Ingram Sparks St. Anthonys Win

EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY -- St. John's bound guard Elijah Ingram scored 18 points and handed out eight assists to lead St. Anthony's past Neptune High School, 69-49, in the New Jersey state title game held at the Meadowlands Arena before a crowd of 10,069.

Ingram got St. Anthony's off to a fast start in the first quarter. His two baskets and two assists gave the Friars an 11-2 lead with 4:28 left in the first quarter. The quarter ended with St. Anthony's ahead, 19-11. Ingram hit a top of the key three-pointer right before the first quarter expired.

Donald Copeland hit a three-pointer, Terrance Roberts slammed home a basket, and Dwayne Lee hit for two free throws with 2:31 left in the second to push the advantage to 33-18. The second quarter concluded with St. Anthony's holding a 37-24 lead.

Lee has given a commitment to St. Joseph's and he should be an eventual impact player on the college level. Roberts is one of the better forwards in the 2003 class. He is open in his recruiting process but has such schools like Syracuse, Villanova, St. John's, Cincinnati, Massachusetts, Rutgers, Providence, Connecticut, and Notre Dame interested in his skills.

Copeland is still open in his recruiting process. He is currently considering Seton Hall, Rhode Island, George Mason, Richmond, Hofstra, Siena, and Wichita State.

The lead was extended to 56-34 in the fourth after Copeland dropped in a three-pointer, Roberts hit two free throws, and Lee knocked down a three-pointer with 5:42 left. Ingram made matters worse for Neptune by converting another three-pointer to make it lights out, 59-34.

Ingram finished the game with 18 points. Copeland scored 16, Roberts had 13 points, and Lee chipped in with 12 points. Markus Austin scored 10 for Neptune while Terrance Todd also had 10.

Taquan Dean, who has committed to Louisville, was held to seven points. He also got into foul trouble early in the second half and could never get his offensive game going against a stingy St. Anthony's defense.