By BILLY HEYEN
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Christian Edwards drove right with about a minute to play Tuesday night, and he didn’t hesitate to push through contact and flip the ball up toward the rim as the whistle blew. One bounce straight up was followed by the ball dropping through the basket. And-one.
Edwards isn’t one of the names that casual Section V fans think of when they consider UPrep’s roster. But there right by his side were Kayshawn Ross and Melvin Council Jr. flexing while Na’Zea Fowlks hugged Edwards.
“He’s not a secondary (guy),” UPrep coach Demond Stewart said. “They’re all equal. They’re all gifted athletes… I expect that from him, and we as a team expect that from him.”
And-1 for Christian Edwards puts UPrep up 55-51 with 1:01 to play. @PickinSplinters
The Griffins were fired up about this one. #ROC pic.twitter.com/B2XpToMMFv
— Billy Heyen (@BillyHeyen) March 4, 2020
The pecking order doesn’t matter to UPrep, and that’s a big reason why they’re heading back to the Section V Class AA final after a 59-55 win over Rush-Henrietta on Tuesday at Blue Cross Arena. Ross led the way with 15 points and Council had 13, but it was Edwards finishing with 10 and Brandon Moore Jr. with six off the bench that pushed the Griffins over the top. The victory sets UPrep up to meet McQuaid in sectionals for the third-straight year, and the second-straight year in the final.
“Put it like this,” Stewart said. “I’ve got four seniors. They’ve got seniors on the team, Kobe (Long) and (Jermaine) Taggart. They don’t want to lose. Nobody wants to lose. We’ll see what happens. I’m just glad my kids made it there.”
MORE: Taggart leads McQuaid back to sectional final
Four of the five UPrep starters are seniors, and for them, that meant there was no time to waste in getting out to a fast start. A sloppy beginning could mean no more high school basketball.
“We didn’t want to go home,” Ross said. “So we had to do whatever we had to do.”
So right away, Ross attacked the rim twice for two layups. The Griffins kept running and got Edwards two quick hoops of his own to take an 8-2 lead and force a Rush-Henrietta timeout. A third senior, Council, nailed a pull-up jumper to go up 12-4 moments later.
“They’re very, very athletic, but they shoot,” R-H coach Chris Reed said. “Those two things, when you shoot it like that and you’re quick like that, they’re difficult to guard.”
Rush-Henrietta worked its way back into the contest by playing inside out through senior center Nyles Goodwin. Using his dominant left hand, Goodwin banked in multiple touch shots from straight on and scored 10 first-half points.
After the game, Stewart said that “nothing” UPrep did could slow down Goodwin. That inside presence coupled with a few outside shots brought the Royal Comets as close as three in the second quarter, but Ross got out in transition for an and-1 just before the half to go into the locker room up nine.
“We felt (inside) was an area we could score the ball,” Reed said. “And he did. Very proud of Nyles.”
Kayshawn Ross and-1 closes the half for UPrep. He has 9, Griffins lead RH 37-28 at the break with McQuaid waiting for a Saturday night matchup. @PickinSplinters #ROC pic.twitter.com/VC0tCUJDIP
— Billy Heyen (@BillyHeyen) March 4, 2020
UPrep maintained a comfortable eight-point lead after three quarters as neither team went on any runs, but almost immediately in the fourth, Rush-Henrietta pushed into the deficit. Two players who had come off the bench, Chris Sleeper and Charles Bowden III, scored in quick succession, both buckets bringing the Royal Comets within three points.
Rush-Henrietta went on to take a 50-49 lead on two Jevonte Williams free throws with 3:09 to play.
“We’ve been down before,” Ross said. “That wasn’t nothing. We’ve just gotta stay locked in, do what we do best, and we knew we were gonna win.”
UPrep took the lead back about 30 seconds later as Ross dished to Edwards in transition for two.
Kayshawn Ross to Christian Edwards and UPrep leads 51-50 with 3:09 to play. @PickinSplinters pic.twitter.com/scEs7j2iNv
— Billy Heyen (@BillyHeyen) March 4, 2020
After that score, the sophomore Moore grabbed a steal to win the ball right back. Ross drove to the basket on that bonus possession and was fouled before making both freebies. Then after Rush-Henrietta split foul shots, the Griffins chose not to bleed clock with a two-point lead and instead found Edwards in transition for his and-1.
From there, Moore and Edwards had one more moment to combine and seal the deal. With R-H inbounding on its offensive baseline, Moore hopped to deflect the attempt toward the sideline. Flashing toward the ball was Edwards, who tip-toed to stay in and save the ball back to Moore. Faced with a one-and-one, Moore made both foul shots.
“They’re important for every win,” Ross said. “It’s not just me and Melvin or me and Naz, it’s a team effort.”
UPrep steal and timeout up 55-53. Moore 1&1. @PickinSplinters pic.twitter.com/pi8k0M7ExV
— Billy Heyen (@BillyHeyen) March 4, 2020
When the final buzzer sounded, some of the UPrep players burst onto the floor and exchanged a few hugs. Not Fowlks and Ross. They headed for the handshake line, knowing that the semifinal was only a step to the game they really wanted to play in, and the game they even moreso wanted to win.
“I can’t lose three times in a row (to McQuaid),” Ross said. “I can’t. Coming out hard as I can.”
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