Recruiting update: Big East/ACC schools join those courting Cousins
As it often does with Mount Vernon’s top seniors, Isaiah Cousins’ list of suitors is growing.
The difference this time is that three schools from top conferences have joined the fray. Mount Vernon coach Bob Cimmino said last night on Twitter that Pitt, Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech have joined the schools in pursuit of his 6-foot-4 senior guard.
Cousins had already received scholarship offers from Rhode Island, Iona, Manhattan, Central Connecticut, Stony Brook, Hofstra, St. Bonaventure and Towson prior to the season.
The Dayton Daily News reported on Jan. 6 that Dayton had offered Cousins as well.
Cousins is currently the starting point guard for Mount Vernon, the five-time defending Class AA champ. He leads the team in scoring and has helped the Knights to an 12-2 start, including a third-place finish in last weekend’s Montverde Academy Invitational.
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Seriously… This kid has offers from about 10 schools of which some are major programs. Now these are scouts who see his ability and not just the local bloggers and MV fans. I think that’s enough evidence who the best player in Section one. Let’s not punish him because he is on a great team and plays under 3 quarters in Section one games. Can someone please tell us what offers have come in for Sky and the other candidates.
If this is about the best boys player, it’s no contest. If it’s about most vauable it’s Chong.
The prestige of the MV program no doubt helps recruitment. They are nationally known and have worked hard to achieve it. Some scouts may not know about Tuckahoe and that’s not Sky’s fault, that’s out of his control as well.
IS THERE AN ECHO IN HERE,PEOPLE PLEASE LISTEN,AND NEXT YEAR IT WILL BE JOSHUA DOUGHTY,THE FACTORY CONTINUES.
I know it’s hard for some people on this blog to think that anyone from another school besides MT. Vernon should win player of the year. However, the award is not for who has the most talent, or who has gotten the most scholarship offers. The award is for who has had the best season this year, and despite what many of you think, Cousins stats don’t match up with a few of the other candidates. Yes, that has a lot to do with the fact they have a Lot of blowouts, and also play a way tougher schedule. But that’s the way things fall sometimes.
BALLER,
THAT IS WHY THE PLAYERS FROM MOUNT VERNON KEEP WINING THE AWARD,THEY REPRESENT THE WHOLE STATE
STATESMAN,
SKY WILLIAMS WILL BE PLAYING IN THE MOUNT VERNON GYM ON SATURDAY AGAINST SAUNDERS,IF YOU CAN SNEAK AWAY FROM NEW RO COME CHECK HIM OUT
THE TUCKAHOE VS SAUNDERS GAME STARTS AT 1215PM ON SATURDAY,YOUR TEAM OR YOUR MVP FOR SECTION 1 CHOICE,I THINK YOU WILLBE IN NEW RO. LLLOOOLLL
States, As I posted a few days ago, is the award given to the player with the best stats or best player. I still don’t know. If it came down to numbers there would be no debate. I am always a big fan of the little guy, or underdog and it makes great screen plays and stories to tell your kids. No doubt. You make a very good point about the exposure MV gets and how that helps getting offers and Sky does not get that kind of exposure at Tuckahoe. I know a few of the kids on the team and I hope they win the states.
Now why should it come down to stats to be the best player in the section? Thats not fair in this case because as we have already established MV rarley play their starters the whole game during the season. I don’t think in the history of the program have they had a kid average as many points as Sky Williams and if it does come down to points, I think Chong wins but Im not sure. Bottom line. either Isaih or maybe Chong
He should avoid Pitt like the plaig…remember Keith Benjamin!
I PREDICT THAT BY THE TIME MV HOISTS THE GOLD BALL AT THE COUNTY,MORE MAJOR COLLEGES WILL COME CALLING
Haywood… putting the horse before the cart again. lay low.
Section 1.. agreed. Pitt has not been good to us
I do not understand how Fordham from the A-10 or St. John’s from the Big East not have been involved early on- Didn’t Fordham not learn their lesson with Tony Taylor after they never recruited him and now he is lighting it up for 4 years at George Washington.
SPACECADET,
I UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU ARE SAYING,SO I WILL RELAX AND HOPE IT HAPPENS.
IonaPower,
Great point about Fordham – they really have underperformed recruiting local players. They got the PG from WP several years ago, but he only lasted 1 season and frankly, I thought he would’ve been better off at a lower D1 school like Monmouth, St Peters, etc. St Johns has a ton of freshman, so i wouldn’t expect their class to be huge – they’ve also been recruiting on a national level. I think Cousins has a lot of potential to be a solid contributor at the next level because of his size. He also seems like a relative late bloomer compared to all the MV kids who are playing on the varsity as 8th graders and contributing a lot as freshman.
haywood,
Doughty is good, but I think next year the highest recruited kid in Westchester will definitely be Josh James from Stepinac. Naim Thomas the soph at Stepinac might be the highest recruited soph around.
Space,
Duly noted. I can’t k.nock your take on it at all. Maybe I should do some PER ratings for the candidates per diem so we can get more in depth analysis on their contributions to their teams at an equal proportion. I hope Tuckahoe wins States/Feds as well. More Section 1 Love, the better.
Wood,
I wish I could. MV is on the way back but I have so many things on my plate that just s.neaking to New Ro is b.ad enough.
Hoops,
I think Boykin was that point. While he was good, he was never the best player on the court in games vs. Pok, New Ro and MV so he was a bit over-recruited. I’m not mad at him at all, it’s f.oolish for Fordham to be discouraged about recruiting local talent when they recruit the wrong kids! I would love for Naim to be at Pok but things are looking good for him, hope he sticks it out, nearly halfway through.
HOOPS FAN,
I WAS TALKING ABOUT SEC. 1,PLAYER OF THE YEAR
States.. curious if someone has stats on points per minute.
haywood, I just don’t want to see another lynching after your very bold prediction against OCP. We can’t keep coming to your rescue.. lol
Space,
I don’t think anyone has those stats but if I get total minutes played I can work it out in the formula.
