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Prep shuts down Taft to score upset over Xaverian

By Anthony Bosco

Coming into this season, no one would have expected the short and not-so-athletic St. Francis Prep varsity boys’ basketball team to make a lot of noise in the CHSAA ‘A’ League. But 13 games into the team’s season, it’s time people started listening.

Head coach Tim Leary’s Terriers got a small measure of revenge Friday night, defeating the Xaverian Clippers 43-39 to improve to 11-2 on the season and 2-1 in league play.

Xaverian and star Chris Taft handed St. Francis its first loss of the season, an 11-point defeat at the St. Thomas Aquinas Christmas Tournament, a game that saw Taft score 29 points.

In order to change the outcome, Leary knew that stopping Taft would have to be his team’s first priority.

“We felt if we could control him and possibly make the game a little slower, we had a chance,” the coach said. “We double-teamed him the whole game. That was pretty much it.”

Taft, a 6-foot-9 senior from Coney Island bound for the University of Pittsburgh, was held to just two first-half points against St. Francis the second time around, as the Terriers employed a diamond-and-one defense on the gifted center.

For offense, the St. Francis players turned to their stalwart junior guard Bryan Geffen. The Bayside native continued to provide the scoring punch for Prep, pouring in 23 points. Taft finished with 14 for the Clippers, now 7-4.

“We’re playing well,” Leary said of his team. “We’re not big and we don’t play a lot of people. I think the experience we gained last year was pretty important. We understand what it takes.”

The Terriers will take to the road this week traveling to take on All Hallows Thursday and arch rivals Holy Cross Friday.

Cathedral Prep 84, Monsignor Scanlan 76 (OT). Bradd Wierzbicki led the Crusaders with 30 points and Brian Chambers added a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds as Cathedral Prep improved to 9-3 overall and a perfect 7-0 in CHSAA C league play with this overtime win Monday.

Archbishop Molloy 73, Holy Cross 60. Senior point guard Marlon Smith scored a game-high 22 points to lead the Archbishop Molloy Stanners to their second CHSAA victory Sunday. Molloy improved to 7-5 overall and 2-2 in league play with the win. Anthony Clarke had 14, Michael Johnson added 13, Gary Hawkins scored 12 and Nick Rollins contributed 11 for the Knights. Rollins, who played his first game Friday against St. Joe’s, is rebounding from a broken foot. Cross drops to 8-5 overall and 0-2 in league play.

Christ the King 73, Bishop Loughlin 56. Japhet McNeil led the Royals with 25 points, while Justin Marshall added 16 and Brian Williams chipped in 12 for the Royals, who improved to 12-1 overall and 4-0 in league play Friday.

St. Raymond’s 72, Archbishop Molloy 65. Ricky Torres had 18 points, while Louie McCroskey added 16 and Brian Laing 11 for the Ravens. Molloy got 14 points from Smith and 12 from Sundiata Gaines in the loss.

Holy Cross 81, St. Joseph by the Sea 52. Gordon McKenzie led the Knights with 18, Ramose Modesto added 17, Michael Johnson had 13 and Clarke chipped in 11 for the Knights in this non-league win Friday night in Staten Island.

St. John’s Prep 66, Mount St. Michael 56 (OT). The Red Storm was led by Derrick Gabriel and Jamel Bedford, who had 18 and 15 points, respectively, including seven each in overtime. St. John’s Prep improved to 7-5 overall and 3-2 in league play.

Cathedral Prep 78, Regis 77. Ray Tinneny’s layup in the final minute and two free throws by Wierzbicki sealed the deal for the Crusaders. Wierzbicki led the way with 40 points, while Tinneny added 14 points and 10 rebounds.

Christ the King 76, St. Francis Prep 59. Mitchell Beauford scored 23 points and Marshall chipped in 18 for the Royals in this league win last week. Geffen led the Terriers with 24 points.

Archbishop Molloy 77, All Hallows 64. The Stanners got 23 points and 10 rebounds from Gaines and a 17-point, nine-rebound performance from Otoja Abit.

Reach Sports Editor Anthony Bosco by e-mail at TimesLedger@aol.com or call 229-0300, Ext. 130.