Kangaroos Cruise Behind Myers Shooting

All Teyvon Myers wanted to do was make his mother proud.

So when Coach Lovelace put him in halfway into the first quarter, Myers, knowing she was somewhere in the crowd, put on a clinic in an area of the game that earned him his spot on the roster: shooting.

Myers drained two threes and scored 12 points with just 2:30 left in the first period to single-handedly put the game out of reach for William E. Grady. By the end of the quarter, Boys & Girls led 28-15, and coasted to a 88-62 rout.

Myers finished with a team-high of 21 points, the second time in three games he's notched a season high in scoring. For the sophomore playing his first season on the varsity team, the performance meant even more because of a special fan in the bleachers.

"My mom came to my game, so I'm happy about that," Myers said. "She hadn't come recently."

It's the fourth strait win for the Kangaroos after accepting a forfeit on Tuesday night from South Shore, because the team is suspended due to fighting during a game. Over the weekend, the Kangaroos won 56-52 in Viriginia over Phoebus, a top-ranked team in the state.

William E. Grady fell to 2-8 and into a tie for last place in the Brooklyn AA standings. Jabari Peters, one of the top players in New York City, scored 34 points to lead all scorers. 

Boys & Girls now rank second in both its league and in the PSAL, trailing only undefeated Abraham Lincoln High School in both, who narrowly beat them earlier this year. But the Kangaroos are hitting it stride, with the usual suspects chipping in once again in an evenly-distributed attack: Mike Taylor scored 18 points, Jeffland Neverson had 14, and Leroy Fludd put up 10.

But it was Myers who stole the show. Myers was picked because he has good range but it hadn't shown up much in the box score so far this season. In recent weeks, however, Myers has seen more playing time and begun to deliver on his promise.

"It means a lot," Myers said. "A lot of folks don't get a chance to play for a wonderful team like this."

Lovelace said that Myers' speed and length make him a good prototype to do well in her team's up-tempo system, especially when his shot is on.

"There's never a question about him scoring the ball," Lovelace said. "He shot really well today. It probably seemed like the basket is as big as the ocean."

Both Lovelace and Myers agreed that his defense remains a gaping hole.

"We want him to actually play a little better defense and move his feet a little better."

Next up, Boys & Girls play Academy of the New Church (10-2), the #1 team in Pennsylvania this weekend in Springfield, Mass at the Spalding Hoop Hall Classic.