If I can get Total Shots Made/Attempted, FT/FG/3 Point Percentages, Turnovers, Assists, Rebounds, Blocks and Charges Drawn for the candidates if possible I can get it done.
Maybe Josh or KJD can use their extensive pull to obtain this info?
SPACECADET,
I REALLY ADMIRE THE WAY,CERTAIN BLOGGERS RALLY AROUND EACH OTHER ESPECIALLY,YOU,MVHS65 AND STATESMAN,MV71,ECT…
SOMETIMES IT’S HARD BEING A MV SLUM,WHEN IT COMES TO BASKETBALL,LLLOOOLLL,SMH
ALUM NOT SLUM
here is something to think about. MVHS has sent 8 players into the NBA or ABA and Kevin Jones will be #9. None of them were transfered and they all went to college. Out of all those guys if I’m not mistaking only Sam Williams scored more than 40 points. ( he was a nut ). It’s not about the points, playing defense diving for balls when your up by 30 and being a complete player.
Discovery Channel “How It’s made” should set up a film crew on California Road
SPACE
I’M NOT A B/BALL GUY BUT I HEARD ABOUT SAM WILLIAMS BEFORE. WAS HE REALLY THE BEST TO COME OUT OF HIS FAMILY AND MV…
Prince
You would spice up the basketball blog so its too bad u are not a basketball fan!
IonaPower,
Yes, spice!
spacecadet,
I think the reason so few MV kids have put up huge scoring #’s is 2 parts – 1) so many talented kids on each team, the shots are distributed 2) way too many blowouts in Westchester league prevents kids having more nights to go off. If MV theoretically played in the PSAL or CHSAA, I can see many of the MV greats having multiple 40 pt nights
HOOPS FAN,
SO TRUE,YOU ARE RIGHT ON THE MONEY
spacecadet… According to Cimmino, Mount Vernon has had 12 NBA players.
Also, what’s going on with Randy Stephens of MV?
I found a site and Space is right. There were 8 NBA players:
Ray Williams
Gus Williams
Earl Tatum
Lowes Moore
Scooter McCray
Rodney McCray
Rudy Hackett
Ben Gordon
IONA
THANKS!.. I KNOW LIL!!.. LOL… BUT SOME OF YOU GUYS ARE VERY IMPRESSIVE!.. WITH YOUR KNOWLEDGE… I REALLY DO ENJOY READING Y’ALL POST!.. THOUGH!!..
Prince…serious question and you may or may not know but why aren’t more football players at NEw RO also playing basketball? Can a kid like Butts not get on the court?
DA most hated,
What will be the score of the superbowl?,
Remember I know you like the jets,LLLLLLOOOOOLLLLL
HR!..
THATS A VERY GOOD QUESTION THEY DO HAVE SOME FOOTBALL PLAYERS ON THERE THIS YEAR!!..... I THNK THE KIDS LOVE FOOTBALL AND LIKE B/BALL AND THE FOOTBALL HAS BETTER SUCCESS. THE YTL FOOTBALL IS MORE POPULAR THEN THE YOUTH B/BALL LEAGUE!!!! SO THE KIDS TAKE THE FOOTBALL A LIL MORE SERIOUS!! IMO!!
HAYWOOD
JETS 35 PATS 28!!...
Answer to the Williams Riddle
Gus: 17ppg, 5 plus asst. and top 20 all time in steals. Every year he played NBA, his team made the play-offs. he sat out in 80-81 and Seattle did not make the playoffs that year. Go figure, he was cut as a junior..
Ray was a beast and maybe one of the best atheletes out of that school, played football and basketball and I believe baseball. Scored 50 plus for the Nets one year and had a couple of good years with Knicks.
Sam shot a lot.
Basketballreference.com great site
Prince its literally the opposite of MV. I am thinking you are on point. I was more curious if the football and hoops coach were ok with the cross over. In many instances, they are persuaded to not do both. I have seen that locally quite a bit and I can’t stand that.
Haywood….... I’ve taken note that this is the 2nd time you’ve mistyped ALUM as SLUM.
Either you suffer from a serious case of the Lazy Pinky Syndrome or are doing a subliminal, Freudian slip into your formative years on the tough south side of the tracks.
Remember now, you’re talking to someone whose favorite candy store on 3rd street and 4th was transformed into a methadone clinic in the early 70’s and who grew up across the street from a proposed Hip Hop museum [the old firehouse on 4th Ave.]
According to my friend Joey Edward Williams [son of MV HOF Edward Williams] Sam Williams [no relation to Joey] was the best of the three Williams brothers. I find that hard to believe, albeit, never having seen him play. Gus by far got the very most out of his talent…..and so very sad knowing of brother Ray’s homelessness [living out of ‘92 Buick in Florida]. Sam, I didn’t know about but did hear he was a loose cannon, marching to his own tune.
Tough counting Rudy Hackett as an NBAer, since he only lasted for two season…and barely making an impression at that..something like 2.2 ppg/2.3 rpg. He did, however, make his mark in Europe.
spacecadet…any Gus Williams stories of a personal note you’d like to share. Wished I’d seen his dominance as a high school player. Heard the other teams had real trouble getting the ball past midcourt when he was putting the MV on them.
haywood…
yes, we do get each others’ backs…that’s the way I was taught to behave. That said, it’s not a major issue accomplishing this when the likes of Moe and JS start attacking. JS is so full of hate on anything Mount Vernon that he make absolutely no sense whatsoever. p.s. I just found out JS’s middle initial…it’s ‘P’...and THAT makes total sense…JPS [Just Plain Stupid].
hoops fan,
rumor is stepinac has a 6’10 soph. beast sitting out this year and their freshmen team is very good. looks like future is bright?
IonaPower,
Perhaps after reading all your unbiased and riveting posts about Iona Prep Basketball, St Johns and Fordham have decided to exclusively recruit kids from Iona Prep. Starting next year ofcourse when their back in AA..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1X-b3EPdSb0
Is this the coach of Croton and his son? I hear him call him Ian on the clip?
