Adam Zagoria covers basketball at all levels. He is the author of two books and an award-winning journalist whose articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Sports Illustrated, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide.
St. Pat’s, Oak Hill, Mount Vernon Reach Holiday Semis
Elizabeth (N.J.) St. Patrick, Oak Hill (Va.) Academy and Mount Vernon all advanced to the semifinals of prestigious holiday tournaments Saturday.
St. Patrick, ranked No. 11 by USA Today, beat Chicago Whitney Young, 92-68, in the quarterfinals of the City of Palms Classic behind 37 points from Western Kentucky signee Derrick Gordon.
St. Pat’s on Tuesday will face the winner of Monday’s game between Mater Dei (Calif.) and Christ School (N.C.).
Gordon’s made 12 of 20 shots, including 6 of 9 from 3-point range, to go with three steals.
“He’s been a little erratic, but we know how good he is and we needed him to come up tonight and get back into the groove,” St. Pat’s coach Kevin Boyle told the New York Post. “He’s great getting ahead on the wing and finishing and the guys are real unselfish and found him. He had a terrific day, obviously.”
Kentucky-bound Michael Gilchrist added 13 points to go with eight rebounds and seven assists.
Ohio State commit Sam Thompson scored 17 points to pace Young. Paul White added 14.
Also at the City of Palms, Duke-bound guard Austin Rivers scored 28 points on 11 of 17 shooting as Winter Park downed Reserve (La.)-Riverside, 75-63, in the first round.
Rivers is now eight points shy of moving past former Brooklyn Lincoln star Lance Stephenson for third place on the City of Palms’ all-time scoring list.
MOUNT VERNON, OAK HILL INTO SEMIS IN HAWAII
At the Iolani Classic in Hawaii, West Virginia-bound guard Jabarie Hinds posted 22 points and six assists to lead Mount Vernon past Mason County (Ky.), 59-53.
Mount Vernon, ranked No. 14 by USA Today, faces Montverde (Fla.) Academy in Monday’s semis. Montverde beat Lexington (Ky.) 59-47.
In other quarterfinal action, Duke-bound guard Quinn Cook dropped 31 points as No. 1 Oak Hill Academy beat local Iolani High, 81-53.
In the other semi, Oak Hill plays Dr. Phillips, which edged Wheeler, 63-62.
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Adam Zagoria is a Basketball Insider who covers basketball at all levels. A contributor to The New York Times and SportsNet New York (SNY), he is also the author of two books and is an award-winning journalist and filmmaker. His articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide. He also won an Emmy award for his work on the SNY mini-documentary on Syracuse guard Tyus Battle.
A veteran Ultimate Frisbee player, he has competed in numerous National and World Championships and, perhaps more importantly, his teams won the Westchester Summer League (WSL) championships in 2011 and 2013.
He lives in Manhattan with his wife and children.
Elizabeth (N.J.) St. Patrick, Oak Hill (Va.) Academy and Mount Vernon all advanced to the semifinals of prestigious holiday tournaments Saturday.
St. Patrick, ranked No. 11 by USA Today, beat Chicago Whitney Young, 92-68, in the quarterfinals of the City of Palms Classic behind 37 points from Western Kentucky signee Derrick Gordon.
St. Pat’s on Tuesday will face the winner of Monday’s game between Mater Dei (Calif.) and Christ School (N.C.).
Gordon’s made 12 of 20 shots, including 6 of 9 from 3-point range, to go with three steals.
