SUFFOLK COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE

Suffolk CC's Streak Reaches 36

Manning Is the Man

Leads Suffolk to its 36th win in a row

By Gregg Sarra
STAFF WRITER
Copyright © 2004, Newsday, Inc.

Got to go to Mo. That's short for Maurice Manning at Suffolk CC-Selden. The sophomore forward, who is perhaps the best junior college player in the country, yesterday led Suffolk to its 36th straight win. Not even an elbow administered by Sullivan forward Joe McLeod with 3:10 remaining could stop Manning and the Clippers in their quest for the top seed in the Region XV Tournament.

Manning took the elbow in the sternum and dropped to his knees before Suffolk coach Rich Wrase called timeout. The Kentucky Wesleyan-bound Manning shook off the hit, scored the Clippers' next two baskets and finished with 21 points and eight rebounds as Suffolk CC defeated Sullivan CC, 69-63, before a standing-room-only crowd of more than 850 on the Ammerman Campus at Suffolk CC in Selden.

"We expected a dogfight and they came with one," said Manning, who starred at Bridgehampton and was named Newsday's Suffolk Player of the Year in 1997. "The elbow was a vicious cheap shot. They tried to get us out of our game by playing physical and talking it up. This was like a championship game. And we came out on top."

Sullivan (13-2) was a real threat to snap the nation's longest winning streak. The Generals were the last team to beat Suffolk CC, coming away with a 76-73 victory on Jan. 18, 2003.

Suffolk (18-0), ranked No. 1 in the nation, never trailed in this one, and every time the Generals went on a run, Manning and company met the challenge.

"Our kids are under more pressure with every win," said Wrase, voted the NJCAA Coach of the Year last season. "And it's a combination of things. The students on campus, the professors and the community are all aware of what we're doing. The gym gets more packed with each game."

They certainly watched an entertaining game yesterday. Sullivan hoped to end the streak, and if not for early foul trouble, it might have succeeded.

"We need to get the post play and didn't," Sullivan coach Christopher Depew said. "We had serious foul trouble and never got it going on offense. Our big man [Darren Sykes] averages six three-pointers a game, and I don't think he hit one. We learned a lot today."

If Sullivan didn't know it already, Manning is Suffolk's leader. He's the go-to guy who always seems to get it done. The 23-year-old Manning addressed both of Sullivan's runs with key baskets and rousing defensive work.

Sullivan held the Clippers scoreless for 4:22 late in the first half and tied the score at 27 on Sykes' layup. Manning ended the scoring drought with a long three-pointer for a 30-27 lead. After Sykes' miss, Manning rebounded and fired an outlet pass to Vernon Alonzo (15 points), who fed Anton Cheese for an easy layup and a five-point advantage.

Manning wasn't finished. He hit a driving layup over Dante Griggs and drew a foul, nailing the ensuing free throw with 1:55 left to make it 35-29. On Sullivan's next possession, Keith Bussey missed a short jumper and Marcele Street threw a long pass ahead of the defense to a sprinting Manning for an uncontested layup.

"They were very aggressive," said Street, who was punched in the face by Griggs with three minutes left in the game and retaliated by shoving Griggs across the court. "The more physical it got, the more motivated I was," said Street, who finished with 11 points and eight rebounds.

The second half mirrored the first. Sullivan made a run and got within 48-42 before Suffolk pulled away with a 9-2 spurt, keyed by Manning's three-pointer. Hard feelings boiled over throughout the final three minutes and ignited a locker-room melee that included shoving and profanities before it was quickly broken up.

"Just play ball and let your game do the talking," Manning said afterward. "I have to be a leader and not get caught up in the moment. Composure at all times is so important, and we'll need that to beat them again."

Depew calmed his team in the locker room and promised a rematch in the regionals.

"We'll see them in the championship game," he said with a smile. "And we'll see them in our place, in front of a packed house with 3,000 fans. Then we'll see what happens."

SUFFOLK CC 69
SULLIVAN CC 63

Copyright © 2004, Newsday, Inc.

 
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