http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york/high-school/post/_/id/4733/rapid-reax-jefferson-beats-no-1-lincolnRapid Reax: Jefferson beats No. 1 Lincoln
January, 17, 2012
JAN 17
9:40
PM ET
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By Rob Abruzzese
Following Saturday's victory over Boys & Girls, Lincoln star guard Isaiah Whitehead proclaimed his team as the best in New York City.
Following an 82-77 overtime loss to Jefferson at home in Coney Island on Tuesday night, it was a different story.
"Everybody thinks they are the best team in New York and I think opposite," Jefferson's Thaddeus Hall proclaimed after the game. "We run Brooklyn. We're the best team in Brooklyn and we're the best team in the city."
Even Lincoln's head coach, Dwayne "Tiny" Morton, agreed that Whitehead's statement was premature.
"He's soft, he played like a sophomore and not like one of the top sophomores in the country," a frustrated Morton said. "He's got to stop talking (trash). Wait until the last game. That is immature talk from a sophomore."
Whitehead actually had a chance to put Lincoln up 75-72 with just 22 seconds left when he went to the free throw line, but he missed his first shot and settled for a 74-72 lead. Jefferson's Hall hit a lay-up just 17 seconds later to tie the game at 74-74 to send it to overtime.
Jaquan Lynch led Jefferson with 21 points and played strong defense, holding Ethan Telfair to just 10 points. Hall had 17 and held Whitehead (17 points) to just three points in the second half. Patrick Brown and Kareem Johnakin each had 15.
STILL JUST A SOPHOMORE: Whitehead started out the game red hot, scoring seven of Lincoln's first 10 points and 10 of its first 18, but Morton called him soft following the game. Not only did he have just three points in the second half, but he quickly ran into foul trouble in the third quarter. When he was benched for four minutes that quarter, Hall, whom Whitehead was guarding, went on a tear, scoring a quick eight points.
LYNCH LEADS THE WAY: After trailing for most of the game, No. 6 Jefferson (13-5, 9-2 Brooklyn AA) started gaining momentum in the third quarter. Lynch hit a go-ahead jump shot with 25.3 left in the quarter. When he got the ball back shortly after that, everyone in the gym knew what was coming next -- but nobody could stop it. He hit a three to put Jefferson up 65-61 on No. 1 Lincoln (15-3, 10-1) heading into the fourth .
"Right now he is [the best shooter in the PSAL]," Jefferson head coach Bud Pollard said. "Right now he's on fire. I don't know one player in New York City that is playing better than him right now. We've seen pretty much everybody that's good and he's outplayed them all."
HALL STANDS TALL: Hall missed seven league games this year due to either academic or behavioral ineligibility, but now that he's back he may be the difference between Jefferson being a good team and possibly the best team in the city.
Hall tied the score with 4.3 seconds left in the fourth quarter to send Jefferson into overtime, and then provided some more heroics as he drew a foul and hit the free throw that put Jefferson up 82-77.
"I knew it was over when I looked over and I saw Tiny put his head down," Hall said. "After that I knew we won."
THE BIG MEN: Lincoln's big men, Tafari Whittingham and Travis Charles, get a lot of ink, but Jefferson showed that its big men, Johnakin and Edward Ogundeko, can hang right in there with them.
"I don't look at them as amazing big men," Lynch said of Lincoln's post players. "I'm just going to go strong to them, get them and foul trouble, and that's exactly what we did. Our big men stepped up a lot today. Without those final three blocks from Johnakin, I don't think we win this game."
UP NEXT: Jefferson will continue to play on the road as it heads to East New York Transit Tech to play on Thursday. Lincoln stays at home when it hosts Grady the same day.