Stepinac wins the Archdiocese of NY Championship
It was standing room only at Mount St. Michael’s Academy in the Bronx, NY for the Archdiocese of New York championship between St. Raymond’s and Archbishop Stepinac. Both teams came into the contest well respected and each had all-league players on their rosters. St Rays had both Luis Kortright and Malachi Smith as 1st team All-League selections, while Stepinac had 2nd team selection Malcolm Chimezie and league MVP RJ Davis, who is a McDonald’s All American and headed to the University of North Carolina next fall. Stepinac is also home to Junior phenom Adrian Griffin Jr., who is headed to Duke next year.
Adrian Griffin Jr. sizes up his opponent on his way to winning the NY Archdiocesan Championship. Photo courtesy of ATH Images (Cal Griffin)
The game started out fast with Stepinac jumping out to an early lead. St. Raymond’s came out of the gate lethargic and didn’t show any sense of urgency. The combination of Davis and Griffin looked strong and it appeared that Stepinac would run away with the game. Right before the half, some key baskets from St. Raymond’s Gary Grant kept the game within reach. Heading into halftime St. Raymond’s trailed 31-24.
RJ Davis drives past St. Raymond’s defenders on his way to scoring 18 points grabbing 11 Rebounds and dishing out 8 assists. Photo courtesy of ATH Images (Cal Griffin)
Raven head coach George Lopez gathered his team and regrouped their efforts. At the start of the 3rd quarter, St. Raymond’s came out the gate with a strong full-court press that put Stepinac into a frenzy. The Ravens forced multiple turnovers and did a great job converting those turnovers into points. In an instant, we had an epic championship game that would go down to the wire.
Stepinac got help from everybody on the team to beat a tough St. Raymond’s team. Photo courtesy of ATH Images (Cal Griffin)
This was one of the best games of the year! The lead changed hands about 10 times in the final minutes of the game. Deadlocked at 55 all, the game hung in the balance for both teams. The crowd grew restless and you could cut the tension in the gym with a knife. Everybody who was supposed to show up… Showed up. Malachi Smith and Luis Kortright came up with clutch shots and played aggressive defense throughout the game. RJ Davis and Adrian Griffin Jr. converted down the stretch and got huge stops when they needed them most. You couldn’t ask for much more. Both teams got maximum effort out of everybody who played. For St. Rays guys like Gary Grant and Kedar Davis left everything out on the floor and you really couldn’t ask for much more. For Stepinac, it was guys like Malcolm Chimezie and Luke Fizulich who really stepped up to the plate and gave their team the extra push they needed down the stretch.
Congratulations to Stepinac for winning the NY Archdiocesan Championship. They fought for this and deserve to be called champions. Photo courtesy of ATH Images (Cal Griffin)
In the end, Stepinac was too strong. Adrian Griffin Jr. capped off the game with a thunderous dunk that sent the entire gym upside down. Stepinac was victorious 73-68 and celebrated the win as they collected their hardware. Great team win versus a tough St. Raymond’s team. It was about who wanted it more, and on this day Stepinac wanted that W just a little bit more. Rj Davis ended up with 18 points 11 Rebounds and 8 Assists while Adrian Griffin Jr added 17 points 8 Rebounds and 5 assists. Salute to the coaching staff of both teams and we wish you continued success with your programs. ?