Sanders Feels Presence of Late Cousin; SNY Invitational All-Tournament Team

NEW YORK — When Jermaine Sanders hit a difficult turnaround jump shot over a defender during overtime of the SNY Invitational title game on Saturday, he felt the spirit of cousin Ronald Washington Jr. surge through him.

“I think that fade-away shot, it must have been him because that was a tough shot that I made,” Sanders said after scoring 12 points to help Rice beat Cardozo, 63-58, to win the SNY Invitational championship.

A 6-foot-5, 210-pound junior wing player with interest from numerous Big East and Atlantic Coast Conference teams, Sanders has played with a heavy heart since his cousin was shot seven times in the back in Far Rockaway, Queens Sept. 14. He died a week later at Jamaica Hospital.

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Written by Adam Zagoria

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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.