Panas Nips Yorktown; Byram Hills an Early Class B Force

Carmel Stuns Poughkeepsie; Peekskill Wins PC Tourney

By Ray Gallagher, Examiner Sports Editor @Directrays

Welcome, welcome, welcome to the weekly Examiner News Boys’ Hoops Notebook. We will do everything we can, based on the reports we get from our local coaches, to promote the athletes and programs of the Examiner region north of I-84 from White Plains to Carmel/Mahopac and the better part of the Taconic State Parkway from Pleasantville to Lakeland/Putnam Valley. Cooperation is the key and every coach in the region has been invited to the party, so let’s get this shindig started with a Week 1 intro.

Man, this WALTER PANAS club is going to be a pain in the rear for its foes this year, just ask YORKTOWN, which played a terrific second half but came up shy in a 55-50 loss to the visiting Panthers (2-0) Thursday. Silky smooth Panas G Alex Tavarez led all scorers with 26 points and added five boards while junior sniper Tyler Greene, the Mount Saint Michael transfer, finished with 13 points, including three 3’s in the first half. Panas C Dillon Chenard chipped in with eight points and was a defensive menace in the paint.

“I think Yorktown is really good,” Panas boss Mike Auerbach said of Coach Mark Pavella’s 1-1 Huskers. “We were very impressed with them in their opener against Greeley. They’re young but they have some serious athleticism and shot-making ability. 

“We came out hot from the perimeter,” the coach added. “Tyler Greene had three first-half 3’s to go along with one each from Tavarez, Chenard and (Derek) Mojica. We went ice cold though from the middle of the second quarter on. We didn’t make a three in the second half, and we’re pretty perimeter-oriented this year, so that makes it tough against their zone. We’ve been very streaky offensively all preseason. When we’re on we can score in bunches with anybody, but we’re prone to long draughts as well. In all honesty, we were very excited to get out of Yorktown with a win. We’ve heard good things about them all preseason. Not an easy place to play either.”

The youthful Huskers made it tough down the stretch, closing to within two points a handful of times, but when Panas needed a basket it went to Tavarez for six of its last seven points to seal the deal. This Tavarez kid is fearless and just might lead the Panthers to their third Section 1 title in school history if the cards are dealt in their favor.

Yorktown’s Brandon Montero (15 points, 10 rebounds) was a legit force, forging his first double-double of what should be many. Justin Price (12 points, 4 rebounds) and Kaden Gonzalez (11 points, 7 rebounds) were primary contributors as well.

Panas opened the season with an 81-38 trouncing of Gorton behind 23 from Tavarez and 18 from Greene.

In Yorktown’s 62-37 win over Horace Greeley, Montero had 21 points, six rebounds and five steals for the Huskers. Billy Feeks added 12 points and four rebounds and Price added 11 points and four assists.

Yorktown has been down two key players, including seniors Tommy Costello (returning on 12/30 vs Suffern) and Antoine Coles (out 4-6 weeks).

LAKELAND (3-1) is going to be a fun watch this winter on account of many things; high-octane offense and bruising defense, among them. Coach Steve Fallo’s Hornets defeated MAHOPAC, 70-60, to open the season then crushed John Jay CR, 61-37, and handled Class AA New Rochelle, 60-47. The Hornets’ lone loss this season is to Section 9 power Monroe-Woodbury, 69-55. Hornets G Chris Whyte-Luciano (19.7 ppg,  5 rpg) has been steady and was named to the All-Tournament team in the Suffern tournament. Logan Shiland (10 ppg, 6 rpg) and Grady Leonard (9.2 ppg) have all gotten off to solid starts. Lakeland plays Ardsley 12/14 before a big tilt with rival Yorktown 12/16.

