Rice Slips Past Telfair Lincoln

BRONX, NEW YORK -- Someone didn't remind Jamal Dart that they needed three points instead of two. And it was a shame the game ended this great battle the way it did.

Trailing by three points and with the ball, Lincoln High School tried to inbound a pass to super sophomore Sebastian Telfair with 13.2 seconds left in the fourth quarter.

The ball as deflected and landed in the hands of Dart, a 6-3 junior forward. Dart did the wise thing and quickly moved the ball downcourt. However, he did not stop by the three-point line despite time running out. Instead, he darted to the basket and scored a basket with about five to six seconds left. This left Lincoln down, 69-68.

The next wise move was by the entire Rice team. Knowing that Lincoln had no more timeouts to stop the clock, the Raiders of Rice decided not to even inbound the ball. Game over.

It was a tough game to lose for Lincoln in the second game of a triple-header held on the campus of Fordham University. These games were held to raise money for the Diane Brennen Scholarship Fund, named after a popular sportswriter for the New York Daily News.

It appeared Lincoln had control at the opening tip. Dart's two three-pointers and a long range three by Telfair gave Lincoln a 16-9 lead.

However, a big second quarter by Auturo Dubois and Keydren Clark helped Rice to a 35-33 first half lead. Clark's basket at the buzzer gave Rice the advantage. Telfair had hit for 15 points in the first two quarters.

Rice made its move after sitting down 7-3 center Shagari Alleyne. Shagari would sit the entire third quarter as well. Rice held on to a 55-53 lead heading into the fourth.

But Lincoln managed to grab a 66-65 lead late in the fourth quarter. Alleyne then returned to the game. His tip-in with 1:28 left gave Rice a 67-66 lead.

Lincoln had the ball with 26.9 seconds left. Telfair received the inbounds pass and sprinted up past half-court and near the Lincoln foul line. He was greeted by two more Rice defenders who surrounded him. Clark got his hands on the ball and tied up Telfair. The arrow possession favored Rice.

Clark was fouled with 13.2 seconds left. He hit both free throws to make it a three-point game. But a mixup at the end cost Lincoln a chance to at least tie the game.

Telfair led all scorers with 20 points. Dart also had a solid game. He scored 16 points. Elliah Clarke also had 13 points for Lincoln.

Jason Wingate had 14 points, Christian Brown had 13 points, Clark had nine, Russell Robinson had eight, and Steve Burtt, Jr. also had eight to pace a balanced Rice attack.