I love Zay Zay & all the attention he’s getting from recruiters, journalists like Josh & my fellow bloggers, but I wonder if he’ll step on campus & make the kind of positive impact that Barie has at WVU. The Vern is a Very Special Program & I’ve spoken with some Bigtime coaches who absolutely Love Mt Vernon players because of how hard they work. Basically, MV kids already have been in a college program & “Get It” before they arrive at college. Zay Zay has some big shoes to fill. Have at it! U Da Man!!!
HRs February 1st, 2012 at 3:29 pm
Prince its literally the opposite of MV. I am thinking you are on point. I was more curious if the football and hoops coach were ok with the cross over. In many instances, they are persuaded to not do both. I have seen that locally quite a bit and I can’t stand that.
HR!!.... I THINK IT’S RAMPANT IN ALOT OF SCHOOL ESPECIALLY WHEN ONE SPORT IS NOT AS SUCCESSFUL AS THE OTHER!!.. YOU ALOT OF LAX PLAYERS STOP PLAYING FOOTBALL IN SOME SCHOOLS!!...
Yeah except at St. Anthony’s! Some of their best football players are Lax players. It amazes me that their basketball team is weak.
HR
PROBABLY SOME OF THERE BEST B/BALL PLAYERS ARE FOOTBALL PLAYERS A 100 MAN ROSTER ON VARSITY AND 400 KIDS PLAYING FOOTBALL IN THE ENTIRE SCHOOL I CN’T IMAGINE ALL 400 KIDS BAD IN B/BALL!!... THAT MIGHT BE WHERE SAINT ANT SUCCESS IS AT IN THE WEIGHT ROOM!!..
Prince,
I had to beg a few Pok b-ballers to play Football, one in particular. Sometimes some ballers sre soft and dont like contact which makes them lose to physical teams down the road. You def brought up a great point.
New Ro is not the opposite of MV, their hoops team is much more competitive then the MV Football team but I guess it’s all relative w/ MV being who they are.
I’ll be in New Ro for a bit on Sat, might run into you.
MV65,
Good call on Woods slum post. He must have big thumbs like me lol
MV
States ….I should have elaborated. What I meant is in New Ro the youth choose football, the opposite in MV where the youth chooses hoops. New Ro’s hoops is def more competitive vs MV football. By the way Ubiles is putting up legit numbers in the D-league. Hopefully he gets called up soon. How is Ty Strohman doing ? What is your read on him..Europe?
HRs,
He got called up Golden State in the preseason but got called back down. He’ll be fine. Greg Popowich loves him so if San Antonio is in his future it’ll be the perfect place for him to develop.
After prep school and Blinn College in TX, Ty is a Junior at a NAIA d2 St. Augustines College in NC. He missed the first 7 games but has started the 12-13 he has been eligible and has transformed the team. Averages about 10 a game and is very disruptive at 6’6 and as bulky and athletic as ever.
HRs,
http://www.saintaugfalcons.com/custompages/MBB/MBB1112/TEAMCUME.HTM#TEAM.IND
J. Pleasants,
Are you in Wiccoppe tonight?
Good for your boy. Hopefully he will continue to progress. Seems to be real focused and showing his true abilities. Remember him from high school. He was legit.
I hope for Ubiles sake, he gets moved from Golden State’s D-league to the Spurs. He may have to eventually make a decision whether to stay in the D-league period or go to Europe. D-league players make peanuts( average salary is 12-24K) so you can only do that for so long.
Section 1
Maybe if Fordham was smart they would have recruited Brian Voelkel-Not that u would know who he is!!
BTW u must read would I say as you felt it was important to comment on my posts-
HRs,
Thanks
HRs,
Thanks, I wish he would have listened to me growing up, could have went anywhere he wanted but at least he has it now. As long as you continue to push forward, develop and get an education—you’re good w/ me.
I hope Ubiles gets moved soon. He has infant twins so the salary range comes in huge. That franchise has no clue what they’re doing hence the Curry/Ellis backcourt soap opera. Keep Curry, he is coachable, plays D and is a good kid. Get what you can for Ellis while you still can. Also a good player but dropping 30 isn’t much if your not playig D harder then you would on offense.
Non-sport note:
DON CORNELIUS….OF SOOOOUL TRAIN….DEAD AT 75. May your soul rest in peace.
Hard for your soul to rest in peace when you blo.w your own brains out.
Thanks for the link. He has some nice numbers. He has clearly made a huge impact on that team. One thing I noticed that was a little off was the 7-24 3pt shooting. I have to chalk that up to being rusty. Or is that where he needs work(shooting form and range)
There is only so much you can do, but you must have had enough of an impact on him where he has changed his ways now. I am sure he isn’t the only one you have impacted in POK…
You are right on point with everything you are saying about Ubiles and GS franchise. The one thing they did do(which was smart) was hire Mark Jackson. He is a defensive minded coach and the stats this year prove it. Ellis will never play D, so you are right move him.
Statesman,
One of my daughters goes to st.Aug in north Carolina,the TORNAMENT comes on tv every year
HRs,
His 3 point shooting has always been his only weakness. He can shoot over most defenders but is streaky. If he isn’t hot—those are typical numbers. In those situations I advise him to attack the basket or use the mid range game. Wish I can find the tip slam vid over a 7 foot african he has lying around.
All I can do is lend my advice to friends and the young growing up and try to lead by example like Confucious put it. I can only pray that folks will see the brevity of the situation and make thr most of their lives and only they can pull that out of them.
Haywood,
Small world. Does she ball? It’ll give you something nice to watch. Stroman vs J-Mitch was always fun to watch.
Pok is down 35-28 at the half but seems to be on a surge according to Jeff. This team seems to show up every other game or something mind-boggling.
Statesman,
She is a senior,just schooling,my other daughter transfered from livingstone,she is back in new York going to berkley in white plains
POK down by 1 ,dancy time
6-0 run to end the 3rd for Pok. Down 1 entering the 4th. Evey game is big, dont let it slip away Pok.
