

Excluding one loss against a national out-of-state powerhouse, losing isn’t something the Huguenots have really dealt with this year. But against their archrivals from Mount Vernon on Saturday, New Rochelle would need every ounce of that stubbornness. After a red-hot Knights team opened a 13-point lead over the hosting Huguenots, New Rochelle’s determination—and full-court press—allowed them to squeak by with less than 15 seconds to play.

The Huguenots may have held a lead for just 11 seconds in the second half, but it was all they would need to win a 62-58 thriller.

“Obviously, it seems easy to say now,” admitted Murphy. “But it seems like they really did refuse to lose. These kids did whatever it took to win.”
Entering the second half down by four, the Huguenots made it a point to hold Mount Vernon star Jabarie Hinds at bay. Hinds exploded for 20 points in the first half, but was made largely ineffectual by some defensive changes in the second.

“We were trying to man up on him and get a man on him early,” explained Murphy. “Also, I think he may have gotten a little tired.”

But the rest of Mount Vernon’s scorers picked up the slack and soon New Rochelle found themselves in a double-digit hole with foul trouble, making standout P.J. Torres largely ineffective on the defensive end.

“P.J. got his points,” says Murphy. “But I think him being in foul trouble put us in a tough spot. He wasn’t able to play as hard on defense because of it.”

Luckily for Murphy and Huguenot fans, there were more than enough New Rochelle players willing to pick up the slack.

Switching to a full-court press, which is something the Huguenots have not done this year, players like Antoine Mason (who led with 22 points) Eric Watson, Chris Dorn and A.J. and Eric Burton hounded the Mount Vernon ball-handlers, forcing several turnovers and disrupting the pattern of the game, allowing them to slowly climb back into contention.

With just over a minute and a half left, Mason stole the ball at half-court and delivered a rim rattling jam that tied the game 58-58 and sent the crowd into hysteria.

Mason came through again at the 11 second mark, hoisting up a desperate three-pointer as the shot clock wound down, drawing a foul. He would sink two of three from the line.

“He can go 0-6 from the line one day,” said Murphy of his high-flying scorer. “But when the game ends we know that he, along with our other kids are really, really clutch.”
The Knights’ Hinds was stripped on the other end, and two more New Rochelle free throws sealed the win.

While the Huguenots still have to close out the season against the Knights—and have a tough match up with Iona this Saturday—Murphy feels that his squad is showing the kind of toughness that is rewarded with postseason wins.

 “We have a lot of kids that come out, and give it their all on the defensive end,” said Murphy. “In the playoffs, defense and intensity is necessary if you want to play for, and win, a championship.

“I just wish we would have done better earlier in the game,” he laughed. “These games can take years off your life.”