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CSI/McCown and host Long Island City HS shared a lot of similarities during the first three quarters of their PSAL Class A quarterfinal contest Thursday in Queens.
Both displayed a stingy defense, both were sloppy with the ball at times, and neither was able to pull away from the other. The closest either side came was an eight-point edge by LIC early in the third quarter.
But when Brandon O’Keefe hit a 3-pointer 37 seconds into the final period, the visiting Dragons had come all the way back to lead, 39-38, for their first advantage since midway through the second stanza.
That’s when the Bulldogs put together the kind of run that had been missing all contest, the kind of run that ended CSI/McCown’s season.
LIC went on a decisive 14-0 spurt over nearly four minutes that proved to be the difference in a 56-49 win that sent the 10th-seeded Dragons packing.
The No. 2 Bulldogs (25-2 overall) move into the semifinals with the tournament’s other top four seeds. They’ll take on No. 3 Brooklyn Collegiate, and top-seeded Bedford Academy will play fourth-seeded Mott Haven, in a Sunday doubleheader at City College.
The Dragons (17-10 overall), coming off a win over No. 7 Brooklyn Global, appeared they might crash the party. But moments after O’Keefe’s aforementioned trey, star center Quamaine Tomlin went to the sidelines temporarily with leg cramps. While the senior had been held in check most of the way, the absence of his presence coincided with the start of LIC’s spurt.
“It didn’t help, that’s for sure,” said CSIM coach Ray Palma, as Tomlin was off the court for seven of LIC’s first eight points during the run. “Other than being in foul trouble, we usually play him 32 minutes a game. It might’ve caught up to us. And we didn’t play very smart.”
Without the 6-foot-6 senior in there, the CSIM offense self-destructed early in the fourth and ignited the Bulldogs’ fast-break offense. Arthur Santanna scored five of his 16 points during the key four-minute sequence.
“We scored a lot of transition baskets; we needed to, because (CSIM) didn’t give us much in the halfcourt set,” said LIC coach Harley Watstein. “They’re probably the best defensive team we’ve seen. They played excellent man-to-man defense. They came here and gave us a run for our money.”
The Dragons’ defense did force numerous LIC turnovers over the final three minutes of the fourth, trimming a 52-39 deficit to 52-46 with 1:37 left. But Tomlin missed two free throws, then — after another Bulldog miscue — the senior’s runner in the lane fell off the rim, and the Dragons ran out of time.
It was part of a frustrating game for Tomlin — who still scored 14 points and grabbed 12 rebounds — as the LIC defense collapsed on him throughout, making it near impossible for the likes of O’Keefe and Joe Ojo (team-high 15 points) to get him the ball. At times, it seemed as if the Dragons stopped looking to kick it inside.
“They threw a box-and-one at us, and it threw us for a loop,” said Palma. “We hadn’t seen that. It took almost the whole first half to make an adjustment. They did a great job of getting in the passing lanes.”
“Actually, it wasn’t a box-and-one but a 1-3-1 zone,” clarified Watstein. “We knew (Tomlin) is their go-to guy, who makes all of their players better. They’re a team that doesn’t rely a lot on 3-pointers. So we figured they needed to hit about seven or eight for the game to beat us. O’Keefe hit (three), but they fell a few shy and that made the difference.”