Haywood,
I’m at New Ro w/out a doubt. Cant wait to get a look at Thiago.
Wood,
You’re getting the hang of this twitter thing. Bet you’re glad to have your other one back close. Just no surprise weekend visits!
Dancy and Lawrence time for sure, Carter with the coup de grace!
Big big game
POK taking control
You can get away w/ it vs JJ but not the TZ’s, BH’s, JFK,. Etcs out there. Season ending goal for PK has to be find ways to mitigate slow starts and come out the gate sharp.
Very good win
Statesman,
For right now take the W and be happy
Wood,
Yes sir! Another big one on Friday at home vs Arlington. Lawrence’s first game vs his former team. Def gotta go to work early so I can get back in time for it.
Statesman,
I hope they have legs on Saturday,very tall order
MV.. glad you brought up Haywoods mis spelling of Alum and not me.. it has to be at least 6 or 7 times he has done it over the last couple of years.
Gus..that team 71 team had too many weapons and from the little I can remember back then (most of the loss if memories had to much to do with spending more time in the parking lot than going to class).. It was a team effort almost every game, Ivo falling into the stands after shooting 35 footers. Young and Hacket dominating the boards and Tatums deadly 20 footers.
I don’t think bow tie wearing Vin Olsen invented the box and one or not, but it was used. It’s not often people get on their feet when the team your rooing for is playing defense..One thing I do recall was when the crowd got into a frenzy when Gus was playing pressuring the ball handler who tried to dribble over half court. You knew he was going to strip the guy and he would, and there were times when he picked a guys pocket and the guy was wondering WTf happened to the ball. He got the nickname the Wizard for a reason. The look away pass always brought out the ooohs and ahhhs.
In a Playoff Game at the Center, I believe it was against Scarsdale he threw a between the leg half court pass to Tatum who dunked. He did that every once in a while. It was like Eddie Feigner from the King and his court pitching between his legs from 2nd base.
Wood,
True, runs like this get you ready for postseason play though. Laffin has done a good job of rotating so I think they’ll be ok.
Josh,
I think the 12 NBAers Coach Cimmino cited included guys who were drafted, but never played in the league like Mike Young or Curtis Moore. Remember back in the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s the draft had up to 12 rounds, so there were a decent number of guys drafted every year that never made a roster – may have played pre-season though. MVHS65, haywood and spacecadet would know the names better than I, but there were at least one or two MVHS guys drafted in the late 60’s right after the merger that created MVHS – Richie Garner, Billy Pleas, Rudy Bennett.
Hold on ,just to let you know,
When I type on the phone,if you rush and don’t read what you have typed,sometimes the phone helps you spell and screws you.
Bill Pleas probably got a cup of coffee with the Piston but as I said earlier he made his legendary mark in the Israeli Pro Leagues.
Haven’t heard Rasul Salahuddin’s name mentioned who definitely had game at Long Beach State and was a finalist in collegiate slam dunk contest.
Rudy Bennett, a great guy and classmate of mine so far as I know never played a day of pro ball on the NBA level. Saw him pin a White Plains lay-up on the top of the white square on the backboard above the rim…got the MV crowd going up in WP. Remember that these were the days when MV usually split their series with WP, NR and even Roosevelt of Yonkers [Boo Glover pure shooter].
Speaking of…...WP’s Mal Graham was an awesome guard/forward who set records for NYU back when NYU was an excellent program and later was a key cog in the the Boston Celtics championship machine.
mvhs65,
There were some all-time greats around back then – Charlie Criss, Bill Cain, Dave Collins, among many others. Mal Graham might’ve led the nation in scoring in college and was definitely a first round pick.
Good comeback for pok. Gotta play better overall as jjef is not good. Also, saw Red Hook up close last night. Decent team, but I d be shocked if they beat the Section one winner. Not as big as they usually are. Do run their offense well but very beatable.
Pok Arl Friday, another big one, hearing that arlington might not be a full strength.
Statesman,
Nick Segarra (spelling) was completely dominating Pok in the first half. Everything he threw up was going in and Pok seemed helpless. For the game, he had about 33 points. In the third quarter, Pok gained control of the game and pulled away. They began to look like the basketball team that beat Newburgh, not the team that fell to Beacon. Let’s hope that the good team shows up on Friday right out of the gate. Going down by 13 or 14 points in the first quarter isn’t likely to work well against Arlington.
Pleas did have a cup of coffee with the Pistons but I can’t find and numbers on him right now.
Guy named Al Skinner born in MV but played HS in Long Island so we can’t count that.
Al Skinner the former coach at BC? I never knew that
Po’ Fan pretty much summed up the story of the game… The Segarra brothers have given PK teams fits over the past few years with their hot 3-point shooting. Also, John Jay fouled the Pioneers like crazy, forcing them to shoot free throws. IMHO, it appeared that John Jay’s short bench (only nine players dressed) caught up with it in the second half; by the 4th quarter, the Patriots looked exhausted. Fortunately for PK, Jay’s big man Joseph got into early foul trouble, so he wasn’t much of a factor. Definitely not like the dominant wins PK has enjoyed in the past, but I’ll take it…
BTW, Statesman, if you ever get the opportunity to go the CIAA Tournament, you won’t regret it. Great fun.
Woke up in the middle of the night with MV-NBA connection floating in my sub-conscious…finally grasping that could this be a trick question.
Of course!! ...the ninth NBAer was TONY FIORENTINO…played at MVHS…don’t know if he got much PT at Dowling College but later became a very, very successful coach for the Knights…such that he eventually wound up as an assistant coach with the Miami Heat and color commentator for the Heat.
Sweet Jeezus!! I must be getting old!! Now just finding out that Angelo Dundee has gone to the other side!!!
Don Cornelious and Angelo Dundee in the same day. Wow!!
