SECTION 8 CLASS AA SEMIFINALS
GAME 2
#6 Elmont 61 #15 Garden City 46
There are a number of basketball programs on Long Island known for playing great defense, year in and year out, and Elmont is one of them. It was on full display in this much anticipated semifinal matchup, with the defending New York State Champion Spartans holding 20-2 Garden City to just 46 points - 17 points below their season average - to earn a spot in the Section 8 Class AA Championship game for the second year in a row. Elmont wasted no time establishing the pace of the game, racking up 17 first-quarter points, 9 of them from Ebubenna Nwabudu and 4 from Nassir Edwards, while the defense held the Trojans to just 10. It was more of the same in the second quarter, but this time, they utilized a balanced attack, with 5 players getting on the scoreboard, led by Khalil Muhammad, Jordan Cook, and Ewabudu. They were up 14 at the half, but Garden City had a big third quarter, with Ryan Campbell, Ryan Kenny, Noah Lau, and Merit Ruckh all getting on the board - almost matching their entire first half production - but they couldn’t stop Aryln Brown, who had 7 points in the quarter, and only managed to shave 3 points off the lead.
The Spartan defense brought it home in the 4th, reasserting itself, and so did their balanced attack, with Aiden Barnes and Jordan Cook leading 5 scorers to a very impressive 15 point win. Nwabudu led all scorers with 17 points and Barnes finished with 10, while Merit Ruckh was Garden City's only double-digit scorer, also with 10.
The win sets up a great matchup in the championship game against the Baldwin Bruins, another team known for its defense and championship pedigree. The teams played back in December, with Elmont taking a surprisingly high scoring 69-61 decision.