FOX LANE (1-1) took a 59-32 win over BRIARCLIFF behind Niko Dent (14 points, 8 rebounds), Charlie Shevick (10 points, 2 assists, 4 rebounds), Chris Redhead (13 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists), Conrad Hardie (8 points, 2 assists, 3 rebounds), Matt Toscano (4 points, 7 assists, 6 steals, 3 rebounds) and Kevin New (6 points). The Foxes were up against a state powerhouse in Mt. Vernon a couple days later and the Knights pulled a 64-45 decision despite some solid efforts from Dent (13 points, 5 boards), Redhead (9 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists), Hardie (6 points, 4 assists, 3 rebounds) and Toscano (12 points, 2 assists).

BREWSTER Coach Michael Nicastro is hoping to turn the Bears around in his first season and a 1-1 start went down last week when RCK beat the Bears, 60-52, after the Bears opened the season with a 56-44 win over PUTNAM VALLEY (0-3).

Against RCK, Brewster excelled in transition with 18 points, capitalizing off RCKs turnovers. Steven Switzer led the Bears with 16 points, also contributing on defense with four steals. Connor Griffin notched a double-double, with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Christian Freeman came off the bench to put up eight points, including a pair of late-game 3’s as Brewster staged a late comeback attempt. Matthew Thompson secured 10 rebounds and junior Lucas Cabiati also contributed eight points before exiting the game with a knee injury in the third quarter (he is day-to-day).

“We’re looking to bounce back after this loss against a solid AA program,” Nicastro said. “We’re looking to improve on shot selection and controlling the pace of the game.”

Against Putnam Valley, Brewster shot a solid 41% from the field with Griffin leading the way for the Bears, scoring 27 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Steven Switzer also shined for Brewster with 22 points and seven rebounds. Thompson cleaned up the glass with 10 rebounds and provided a solid defensive effort, but PV hung tough until William Dignan’s corner 3 with 3:07 left in the game iced it for the Bears. He also leads the Bears with seven assists.

“We’re looking to be a league contender this year, which can happen if we continue to play team basketball, eliminate lapses on defense and look for the best option on the offensive end,” the coach said.

HEN HUD is off and running with a legit start after winning the Sailors’ Jack McGuire Memorial Tournament title over the weekend. Hen Hud senior G Dean Hiltsley was named MVP and led the way with 17 second-half points while Sailor Stephen Ragaso was All-Tourney as the Sailors (4-1) beat Pelham, 62-44, to win its own holiday tournament for the first time since 2018. The Sailors have been sharp to start the season at 4-1, including a win over Roosevelt, in which Hiltsely went for 23 and Gino Wamack added 19 points. Coming out of the gate, Hen Hud players and coaches have paid special attention to local foes Panas and Yorktown.

“Both teams are legit,” Sailors Coach Jordan Hirsch said of Panas and Yorktown. “Tough, tough matchups. We see Yorktown right before holiday break at their place, which is not an easy place to play. Lakeland is going to be very good this year. Honestly, our whole league is tough. No guaranteed outcomes ever.”

PEEKSKILL took a 66-52 win over Port Chester in the championship round of the Port Chester Tournament after knocking out Clarkstown North in the opening round. The Red Devils and new Coach Tyrone Searight improved to 2-0 in his first season, doing so behind an MVP effort from Travis Brown (14 points) and an all-tourney showing from Marquet Webster (4 points). In the championship game, Josh Jones had 18 points to lead all scorers.

“I’m very proud of our start to the season,” Searight, affectionately called SeaDawg, said. “At 2-0, the boys are really taking steps going in the right direction. We still have our work cut out for us going into next week when we have our home opener Tuesday against Harrison and Friday night in the Bronxville Tournament against a solid Byram Hills team.”

Ketcham star Owen Paino, an Ole Miss baseball commit, scored 35 points in RCK’s 50-48 win over HORACE GREELEY, which was led by Justin Potack (19 pts, 5 steals) and Nicky Tasso added (17 points, 10 rebounds). The Quakers fell to 1-1.

