Varsity Insider

Today is the busiest day of the year in terms of game coverage on this blog. We’ll have scores, recaps, photos, video and LIVE chats from a whopping five boys basketball games at the County Center. It’ll be a 10-hour affair beginning at 1 p.m.

I’ve already posted picks for the Class A semis. Here’s a peek at the schedule and my picks for the Class D final and AA semifinals:

THE SCHEDULE – Friday, March 2
Class D championship
At the County Center:
No. 1 Greenburgh Academy vs No. 2 Biondi, 1 p.m.
Class AA semifinals
At the County Center:
No. 2 Fox Lane vs. No. 3 Mahopac, 6:30 p.m.
No. 1 Mount Vernon vs. No. 4 Clarkstown South, 8:15 p.m.

THE PICKS -

Class D championship
Greenburgh Academy 51, Biondi 44. These teams met back on Jan. 27, when Greenburgh won relatively easily, 57-41. Johnnie Gray and Anthony Wignal combined for 27 points and are indicative as to why I think you have to favor the top seed in the rematch. This Greenburgh team relies heavily on players who have been here, done that. Yes, Biondi still boasts big man Lance McDowdell, who dominated last year when Biondi won the gold ball, Greenburgh is better prepared to exact revenge. Biondi had Dayvon Felder last year and he was good enough to play at any level. Without him, it’s Greenburgh that has the shot makers to win.

Class AA semifinals
Fox Lane 57, Mahopac 55. This is the game I have the worst feel for of all eight semifinals this week. In fact, you won’t find many in-the-know at the County Center with a really confident feeling one way or the other. Neither team stormed into the final four on a hot streak, but both showed a penchant for finishing when it counted. Fox Lane has good size and a nice, well-defined rotation, but it will have to combat Mahopac’s aggressiveness. The Indians will not be afraid. I think the intensity will be high on both sides. The crowds will be into it. If the Foxes can manage the game in that environment, I think they can control the glass and do just enough to win.

Mount Vernon 81, Clarkstown South 57. It’s going to be a rare primetime matchup for the Knights, who, as our friend Haywood noted this week, usually play their final four games when fans are at work or in church. That won’t be the case when the section’s top team meets one of its top players in tonight’s nightcap. Mike McCahey enters the night 30 points shy of the program’s all-time scoring record*, but he’ll need help like never before. Clayton Roker can play at this level. Their teammates will need to focus on small feats that combine to have a big impact. Block out, secure loose balls, accurate passes. Even still, South’s best game may not be enough to beat Mount Vernon. The Knights start four players as big as anyone on South, but it’s their depth that will prove unrelenting. Even if the Vikings survive the first wave, the second and third are just as strong.

• South coach Matt Backs and Rockland sports historian Jamie Kempton both spoke to the program’s all-time leading scorer Jeff Brown, who is now the coach at Middlebury. Brown said his final point total was 1,428 – not 1,433 as Journal News record indicate. Brown said he broke the standing County scoring record (1,427 at the time) by a point.