By PAUL GOTHAM
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Khorie Reaves departed from his usual pre-game routine.
With top-seeded Greece Athena set to host No. 8 Brighton in the Section V Class AA quarterfinals on Saturday, the senior wanted to soak up one last contest on the home court.
Instead of heading to the team room after shoot-around, the 6-4 foot guard lingered in the gymnasium.
“I don’t take these moments for granted,” he said. “It was just me and the security guards walking around. Just taking in the moment and thinking about everything I’ve done on the court. I started playing junior varsity in my seventh grade year. All those moments were flashing before my eyes as I looked at the court.”
A dunk during his eighth-grade year stood out.
“That one will always stick with me because it was my first in-game. I worked hard to get a dunk, so when I finally got that, it meant a lot. Honestly, that might be one of my top three basketball moments in my life.”
VIEW MORE PHOTOS FROM JENNIFER LAEMLEIN.
Reaves’s departure from his usual didn’t change the performance on the court once the ball went up.
Athena (22-0) continued its unbeaten march.
Reaves led five in double figures with 19 points, and the Trojans clinched a spot in the semifinals with a 79-55 victory.
Leading by 12 at halftime, Athena used a 9-2 run in the opening three minutes of the third quarter to take a commanding lead. Zee Johnson set up Reaves for a bucket and a 45-26 lead.
Brighton called for a timeout.
The game stoppage didn’t slow the Trojans momentum.
Johnson followed with a dunk. Reaves hit a three. I’Zayah Reaves banked home another three and the advantage swelled to 21 at 53-32.
“Coach wanted us to keep our foot on the gas,” Khorie Reaves said. “He understood, that Brighton they’re a good team. Shout out to them. They got a great player in Reggie Smith. He was just telling us to keep our foot on the gas, don’t take anything for granted. That’s what we did, came out and played our defense.”
Zee Johnson rebound, putback and-one to start the fourth. pic.twitter.com/i4dYCo7sod
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) February 24, 2024
Reggie Smith, Jr. doing work in the lane. pic.twitter.com/KSmCni1BMO
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) February 24, 2024
Ne’Sean Fowlks floater. @GAHSBoysHoops 72-50. pic.twitter.com/JbwPAfI2Gs
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) February 24, 2024
Reaves connected on 8-of-15 shots from the floor, grabbed 10 rebounds and handed out seven assists in his final performance at home.
Teammate Connor Osier finished with 15 points and 12 rebounds. I’Zayah Reaves accounted for 11 points and eight assists. Ne’Sean Fowlks scored 15.
Smith, who scored 32 in Brighton’s opening-round win over Mendon, posted a game-high 23 points – one above his season average. The Trojans held the 6-foot-6 forward to eight points in the first half.
“We understood that Reggie’s a great player,” Reaves said. “He’s one of the top players in Section V. All week during our scout, we assigned certain players to be Reggie. We just went through our scout and we went out there and executed. It worked in the first half, but that second half he started to become Reggie again. We got a little nervous, but it’s all good.”
Athena will face No. 5 Penfield in semis. A 5:30 PM tip-off is scheduled Tuesday at Gates Chili High School.
BRIGHTON
Jack Snyder 1 0-0 3, Grady Hopkin 2 1-2 6, Jayden Freeman 4 0-2 8, LahDon Dillon 1 0-0 3, Kaleb Matthews 3 0-1 6, Abram Levy 0 0-0 0, Aksel Stanat 3 0-4 6, Reggie Smith, Jr. 9 5-9 23, Tom Welker 0 0-0 0 TOTALS 23 6-18 — 55
GREECE ATHENA
I’Zick Reaves 3 2-2 10, Khorie Reaves 8 1-3 19, I’Zayah Reaves 4 0-0 11, Zee Johnson 3 0-1 6, Connor Osier 7 1-4 15, Byron Williams 0 0-0 0, Ryan Grasley 0 0-0 0, Ne’Sean Fowlks 6 2-2 15, Dom LaMar 1 0-0 3, Jacob Figler 0 0-0 0, Rocco Prota 0 0-0 0, Travis Mack 0 0-0 0, Jacob Curatalo 0 0-0 0, Roger Webb 0 0-0 0 TOTALS 32 6-12 — 79
BRIGHTON 13 11 17 14 — 55
GREECE ATHENA 19 17 27 16 — 79
3-point goals: BRIGHTON 3 (Snyder 1, Hopkin 1, Dillon 1); GREECE ATHENA 9 (I’Zick Reaves 2, Khorie Reaves 2, I’Zayah Reaves 3, Fowlks 1, LaMar 1).
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