The semifinals and championship game of NYvsNY, a youth basketball tournament, took place over the weekend at Emily Warren Roebling Plaza under the Brooklyn Bridge.
The annual tournament, which is hosted by Nike, invites young hoopers to represent their neighborhoods. Teams come from Lincoln Park (Queens), Gersh Park (Brooklyn), Watson (The Bronx), and West 4th, Tri-State, Dyckman and Uptown Challenge (Manhattan). There were big celebrity athletes and voices in attendance for the vibrant event.
There is both a boy’s and girl’s championship game, both of which took place on Sunday. The semifinals took place Saturday for the boys and Sunday for the girls. Sunday also featured the futures game and pro-city championship.
The first boys semifinal matchup saw Watson beat Tri-State 65-51. Kaydyn Mingo, a 6-foot-1 guard, led the way for Watson with 13 points, five assists, and four steals in a strong effort. Ben Ahmad added 10 points and four rebounds to contribute to the win.
For the other boys semifinal matchup, Gersh Park defeated Dyckman 59-50. Asher Elson, a 6-foot-10 power forward, had 21 points and seven rebounds in the victorious effort. Jahda Swann, a 6-foot-3 point guard, added 15 points to go along with five rebounds and three blocks.
For the highly-anticipated championship games, stars such as Carmelo Anthony, Druski, French Montana, and Miles McBride were in attendance.
Kiyan Anthony, the son of the former Knicks superstar, played for Gersh Park on the boy’s side. The No. 1 high school player in New York State came up short along with his team, losing 76-66 to Watson in the championship game.
Watson finished with an incredible undefeated record this season. They certainly enjoyed their championship victory, celebrating with Druski after the game.
On the girl’s side, Dyckman capped off their terrific season with a victory in the championship game over Uptown Challenge by a score of 65-57. Dyckman has the top two high school girls in the country: Aaliyah Chavez and Olivia Vukosa. These two stars combined for 27 points, 11 rebounds, and seven assists in the epic winning effort. However, it was Madison Howard who led the way with a game-high 19 points in the victory.