This is too much for anyone to have to bear!! Two great men in their respective fields…such a rich part of the fabric of our lives in the worlds of boxing and music.
Peace, Love and Soul
R.I.P.
DON & ANGELO
YOU NEVER KNOW WHEN YOU ARE GOING TO GET THAT TAP ON THE SHOULDER
The Poughkeepsie Journal says that Gio Rodriguez, one of Arlington’s top scorers, won’t be available for tomorrow’s game against Poughkeepsie. He was great in Arlington’s win in the last match-up, when two of Poughkeepsie’s top players were out. Those two players are back, so we’ll see what happens.
PO’ FAN,
430PM GAME ON FRIDAY,AND THEN 12PM SATURDAY AGAINST KENNDY AT NEW RO,IT WOULD BE SWEET IF POK COULD TAKE BOTH GAMES,I BELIEVE YESTERDAY’S GAME WAS GOING TO BE TOUGH JUST BECAUSE OF THE EMOTIONAL HIGH FROM BEATING NEWBURGH.
IF THEY BEAT ARLINGTON ON FRIDAY,THEY COULD BEAT KENNDY ON CONFIDENCE ALONE,”BUCKLE UP”
spacecadet…
Thanks for the Gus Williams anecdotes.
Vinnie Olsen, the hyper-kinetic, bow tie wearing coach happened to be my driver’s ed./health teacher back in ‘64. He was not coach of the varsity at the time I was in school [displaced by a coach Ridenour I believe] but he is noted for saying that it was like dying and going to heaven when he got to coach the DREAM TEAM of Williams/Tatum/Hackett/Young….
My brother had Coach Olsen [also the track coach] in AB Davis back in ‘58 and told me the story of his running in street clothes against the fastest guy on the AB Davis track team and nipping him at the wire. Dang!!
Arlington will beat Pok. Pok is too immature and the Admirals are focused after smacking RCK by 25!
MV…LOL.
What a sight Vin Olsen in street clothes with a bow tie beating the fastest guy on the AB track team. Not surprised. (not sure if he would have had that success against Edison) Now that there are few left on this thread, I grew up across the street from Davis born in 54. Practically lived on that field all day, back then it was the Little Rascals for about an hour in the morning and then you got booted out of the house at 9am in the summer or saturdays. No video games, 300 channels or the internet.. The Track at Davis had almost a black cinder surface. When you fell on it the little pices of stone would get embedded in your hands, sometimes your face..
I knew every twist and turn of that school, Nichols and the handball courts.. good stuff.
will you be at mvhs saturday?
I have a question for all the posters. Who is your all-time 1st, 2nd, 3rd & 4th team of all time for Westchester basketball? Just curious with all of the old school names being mentioned…
B-BALL
I REMEMBER THE JOURNAL RUNNING THAT ARTICLE IN DEC 1999 OR JAN OF 2000 IT WOULD BE NICE IF JOSH RE-POST IT!!..
DC Hoops,
A 25 point win over RCK means nothing. Pok best them by 23 to start the season off at a point where according to you this immature team was even less mature. Didn’t have Smith and Lawrence last time. That game was tight until Arl ran away in the 4th. This league is crazy and has been fun to watch. Looking forward to see how these last few league games turn out. Every game is major.
States and haywood,
I’m hoping for the best, but I think JFK will be a tough win for Pok no matter what happens against Arlington.
I agree that Arlington’s win over Ketcham in not very impressive, given Ketcham’s record. I also agree that this season is nuts in this league. Gone are the days when I could relax and watch Pok walk over the competition. It does make for interesting (but frustrating) games.
Po’ Fan,
Likewise. JFK is a tough team and will be hard to play on a big court. I’m hoping for the best and it seems like they are learning to play with one another.
I saw Tyi Belton on my way to work this morning, looks like a broken and himbled kid. Sorry he had to learn this way but he had his chances and is more than young enough to bounce back. I don’t know where D. Hamilton currently is but hopefully he gets a shot to rebuild his life at some point. Kid is only 14 so I hope the system doesn’t throw the book at him.
LIFES LESSONS LEARNED I FEEL THE SWING OF SOMETHING GOOD FOR POK,AND JUST AT THE RIGHT TIME
Haywood,
I’ve been hoping Pok can get it together late like your boys did this season. Thr next 72 hours will be great to see if this is possible.
1st Team
Gus Williams – Mount Vernon, Ben Gordon – Mount Vernon, Elton Brand – Peekskill, Scooter McCray – Mount Vernon, Marty Conlon – Stepinac
2nd Team
Dario Ross – New Rochelle, Ray Williams – Mount Vernon, Clyde Vaughn – New Rochelle (MV Raised), Rodney McCray – Mount Vernon, Hilton Armstrong – Peekskill
3rd Team
Lowes Moore – Mount Vernon, Jimmy McGhee – New Rochelle
Earl Tatum – Mount Vernon, Mark Blount – Dobbs Ferry, 6’7” kid from Yorktown in the mid 80’s. Was a beast, can’t remember his name
Honorable Mention
Jesse Arnelle – New Rochelle, Wesley Bialosuknia –Poughkeepsie, James Blackwell – Fox Lane, Colin Johnson – Mount Vernon, Charlie Criss – Valhalla, Butch Graves – Scarsdale, Rudy Hackett, Jason Rhodes – White Plains, Bernard Toone – Yonkers, Jabarie Hinds – Mount Vernon, Kevin Jones – Mount Vernon, Rashaun “crabby” Young – New Rochelle, Jim Bostic – Yonkers
I know I left a lot of names out, but I tried to stay with people that I either saw play, played against or have several reliable sources to explain their games in detail. Who are some of the names I left off?
