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HIGH SCHOOL BOYS' BASKETBALL: CORNING'S CASEY HEADLINES FIRST ALL-STSR BOYS' BASKETBALL TEAM (March 25, 2022)
By Brian Fees
Southern Tier Sports Report
It was a successful season for area boys’ basketball teams, which made the choices for this year’s All-Southern Tier Sports Report teams difficult.
Corning won a sectional crown, while Elmira, Horseheads and Notre Dame were all playoff teams this season.
Corning’s Jackson Casey does a little bit of everything for the Hawks and he is this year’s All-STSR Player of the Year, while his teammate Isaiah Henderson is the newcomer of the year after a huge sophomore campaign.
Casey scored 11.1 points a game, while adding 2.3 steals, 4.7 rebounds and 5.3 assists a game for the Hawks. He’s one of the fastest players in the section and he is the engine that runs the Hawks.
Henderson is one of the best scorers in Section 4. He’s a 6-4 walking mismatch, who also happens to be one of the best shooters in the section. Henderson scored 18.7 points a game this year, shooting 40% on threes and 83% from the free throw line this year. He made almost three threes per game this year.
Corning coach Mike Johnston Jr. is the coach of the year after leading the Hawks to a STAC West title, and a sectional championship.
Corning’s Logan Booker is the sixth-man of the year after brining energy off the bench every game for the Hawks.
Booker put up 2.5 points a game and 1.7 rebounds a contest.
Horseheads’ Amauri Traux is the offensive player of the year after netting more than 20 points a game for the Blue Raiders this year, while Elmira’s Xavier Jones is the defensive player of the year. Jones always took on the opposing players best scorer and helped the Express defense shut down opposing teams, especially the second half of the season.
Truax scored 20.6 points a game to lead all area scorers this year, while Jones put up 13.1 points a game for Elmira, along with his defense.
The Terrific 10 all-star team features Casey, Truax, Henderson and Jones. The rest of the Terrific 10 are Horseheads’ Jeremy Truax; Notre Dame’s Steven Gough and Malakai Owens, Elmira’s Mikey Middaugh and Corning’s Aidan Chamberlin and Landen Burch.
Middaugh scored 10.7 points a game and added 10.1 rebounds a contest as he averaged a double-double for the Express.
Chamberlin scored 9.8 points a game for the Hawks this year and added 5.1 rebounds a game. Burch put up 12.9 points a game, second best on the team, and added a team-best 8.8 rebounds a game this year.
Gough put up 16 points a game this year and he added eight points a game, along with three assists and three rebounds, as he did a little of everything for the Crusaders.
Owens developed into one of the best post players in the area. The 6-foot, 7-inch junior scored 14 points and added nine boards with two blocked shots a game.
Like his brother, Jeremy Truax is one of the best scorers in the area, finishing second on the Blue Raiders to his brother in scoring at more than 15 points a game.
Jones headlines the all-defensive team, along with Elmira teammates Seth Myles and Tyler Marks. Corning’s Nesu Maphosa, Horseheads’ Jackson Cook and Eric Bukowinski of Notre Dame are also on the defensive team.
Maphosa had huge energy on the defensive end of the court and he averaged 1.4 steals a game for the Hawks.
Elmira coach Ryan Johnson said of Marks, ‘had to have led the league in charges taken, tie-ups and 50/50 balls. Always defended the guy on the other team we wanted to limit in order to be successful.”
Bukowinski had a strong year all around for the Crusaders, he was a strong defender, who averaged seven boards a game, and he also added 12 points a game this year.
Myles is one of the most athletic players in Section 4 and he often used that athleticism to reject opposing players, even when it looked like they had sure layups.
Henderson highlights the all-rookie team with Elmira’s Chris Woodard, Corning’s Reed Walrath, Notre Dame’s Savie Waters, Elmira’s James Harris and Blake Cobb of Edison.
Woodward was a force in the paint for the Express, often taking over gams. He led the Express in scoring multiple games and was one of the biggest matchup nightmares in the league.
Cobb led the Spartans with 8.8 rebounds a game this past season.
Walrach had some big moments for the Hawks, averaging 3.3 points a game. Down the stretch he was a key player off the bench for the Hawks.
Harris had a four three-pointer game for Elmira in a game early in the season against Corning. He showed flashes of what the future could look like for the Express as he displayed a strong outside shot this season.
Waters averaged two steals a game in his first season for the Crusaders.
Anthony Brooks of Elmira, Horseheads’ Alex Daugherty and Pat Carpenter, Notre Dame’s Cam Johnson and Dylan Swartwood of Edison make up the all-unsung team of players who may not always get the spotlight, but played big roles for their teams.
Brooks is a player that Johnson said stats don’t do him justice, as he did everything for Elmira and was rarely ever off the court.
Swartwood was a hard worker for the Spartans, who did a little bit of everything inside for Edison.
Daugherty is a scorer for the Blue Raiders, who was third on the team in scoring this year, and Carpenter did a little bit of everything for Horseheads this season.
Cam Johnson wasn’t the biggest player on the court, but he always brought his energy and was a leader on the court for the Crusaders.
We also have a five-to-watch, they don’t have to be newcomers, but any underclassmen to keep an eye on next year as they could have breakout years. The five to watch are Edison’s George Smith and Evan Bush; Elmira’s Johnnie Garcia, Notre Dame’s Malik Marshall and Corning’s Jeremiah Green.
Garcia has elite athleticism and showed this year he could be a player to be reckoned with next year. Green is a junior guard for the Hawks who could be counted on for a bigger role next year with three starters graduating for the Hawks.
Smith and Bush are both starters for the Spartans who showed the ability to score this year and could be looked take a big step next year. Both are athletic multi-sport athletes.
Marshall is a 6-foot, 4-inch player for the Crusaders who could take on a bigger role next season.
BOYS’ BASKETBALL
Player of the Year: Jackson Casey, Corning
Offensive Player of the Year: Amauri Truax, Horseheads
Defensive Player of the Year: Xavier Jones, Elmira
Newcomer of the year: Isaiah Henderson, Corning
Sixth-player of the year: Logan Booker, Corning
Coach of the year: Mike Johnston Jr.
Terrific 10
Casey
Truax
Henderson
Jeremy Truax, Horseheads
Landen Burch, Corning
Steven Gough, ND
Malakai Owen, ND
Mikey Middaugh, Elmira
Xavier Jones, Elmira
Aidan Chamberlin, Corning
DEFENSIVE TEAM
Jones
Seth Myles, Elmira
Tyler Marks, Elmira
Nesu Maphosa, Corning
Jackson Cook, Horseheads
Eric Bukowinski, ND
ROOKIE TEAM
Henderson
Chris Woodard, Elmira
Reed Walrath, Corning
Savie Waters, ND
Blake Cobb, Edison
James Harris, Elmira
ALL UNSUNG TEAM
Anthony Brooks, Elmira
Alex Daugherty, Horseheads
Pat Carpenter, Horseheads
Cam Johnson, ND
Dylan Swartwood, Edison
FIVE TO WATCH
George Smith, Edison
Malik Marshall, ND (6-4)
Johnnie Garcia, Elmira
Jeremiah Green, Corning
Evan Bush, Edison
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IN TOP PHOTO: Corning’s Jackson Casey. . . STSR FILE PHOTO
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