Archbishop Stepinac Prevails to Win Catholic Boys' Basketball City Championships

| 03/12/2023

By: Steven Schwankert

Intersectional final was the teams’ fourth meeting this season, eighth in the last two years

Johnuel “Boogie” Fland put the Archbishop Stepinac High School Crusaders on his back and dragged them to a city championship, scoring 30 and avenging a defeat by Hayes in the archdiocesan title game two weeks ago.

In their fourth meeting this season and eight in the last two years, Stepinac defeated Cardinal Hayes High School to win the Catholic High School Athletic Association (CHSAA) Boys’ Basketball “AA” title, 69-66.

The Stepinac Crusaders’ pure aggression, led by junior Fland with 15 first quarter points, set the tone early, with the White Plains team jumping out to a 23-16 lead.

Without giving Hayes a chance to catch their breath, Stepinac extended their lead to as much as 17 points, with Ben Lyttle contributing six and Josiah Jervis in for five more in the second quarter. At the half, Stepinac led 41-30.

As the third quarter began,the teams traded buckets and team fouls. Hayes began to regain some of their composure, but despite contributions from the Cardinals’ Ian Jackson and Elijah Moore, Stepinac held the lead, 56-49.

With 4:19 in the game, Stepinac remained in front, 60-53. Less than a minute later, Hayes had pulled to within four, until a Danny Carbuccia three-pointer gave the Crusaders a seven-point lead. Adam Nije, who scored 17 points overall, got hot in the fourth, and helpd the Cardinals pull within three with 1:21 to go.

Fland led all scoring with 30, followed by Carbuccia with 13 points and five rebounds, and Lyttle with 10 points for Stepinac. Future University of North Carolina player Ian Jackson, Adam Nije, and Elijah Moore all had 18 for Hayes.

Sunday’s game stood in stark contrast to this season’s archdiocesan championship, in which Hayes cruised to an 85-69 win. That win gave them the Archdiocese’s top seed in the CHSAA city-wide tournament.

Stepinac came from behind against Christ The King to punch their ticket to face Hayes. Hayes beat St. Francis Prep to return to the title game as defending champions.

About 1,000 fans for the two teams filled St. John’s University’s Carnesecca Arena for the occasion, coming in from the Bronx for Hayes and White Plains for Stepinac.

The high schools in the “AA” division are considered the city’s best Catholic boys’ basketball programs, both in the Archdiocese of New York and the Diocese of Brooklyn.

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