I should add that I never saw Jesse Arnelle – New Rochelle or Wesley Bialosuknia –Poughkeepsie play or have ever heard of them. i just pulled them down from a web-site and added their names. I have seen all of the other players play except for maybe three (Bostic, Graves, Hackett)
Toone has to get moved up
First team,
Gus Williams,Ben Gordon,scooter mccray,mount Vernon,elton brand,earl tatum
Second team,
Rodney mccray,ray Williams,Bernard toon,tod Scott(peekskill),clyde vaughn
@ Space – Where would you put him and who should I move out? I tried to be position specific…so granted Ray Williams and Rodney McCray may have had better HS caeers than Marty Colon…the problem is that neither one was a center. Rodney may have played some of the five position at MV, but I have him listed as a forward
IQ ,
Taking it pre-statesman days w/ Wes. When did you see him play?
@ Haywood – see my comments above about the center position, but I do see your points. Please also keep in mind that I’m trying to do this solely on players high school careers and not what they did in college or the NBA. That is why I have players like Jim McGhee who once dropped 63 in a game (around 84) and probably averaged almost 30 that year and Dario Ross who in my opinion had the most raw talent out of anyone in the last 25 years (yes I’m including Ben Gordon), but never even played college ball.
Statesman – I noted above that I never saw Wesley and about five others play. Also noted I had not heard of Jesse Arnelle – New Rochelle or Wesley Bialosuknia and got their info from a web-site. I have seen or played against most of the others players. Only players I did not see play was Bennett, Bostic, Graves (I may have seen him play), Charlie Criss (had not heard about him), Tatum (Have met and spoken with him on more than one occasion). All of the other player I have seen play and have first hand knowledge of. I have heard many stories about Toone, Bostic, etc.. I do remember Bostic playing briefly for the pro team in Westchester County that played at the county center
I remember the Todd Scott name from Peekskill, but what year was he? Also who was the kid from Yorktown in the 80’s (I think he was from Yorktown). Around 6’7” and had serious ups
Third team,
Curtis Moore,lowes Moore,jimmy mcghee,Donald “cornbread” rusell,rudy hackett
How about Kevin Houston who played for Army and lead the country in scoring? what hs did he play for? I would add him to the list as well. I also can’t remember the names of the brothers from Alexander Hamilton, but the older brother recently passed who played for Iona. There was also a silky smooth shooter (I think he was a lefty) who played for Salesian in the early 90’s. The Flemming kid (lefty) from Mahopac who was Mr. Basketball and ended up playing pro-baseball had a great HS career
IQ,
Didn’t see your addedum. Sorry.
Back from hospital visit in Bridgeport CT…all I can say is thank God for my health!!
ALL TIME PLAYERS IN SECTION 1
No argument about what others have said
1st Team”
Gus Williams
Scooter McCray [peaked in h.s. & college]
Earl Tatum
Elton Brand
Bernard Toone
2nd Team
Ben Gordon
Ray Williams
Rodney McCray
Mal Graham [‘67: 3rd in nation behind Jabbar & Jimmy Walker]
Clyde Vaughn [New Rochelle stole him from MV…lol]
Marty Conlon
3rd Team
Charlie Criss [Gorton ‘66..amazing shooter/7 year NBA career]
Bob Kaufmann [Scarsdale class of ‘64 played with Buffalo Braves with Ernie DiGregorio]
John Revelli [Scardale ‘80 great career at Stanford Univ.]
Lowes Moore [ dead-eye shooter for MV, WVU & NY Nets]
Rasul Salahuddin [anyone who recovers from gun shot wounds to play college ball gets my vote
Bill Pleas [it would hurt me to put this legend any lower than 3rd team]
4th team
Jim Bostic [Gorton center New Mexico State & cup of coffee with the Pistons]
Andre Battle [Yonkers helped team past MV in ‘76]
Danya Abrams [only saw him in college playing for BC…a beast on the boards]
Jesse Arnelle [New Rochelle ‘51…if I’m as old as dirt then he’s older than dirt..heard he was a legend of his day…pro football and a Harlem Globetrotter]
Bill Schwarzkopf [‘66 Westlake…unstoppable center w/ ridiculous ppg avg. Cornell star]
Trying to be fair to the other greats in Section 1 I purposefully left out
Rudy Hackett C [MV & Syracuse Univ. final 4 team]
and to the tough opponents of my time…
Bill Cain
George Starke [‘65 New Rochelle..later one of the original Washington Redskin Hogs & All-Pro lineman]
Boo Glover [an assasin from Roosevelt]
Otis Hill [White Plains national record holder for a time in 1/4 mile…what a relay tandem with Larry James Olympian]
Sorry Rockland & Dutchess County’s I can’t speak about that which I did not see…although I did play against Rich Rinaldi [FDR in Hyde Park who played for St. Peters and was a Baltimore Bullet for a while] in local tournaments.
the jury is still out on Kevin Jones and Jabarie Hinds…their careers are still on the uprise.
spacecadet…....almost forgot your question.
No, sorry but I won’t be there Saturday..living far upstate…90 miles off Broadway in SUNY New Paltz territory….but going another hour plus north to tend to my ailing mother in law who’s in an assisted living facility in Catskill.
Also…it’s a toss up whether I have more cinder gravel imbedded in my knees & elbows from the AB Davis or Memorial Field cinder tracks. In either case they were a bee—atch picking them out.
Believe it or not my family doctor whose office was across the street from AB Davis was named Dr. Cimmino…......no relation to the Coach, right?
You guys sure are aging yourselves
@ MVHS 65 – Forgot about Otis Hill (Pleasantville) who went to Syracuse. I don’t have as much pre 1984 knowledge as you do. There was also a really good point guard for Stepinac in 87-88…can’t remember his name, but he was very good as well.
What is everyone’s opinion on Dario “dukee” Ross the lefty from New Rochelle in the late 80’s. I always thought he was one of the most talented players that never made it. He did not have a good work ethic and probably suffered from bad advice. That kid “had it”...he was just an amazing player. I remember him dropping 50 + points in a game his senior year.
