Coming off a hard-fought loss to Rice at the Tom Crotty Memorial Classic at St. John's University on Sunday night, Mount Vernon had no time for a breather. It was back to the Section I grind on Monday afternoon, and a game White Plains team awaited them, at their place.
Last year, Mount Vernon and New Rochelle had emerged as Westchester County's top AA teams, treating Section I fans to a couple of knock-down, drag out bouts. This time around, Spencer Mayfield's White Plains team looks to be the most well-equipped to unseat challenge Mount Vernon's dominance.
Sunday night's game was emotionally draining for the Knights. However, Mount Vernon coach Bob Cimmino was not concerned about his team's ability to get up for a local tussle.
"We didn't start thinking about this game until about a week ago," said Cimmino. "Coming to White Plains, we're ready to play. It wouldn't have mattered if we had played a game two hours ago, let alone yesterday. I thought our energy was good today."
Mount Vernon called upon some familiar names down the stretch to eke out a 65-64 win. White Plains had a chance to force overtime, when, trailing 65-63, post player Rishawn Johnson was fouled on a last-second shot attempt. With no time left on the clock, he swished the first. The second shot caught the back iron and glanced off.
In the last six minutes, whenever White Plains attempted to grab some momentum, junior point guard Mike Coburn had an answer. It seems like the junior has been directing Mount Vernon's offense forever, and his steeliness in the fourth quarter was key in securing this victory. He shot 4-for-6 from the free throw line in the last :40 of regulation, which wasn't perfect, but it was enough.
Mount Vernon, while maintaining an edge throughout the second half, could not create much separation. David Boykin swept past Jon Mitchell with a crossover dribble and lay-in at the 4:52 mark to give White Plains its first lead of the second half, 52-51, only to see Coburn respond with a pull-up on the other end.
Mount Vernon looked to have the hosts put away with a pair of free throws by freshman Sherrod Wright to put them up 61-56 at 1:11, until White Plains senior Damian Longmore connected on a three from the corner at :51 to cut it to 61-59. Coburn shot 3-for-4 from the line in the final :19 to help nail it down.
Coburn led Mount Vernon with 18. Mitchell tallied 15 points (3-9 FT). The Knights got noteworth contributions from underclassmen Wright and Kevin Jones. The 6-foot-4 freshman forward Wright contributed 11 points, while Jones, a 6-foot-6, 190 pound sophomore power forward, added nine points. He impressed with his energy and mid-range jumper.
Johnson and sophomore Sean Kilpatrick led White Plains with 13 points each, while Johnson added eight rebounds. The beefy 6-foot-5, 270 pound power forward/center, is a promising junior post prospect. He provided White Plains with energy in the early going, scoring the team's first six points on finishes in the low post.
Johnson has excellent hands and is extremely nimble for a player his size. He's deceptively quick, had good feet, and is a solid interior passer. Fatigue limited him in the second half, as he sat for a large stretches of the third quarter. If he can get into better shape and improve his conditioning and stamina, he's going to be an attractive Division I prospect.
Kilpatrick is one of a number of talented players coming out of Section I in the class of 2008. The 6-foot-3 wing has very good body control and a scorer's mentality.
6-foot-2 1/2 senior point guard David Boykin, who has received some Division I interest, tallied 11 points for White Plains and a helping of assists, while 6-foot junior combo guard Jamell Cromartie added nine.