NCN SPORTS BLOG

The following rankings are as of 12 p.m. Tuesday, December 25.

1) Peekskill (6-0) — Not the most aesthetically pleasing win over Wings, but Mookie threw down an alley oop from Jamie Gooding in the final minute of play to please the jam-packed Peekskill stands. Sans Watts, the win looks even more impressive. Seeking revenge against Wings, who handed Peekskill its only loss in a 28-1 season two years ago, might foreshadow a rare perfect season in the ‘Skill. The Slam Dunk tournament from Dec. 27-29 is the Red Devils’ to lose.

2) Briarcliff (5-0) — Da Bears will get to prove their mettle on Westchester’s biggest stage at the Slam Dunk. Are they a legit top 5 team in all of Section 1? Taking on Jamesville-DeWitt in the opening round should be very telling. Section 3’s DeWitt, led by 6-10 Colgate bound Nick Pascale, is currently ranked second in the Class A New York State Sportswriters Association poll behind only Peekskill. I’d assume Garth Muratori would have a heck of a time trying to front him on defense.

3) Panas (4-2) — Rough loss to Poughkeepsie at home. Keeping it respectable against Peekskill on January 3 will be a moral victory in itself. Panthers will take some lumps as they navigate through the extremely difficult League II North, but they will be better for it come playoff time. Hence, I am already labeling them as a sleeper in Class A to make a playoff run.

4) Lincoln Hall (6-3) — The Hall — with Sir Aaron in early foul trouble — dropped a tough decision to Albertus, 58-46. Still, their early season record is probably better than most thought it would be. The United depend on Taylor and Johnney to provide the lions share of the scoring. If that doesn’t happen (like against Albertus) they are beatable. Finding a solid third option (Laquan Simpson/ Harry Pickney) would greatly enhance this team.

5) Lakeland (4-1) — Following the rough loss to Panas, Weltman’s crew has rattled off two-straight W’s over league foes Yorktown and John Jay-Cross River. Bumping up the intensity in practice and holding all his players accountable seems to have worked on the defensive end. After giving up an average of 60 ppg over the first three games of the season, Lakeland has relinquished a paltry 46 ppg over the past two.

6) Kennedy Catholic (2-3) — Historic collapse against Greeley —blowing an 18 point fourth quarter lead — and losing 67-63 is clearly a tough pill to swallow. The Gaels are in every single game, however, they have to start finding ways to finish them.

7) Croton-Harmon (1-4) — Three straight L’s for Coach Bill Thom’s squad. They showed heart against Dobbs Ferry, nearly coming back from an early 21-10 first quarter hole, but ended up falling, 72-68. Ryan Sawyer, Croton’s assassin from behind the arc, has only four 3-pointers in five games. In fact, the Tigers have only 20 total 3-pointers this season. In order to start stringing together some wins, I feel like they need to start heating up from downtown. That kind of makes this offense function.

Mahopac (4-2) — I didn’t see a 20-point loss against Lincoln coming — definitely thought they would have kept it closer or possibly won. Junior guard Mario Iuacone was a bight spot, scoring 17 points. He has scored in double figures in his last three games and leads ‘Pac in scoring with 12.7 ppg

9) Ossining (3-5) — Blowout 20-point win over Beacon is masked by lopsided 24-point loss to Peekskill. Jeff Ward has been quiet of late, averaging only 10 ppg over his last three games — well below his average of 17 ppg.

10) John Jay (1-6) — Slow beginnings and streaky play is becoming an all too consistent theme for the Indians. This team is too talented to be in the midst of a dismal six game losing streak.

11) Hen Hud (5-2) — Quality league win for the Sailors over Beacon. Notching another win against Brewster on Dec. 29 is imperative. Hen Hud’s strong start — which will diminish once competitive league play starts — shows that they would be a real threat in another league.

12) Yorktown (0-4) — You knew that Lakeland wasn’t going to drop two-straight to cross-town rivals. The Hornets took out their frustrations on ‘Town in the form of a 63-38 shellacking. Yorktown is still in search of its first win. January 5 against winless Carmel sounds like a good as time as ever.

13) Somers (1-6) — That win over Putnam Valley feels like eons ago.

14) Putnam Valley (1-6) — That win over Keio emits the same feeling as Somers’ win over PV.