Ok! Since you brought up Rasul, then who is your top ten “freakish” basketball
athletes of all time. I will start by saying that I have NEVER seen Bill Pleas play, but he is on my list from all of the stories. However on my list:
Steve Morgan – White Plains
Rasul Saluhuddin – MV
Richard “Bullet” Carlos – New Rochelle
Terrance Steele – Mount Vernon
Tuckahoe kid from the 90’s – Can’t remember his name
Ra’Shad James – White Plains
Bill Pleas – Mount Vernon
Oh yeah, Freakish Athletes continued – I can’t remember his name, but there was a kid in the 80’s that played for Woodlands and he was world class track & field athlete..I think a triple jumper, but I believe he also played basketball. He would be on my list
Statesman,
Sorry to hear about Belton. I don’t know any of the specifics, but I hate it when these kids get off track. Poughkeepsie sure could have used him. Don’t know Hamilton. Was he on the JV team?
6’4 kid who averaged 27 and 12 as an 8th Grader last year. Barger tried his best with him on the football team but he got off track as well. If we can get him back next yesr it’ll be great, he’ll only be a soph.
Too much TV and not enough books. Everybody wants to be a G, but the people they see on TV arent even G’s and are laughing to the bank.
Put it like this. If Pok had Belton and Hamilton they win Class A. Period!
Po’ Fan,
I think so, Laffin needs love for the job he has done w/out them. 3 losses by 4 points and less. Easily could be 11-3 w/ a brutal schedule. It has made them better and I’m proud of the young men.
Po Town,
He was an 8th grader that on JV
Po Town,
He was an 8th grader that was on JV
Dino Larry, Jerome elting, will Daniels(father) from pok Also can’t forget nykee williams
Dino Larry indeed….......such a waste of talent and ability….seemed to peak as a freshman at Manhattan College. MVP of the MSG Holiday tournament….then not much after that. Cleaned up in local rec leagues…no one could check him. I played with him once..we brought a squad into Wallkill Correctional back in the early ‘80’s….....he showed up a quarter late and still managed to score 40…..we won by 2 points in a ridiculous NBA type 120 something score. He scored the game winner on an ISO and baseline jam….....brought the house down. We all [inmates included] left the gym with a smile…but of course we were able to leave the joint.
Not sure if it was mentioned by Kevin Houston went to Pearl River.
65.. great story about playing against the inmates especially how everyone walked away with a smile. I completly understand the lack of defense in a game like that too… Geez, you foul the wrong guy and you may get an early shower…...
Statesman,
KENNDY has a 615pm start tonight,that should help POK tomorrow.
SPACECADET,
LLLLLLOOOOOLLLLL
haywood,
Pok also has a game today, at 4:30, then a bus ride to New Rochelle in the morning. I hope things turn out well for them.
Lourdes beat Beacon on Weds. It seems that every team in the league can beat every other team this year. Wild! Isn’t there now a three-way tie for first place: Pok, Beacon, and Arlington? The next week should sort things out.
Po’ Fan,
Every team can beat every other which makes it fun. (Sans RCK). Even they can pull something off as we saw JJEF pull out a few upsets and a near one vs Pok on Weds.
There is a 3-Way tie and things will be sorted out starting today. If Pok can win today, survive at Lourdes next Thursday then I envision them and Beacin being co-champs unless they hiccup vs RCK.
Hopefully the game is over by 7:30. Guys are in the house by 10:30 (Doubt it). I’ll be on the train down zzzz’ed out so hopefully they get a bit of rest on the bus. It’s a long ride so hopefully Laff wakes any dreamers up after the 40 minute mark (That’s all you need to recharge your batteries anyway)
Statesman,
Didn’t RCK beat Lourdes?
Not sure if it was Lourdes, but I remember that they pulled a surprise win over some league team.
Po ‘Fan,
RCK beat Lourdes by 2 after they lost to Arlington by 3 right before they beat Beacon by 6. Shows you how bizarre this league is.
this thread has a lot of legs….....2 days and 132 posts….quite impressive.
spacecadet…......
Bringing outside squads into prisons is a perfect venue for great stories. A buddy of mine, Charlie Rosen, who was an assistant coach with Phil Jackson for the Albany Patroons and later a head coach with the Rockville Hens of the CBA is also a writer of note. He’s written a number of books on the CBA and basketball legends and is a regular contributor of articles for ESPN sports.
Charlie with the help of legendary coach, Rod ‘the god’ Chando of Red Hook [all time Section 9 winningest coach] fame put together squads that regularly played the prison circuit from Sing Sing up to Auburn. I believe Charlie was in the process of putting together a book on those experiences. Charlie was a 6’9” banger from the old Eastern Basketball Pro Leagues and never met a guard he didn’t mind clothes-lining when they drove down his lane. His warning, “The paint belongs to me.” Nice guy off the court…but a fiendish, vicious Mr. Hyde on the court. Charlie and I have sat in Buddhist meditation groups and he always seemed so at peace with himself…...but I have also seen him slap thecrap out of his son for messing up in a pick-up game as well.
Having worked in a prison myself early in my counseling career [pre-to post Attica] I have seen some incredibly talented players’ careers wind up ruined by the needle and the damage done to quote Neil Young. Most notably…Dexter Westbrook…of Providence College and teammate of Mike Riordan and Jimmy Walker.
this thread has a heart beat, all the pretenders have found greener grass thank god. You can add the talented bernard toone to the damaged done group.
“never met a guard he din’t mind close lining” really has real meaning in this case. lol
Not sure what you do or what your background is, but you are a brilliant writer. I hope that talent has found it’s way into your life professionally. keep it up.
thanks cadet for the kind words on my writing skills….that’s your Mount Vernon educational system at work for you…...produced some pretty accomplished alumni…...
Nice comment on the clothes lining of guards…you caught the double entendre I hadn’t even thought about. Guards, prison guards that is, were not ones to co-mingle with inmates on a basketball court…..a matter of self-preservation….flagrant fouls that would have sent them to the infirmary.
Early in my career my writing talents were focused on annual grant writing [RFPs] and later a primary prevention life skills curriculum used in elementary and middle schools.
