The Archdiocese of New York’s Cardinal Hayes High School Cardinals and the Archbishop Stepinac High School Crusaders will play Sunday for the intersectional, or city, boys’ basketball “AA” final, meeting for the fourth time this season, and the eighth in the last two years.

 

In the first game, featuring St. Francis Preparatory School against Cardinal Hayes, the Cardinals played like the Cardiacs well into the fourth quarter. Hayes led at the half by a single point, 30-29, and trailed at the end of the third, also by a single point, 41-40. But from that point on, Hayes exploded for 29 fourth quarter points, winning by a final of 69-58. Cardinal Hayes returns to the city title game as defending champion.

 

In game two, the Archbishop Stepinac High School Crusaders versus the Christ The King (CTK), Stepinac was slow and steady in the first half behind solid play from standout Boogie Fland, and Ben Lyttle, who returned to the lineup after injury. Stepinac led at the half, 23-20.

 

A tight defensive game, Christ The King trailed by as much as five in the third quarter but took a one-point lead on the final shot of the period by CTK’s Devin Vanterpool, 31-30.

 

In the fourth quarter, Christ The King’s patience seemed to pay off. Despite some tough play underneath by Fland and Danny Carbuccia for Stepinac, a Vanterpool three at the 5:01 mark put CTK up by five. With just under two minutes, Stepinac tied the game, 42-42. From that point it was all Crusaders, who widened their lead to 46-42 on a Carbuccia rebound and score. Fland dropped in two key free throws for a six point lead with 45 seconds remaining, and CTK did not score again, with a final score of 49-42. Carbuccia led Stepinac scoring with 16.

 

Sunday’s final is the fourth time that Hayes and Stepinac will meet this season. The teams both won on the other’s home courts by margins of six points. But Hayes was dominant in the archdiocesan final, with the Bronx school winning 85-69 over their Westchester rivals.

 

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.

 

Wednesday’s semi-finals and Sunday, March 12’s final are being held at St. John’s University’s Carnesecca Arena in Queens. Sunday’s final tips off at 1 pm. Tickets are $10, $5 for students with ID, for sale at the door. The game will also be livestreamed for free on Varsity Media’s YouTube channel.