Thunderous dunk caps dramatic win for Athena in battle of unbeatens

ROCHESTER — The thunderous two-handed dunk Greece Athena's Zee Johnson slammed down in the final seconds almost brought down the East High gymnasium's ceiling Saturday night.

Johnson's alley-oop capped an instant classic comeback in a battle of the unbeatens.

The highly anticipated Section V nonleague contest game was relatively over when I'zick Reaves threw an alley-oop to Johnson in the final seconds of Athena's 65-58 win. The Trojans trailed by 16 in the third before clawing back behind Khorie Reaves' late game heroics. His 15-point fourth quarter carried the Trojans to victory, converting key basket after key basket during his 21-point night. Athena's crippling man-to-man defense outscored East's Eagles 28-9 in the final frame.

The state-ranked contest was as good as advertised. Hundreds witnessed Athena improve to 11-0 while wiping out another one of New York State's best programs. East High fell to 10-1 against a stout schedule of its own. Both teams were section finalists in 2022.

Bookmark this: Section V scoreboards for the winter 2023-24 season

The Athena-East game was already memorable before Johnson brought the house down with his last-second dunk.

What it means for Greecec Athena, East

Greece Athena coach Mike Setzer's Trojans (11-0) proved themselves again against another strong nonleague opponent. The Monroe County Division III team shifted the momentum Saturday after switching to man defense across the final nine minutes, ending the game on a 30-11 run after trailing 47-35 with 33 seconds left in the third. Athena is ranked No. 2 in the New York State Sportswriters Association Class AA poll.

East High coach Darrell Barley's Eagles' (10-1) lost the backend of their back-to-back. They earned a league win over a talented McQuaid team Friday. Each Eagles win has come within the tough Rochester City Athletic Conference Upper Division. The defense Barley's Eagles displayed through three quarters Saturday was remarkable, holding Athena without a 3-pointer through that stretch. East is ranked No. 2 in NYSSWA's Class A poll.

Athena-East was a coaching clinic, with Setzer and Barley adjusting their full court and half court defensive sets throughout the night. But in the end, it was senior point guard Khorie Reaves who decided the game.

Top play

I'zick-Zee alley-oop

I'zick Reaves' alley-oop to Zee Johnson came with the game already in hand, but it was one of the most memorable plays of the Section V boys basketball season. The play came on the other end of an off target East High desperation 3-point attempt. I'zick Reaves dashed up the court in the final seconds and flung a pass to Johnson by the rim, who caught the ball with two hands for the rim-rattling dunk.

Johnson raised his hands in victory and celebrated with I'zayah Reaves as time expired. The standing-room only crowd roared in both amazement and defeat. Johnson was amped up and shared words with spectators in the bleachers before shaking hands with East after a crazy ending.

"I seen him, I signaled him to throw it up, I caught it, ended it with a bang," Johnson said.

Top players

Khorie Reaves

Greece Athena's senior point guard scored 17 of his team's final 30 points, further cementing his name as one of the best players in the state. Khorie Reaves' 21 points and five rebounds may not be gaudy, but the guard's clutch outing against a defensively sound team in East High was eye opening.

His one-handed dunk that cut their deficit to eight 1:45 into the final frame was the highlight of a solo 6-0 run. His first 3-pointer 40 seconds later cut the deficit to four, and his next trey tied the game at 55 with 2:47 remaining. The Trojans took their first lead on the next possession when Khorie Reaves drew an and-one and converted the free throw for a 58-55 lead with 2:26 left.

"That 3 was big time for sure. It got us going," Khorie Reaves said.

Zee Johnson

Greece Athena's senior scored six of his 15 points in the fourth. His alley-oop from I'zick Reaves was of the best plays of the Section V season. Johnson finished with four fouls but overcame his foul trouble.

Connor Osier

The senior center scored nine of his 13 points in the first half, leading Athena in scoring while his teammates struggled from the floor. He also grabbed half of his eight total rebounds from the offensive glass and defended well in the post. Osier fouled out with 49.9 seconds left, but the Trojans wouldn't have won without him.

"I wasn't worried. Byron (Williams), Ne'Sean (Fawlks) coming off the bench, I wasn't worried with whoever they put in," Osier said.

Keysean Leonard

East's junior is staking his claim as one of the area's best points guard. Leonard was the Eagles' most effective scorer with a game-high 25 points Saturday. His handles helped on hard drives, and his soft shooting touch led to four 3-pointers. Leonard's final trey came 16 seconds into the third quarter to give the Eagles their largest lead at 38-22.

Game balls

Micah Johnson-Breedlove

Johnson-Breedlove, possibly Section V's best jump shooter as a sophomore, scored 11 points on a pair of 3s for East. Markell Kingston Johnson scored eight points.

I'zayah Reaves

Just as his twin brother, I'zick, I'zayah Reaves get a nod for his defensive prowess in the fourth. I'zayah Reaves manned up with East's Zion Parson — a star since middle school and one of Section V's best players as a sophomore — in the fourth quarter and kept him from scoring. Parson ended the game with three points. I'zayah Reaves dodged foul trouble with five points. His 3-point dagger gave Athena a 58-52 lead with 1:40 left that sucked the air out of the gym.

"We stayed together and we tried not to reach as much. ... We just played together," I'zayah Reaves said.

I'zick Reaves

If his older brother Khorie was the Offensive Player of the Game, I'zick made a case for Defensive Player of the Game for guarding Leonard in the fourth. I'zick Reaves was the key when Athena aborted from a 2-3 zone and switched to man-to-man. He fought through screens and stayed in front of the shifty Leonard, keeping him from converting a field goal and limiting Leonard to four free throws in the final frame. I'zick overcame foul trouble with crucial buckets in the fourth, finishing with seven points, six assists and four steals.

"We just had to battle adversity. ... We told ourselves 'Let's go out there and play like dogs. That's what we did," I'zick Reaves said.

Section V boys basketball: Remaining undefeated teams

Records are updated through Saturday, Jan. 13.

Class AAA

Aquinas is 12-0. Their last win came against Northeast 76-57 on Saturday.

Class AA

Greece Athena is 11-0 after winning 65-58 at East High on Saturday.

Class A

N/A: East High (9-1) beat McQuaid 54-47 on Friday for its most recent victory.

Class B

Avon is 12-0. Its last win was an 86-68 victory over Rochester Prep on Saturday.

Class C

East Rochester is also 12-0. The Bombers' most recent triumph was a 55-39 victory at North Rose-Wolcott on Friday.

Class D

N/A: Avoca-Prattsburgh is 7-4. The Titans last won 82-32 over Alfred-Almond on Saturday.

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Greece Athena beats East: Section V boys basketball battle of unbeatens