In these ‘golden years’ the writing is primarily for pleasure…an illustrated book for my grandchildren….poems/haiku…........and a bit of posting on sports blog sites…...notably Boston.com and lohud.
Once I recognized that the good brothers of the Roman Catholic order did not have my best interests at heart, basketball became my salvation and access point to peak spiritual experiences and self-fulfillment.
It’s nice being able to go to Lohud to read perspectives on ‘the game’ from those who have an equal appreciation for the power and passion it brings. Oh, if my body had not betrayed me I would still be playing now…my last serious game being about 10 years ago….but it was a very good “run” indeed.
MVHS65,
YOU OFTEN SPEAK ON THE GUYS,DO YOU HAVE A TOP 7 MOUNT VERNON GIRLS TEAM?
Haywood…
You have revealed my limitations and short-comings.
Guilty with an explanation. Raising a family far north of Mount Vernon and yielding to the rigors and demands of my career…there was scant time to split my time & energies between MVHS boys & girls squads. Furthermore, MV’s successes on a regional/state level, historically have been primarily in boys hoops.
The only female player of note I have heard anything about is Katryna Gaithers who played at Notre Dame and had a successful pro career. Other than that not much…sorry!
Not surprising how some of the more passionate bloggers here have the MV connection. Maybe growing up in the 60’s had a bit to do with it. Could have been the era we grew up in and trying to hold on to those memories. For me, I go into that gym and it brings back the good old days of growing up in MV. You probably graduated with my oldest sister, me I was out in 72 and lived right behind 300 gramatan. Hartley Park had a few good runs, nothing like 4th street of course.
Statesman,
Right you are. Weirdness prevails this year. It’s kind of fun, though.
cadet…....
Were you heartbroken when they removed the Gramatan Circle? I was deeply saddened …a piece of history vanishes…and a heavy reminder that all things are impermanent. For years I bough cannolis & italian ices at Artuso’s Bakery on the circle for my dad who in his later years lived on Gramatan & Broad St.
Incredible memories of the RKO theatre…[Saw Jayne Mansfield live there and touched her tight sequin dress]...triple features…news on a reel….tons of cartoons before the feature…Heck, a parent could throw his kid fifteen cents and be done with him for an entire Saturday afternoon [12-5].
Thanks for the walk down memory lane
And lets not forget the Loews Theatre, styled along the lines of a great opera house..and perhaps it was.. an immense theatre..plenty of room to be chased by the ushers for our trouble-making.
Pok 16 Arl 16 Early 2q
Arl 28 Pok 26 at half. Pok and Arlington Coaches jawing at half court.
Pok and Arl coaches dap it up to start the 3rd. Heat of the battle had them going. Pok up 41-40 going into the 4th. Nice game.
Pok 7-0 run to go ahead 48-40 to match Arlington’s 6-0 run earlier. 5:53 left. Lawrence and Dancy are coming alive.
Pok 62 Arl 58 final
Happy days are here again (at least for now). Go Poughkeepsie! They overcame one of the worst cases of officiating I’ve ever seen. Absolutely horrendous. Arlington deserves credit for outstanding foul shooting, which kept them in the game.
congrats to all poukeepsie diehards,if they ever win tomorrow its a new season,states you gotta be in the car ready to drive to new ro, lllooooolllll
Too long of a drive. I’ll be resting up on that Metro North!
mvhs65,
Hard to disagree much with your lists. Some great names from years passed. One name I think you definitely missed or forgot was Artie White from Stepinac. He was amazing – a superstar at Georgetown and a 2nd or 3rd Round pick. About 6’6”, strong, with a fantastic outside shot I’d put Artie White on the 2nd team ahead of Clyde Vaughan or at worst on the 3rd team ahead of of Revelli or Pleas. Artie’s Stepinac team beat Mt Vernon at least once. If I remember correctly, Pleas was a year ahead of Artie, but they played head to head.
If we’re talking purely on talent, Bernard Toone belongs on the first team. But in terms of actual HS performance or NBA career – Marty Conlon deserves to be ahead of him. As a HS player, Marty was unstoppable. We’ve talked on this blog many times before of the legendary game Marty played as a Senior in the CHSAA semi’s against Molloy. Kenny Anderson was a freshman All-City PG on that Molloy team and Robert Werdann (St Johns/future NBA player) was their big man. Marty went for someone like 36pts and 24bds – Stepinac lost by 3 something like 72-69…incredible, incredible HS basketball game. Molloy was nationally ranked at the time and went on to win the city title in the Finals over Tolentine I believe. Marty also had a big game when they beat Mt Vernon and huge games against Hayes and St Rays that year, among many others.
Lots of great names, but I’d also probably consider Kevin Jones, Jonathan Mitchell, Chris Watson/Stepinac and Otis Hill Jr ahead of Battle and Bostic. Bostic was an excellent player, but didn’t dominate as much in HS as the other guys. Battle was very good, but I’d take K Jones, Mitchell, Watson and Hill any day.
BBall IQ,
Stepinac had a number of great players back in the 80’s. You’re probably talking about Kyle Harrington – unbelievable scorer, played for Pete Carril at Princeton. Tim O’Toole and Freddie Quartlebaum were excellent guards from the early 80’s at Stepinac who had good college careers at Fairfield and Fordham, respecticevely
OMG,, the RKO,,all day for a quarter.
they put the circle back. Instead of McCarthers (I believe thats who it is) statue, its a fountain with lights. He is in the park now..Go figure.
I think Lowes for a time was called “The World Theatre”, I wasn’t old enough to get in and see the real Godfather James Brown but I was told it was crazy. I never thought about this before but that could have been the birth of hip hop in the Vern.. This will be my last post on this blog, hey I started it 150 responses ago. Not bad.. to be continued.
later
Pok v. AHS game was crazy. The officiating was bunz! Did you see the coaches getting after it at mid-court? WOW! Coach Lafin was heated. Dude was live! The place went nutzzz. Much respect homie!
Bill ‘Buck’ Brickhouse doesn’t even get a mention?