CLASS AA

CARMEL shocked the section with its 47-46 win over an undermanned but still-impressive Class A Poughkeepsie club Friday night in the Rams’ home opener under first-year Coach Bobby Russo, who upended the reigning Section 1 Class A champion with a defensive mindset. Damien Santiago and Nate Antoniuk led the Rams with 13 points apiece while Jack Salisbury added 11 in a massive come-from-behind win (Poughkeepsie led Carmel 41-35 after three quarters). The Rams (1-0) host Horace Greeley today at 6:15 p.m. in the hopes of taking that momentum forward.

OSSINING (2-1) defeated Ramapo 73-56. The Pride were led by junior G Jaiden Newton, who had 14 first-quarter points before finishing with a game-high 28 points, including an impressive tone-setting, monster throw-down, to go with six boards and three steals. Senior G AJ Caparelli (14 points, 5 assists, 4 boards), junior F Isaiah Ahlers (9 points, 4 rebounds, 3 steals), sophomore Donte Williams (7 points) and Gavin Thomas-Walters (7 points) were key contributors for the Pride.

WHITE PLAINS dominated Spring Valley, 77-55, in the 28th Annual Harry Jefferson Showcase behind a 24-point effort from senior MVP Menzy Carden. Ethan Sekeri scored 15

Points and won the sportsmanship award. Logan McCormick (12 points), Jake Labrosciano (8), Luke Brooks (4), Malik Dawson (4), Daniel Herzner (2) and Evan Elliott (2) all found the score sheet for the Tigers (1-0).

CLASS B

In the finale of the BRIARCLIFF tournament, Hastings wing Casey Maiorino drained a left- wing, buzzer-beating 3 for a 59-56 win over the host Bears Saturday night. Casey Rosenbaum and Cooper Plank were named all-tourney for the Bears (1-2).

BYRAM HILLS opens with a 60-46 road win to Roosevelt where Luke Berliner showed up with 16 points, 15 rebounds and four assists. Bobcat sophomore Zac Efobi introduced himself to Section 1 with 15 points and eight boards while Tyson Repa did his usual damage (14 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists). The versatile Repa also dropped 28 points in the opening-round loss to Hastings. One could easily see the well-coached Bobcats (1-1) emerging as serious contenders for the Class B crown before all is said and done.

Likewise, VALHALLA was very impressive in its 69-52 season-opening win over host HALDANE

“They have some good guard play, shot it well and are tough,” Haldane Coach Joe Virgadamo said of the Vikings after his Blue Devils fell to 2-2. “We were down three going into the fourth and they just outplayed us. We lost four starters to graduation last year. We’re going to be a different team come February. Should be a fun year for us.”

CLASS C

Tuckahoe made two huge defensive stops in the final 10 seconds and beat Haldane, 57-56, despite solid efforts from Blue Devils (1-2) Matteo Cervone (17 points), Matthew Nachamkin (13), Ryan Eng-Wong (9), Ben Bozsik (8) and Will Bradley (7) but it was not enough to offset Chase Garcia’s 22 points for Tuckahoe. 

CHSAA

STEPINAC hammered Holy Cross in its home opener, 81-41, behind clutch efforts from Aamyr Sullivan (20 points, 3 assists), Danny Carbuccia (14 points, 8 assists), Braylan Ritvo (13 points, 8 rebound), Jordan Gabriel (9 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists) and Dylan Perry (6 points, 7 rebounds). The Crusaders (3-1) also participated in the NY Hoops Festival where they lost to St. Peter’s 66-63. Carbuccia  (21 points, 6 assists, 3 rebounds), Fland 14 points, 5 assists, 4 rebounds and Ben Lyttle (12 points, 12 rebounds, 3 steals) all posted big numbers in a losing effort.

For inclusion in our Examiner-area weekly hoops notebook, we ask that coaches please pass along game-by-game results to raygallaghersports@gmail.com or text the number you’ve ALL been sent.