By Simon Chen
The headliner of this season in the Brooklyn “AA” Division was the two tilts between the Boys & Girls Kangaroos and the Lincoln Railsplitters. In their first match up of the season, the Railsplitters traveled to Boys & Girls High School to face the Kangaroos on December 14, 2006. Both squads were 3-0 and the season was still young but who would’ve thought of the implications of this game would have on the division. But it was the Kangaroos that came out of this game, with their perfect record intact, as they would go on to edge the Railsplitters, 61-60 and drop Lincoln to 3-1 on the season. After the loss, the Railsplitters would win six straight until their next match up against the Kangaroos on January 30 but this time at Lincoln. The Railsplitters blew the doors off the Kangaroos, coming off the Regents Week break, and went on to win, 90-74. What the win did was that it broke Boys & Girls’ 10 consecutive game winning streak and drop them to their first loss of the year. But both squads would finish their respective campaigns with a 13-1 record and both will compete for the Brooklyn Borough Championship and in the playoffs, for the City championship. Boys & Girls, seeded number one, will have a home game against the McKinney Queens while Lincoln, ranked second, will have a home against the Sheepshead Bay Sharks. Speaking of the underachievers, both the Grady Falcons and the Banneker Warriors, combined for a 6-21 record. Last season, the Falcons went 15-1 and advanced all the way to the to the city finals where they lost to Lincoln, 73-51. A strong second half by the Kangaroos lifted them past the Orange Wave at Boys & Girls. Leading the Kangaroos was center Wayne Allison, who scored 21 points, snagged down 19 points, and dealt out two assists. In the losing cause for the Wave, they were led by guard Keith Spellman who contributed 17 points, two rebounds, and an assist on the afternoon. Being unable to muster a win, the Orange Wave drops to 5-8 while the Kangaroos improved to 12-1 on the season. The Grady Falcons earned their third consecutive win by pounding the South Shore Vikings by 12 at Grady. The dominant attack by the Falcons was led by forward Curtis Leslie, who scored 22 points and pulled down 11 rebounds. For the Vikings, they were led by forward Craig Gray, who scored 14 points, two rebounds, and five assists. This loss for the Vikings proved to be a season-ending loss as they were officially knocked out of the playoff race and will not compete in this year’s playoffs. South Shore, in the 2007 calendar year, has dropped five of eight games and concluded their 2006-2007 season, 6-8. The Falcons improved their record to 5-8 as they win there three consecutive game of the month. The Lincoln Railsplitters concluded their 2006-2007 regular season with a bang as they derail the Grady Falcons by 28 to march into the borough championships and the playoffs. In the lost cause, Falcons forward Curtis Leslie scored 27 points and pulled down 11 rebounds. With, both the Railsplitters and the Kangaroos winning, they are tied atop the division at 13-1 and will have co-share of the Brooklyn “AA” Division title. The Railsplitters are ranked second in the Brooklyn Borough Championship will now face sixth seeded Sheepshead Bay in the first round. The best match up of the week, as the 12-1 Boys & Girls Kangaroos needed this win desperately to stay pace with the Railsplitters for the race for first place. While the Chiefs needed this victory for higher seeding in the playoff brackets while sitting in third place with a 9-3 record. In the first quarter, Boys & Girls hopped out to a slim one point lead, 16-15 over the Chiefs. But would eventually lose the lead by allowing the Chief offense to score 16 and went into the half with a two point lead, 31-29. But the Kangaroos started to torch the Chief defense by lighting them up for 20 and 25 points in each of their next two final quarters of play. The Kangaroos were led by center Wayne Allison and guard Kendall Cutler. Allison, netted 19 points, snagged down 17 rebounds, and dealt out two assists. The Kangaroos are the co-champions of the Brooklyn “AA” Division with the Lincoln Railsplitters, who beat Grady and improved their record 13-1. Boys & Girls head into the borough championship ranked first in the borough and will play the McKinney Queens at home. Despite dropping this game, Canarsie is ranked third in the borough and will play the sixth seeded Telecommunications Yellow Jackets at home and finished the season with a 9-4 record. The Jefferson Orange Wave wiped out the Banneker Warriors by nine at Banneker for their final win of the regular season and march into the playoffs with momentum. This was a much needed win for the Wave as they’ve dropped four straight and haven’t won since beating Banneker on January 9. Leading the Wave to victory was guard Keith Spellman, who clocked in with a 26 point, four rebound, and a lone assist day. With the win, the Orange Wave earns a playoff spot, despite a 6-8 record. Although they split their season series against South Shore, also 6-8, Jefferson’s combined point total in both games was 111 against South Shore’s 96. So, by virtue of the point total, the Wave clinches a berth into the Brooklyn Borough Championship and will play East New York Transit Tech.
