Baldwin builds conference win streak

After yielding 28 points to Baldwin in the opening quarter of last Friday’s Nassau Conference AA-II boys’ basketball matchup, Valley Stream Central came within eight of the defending county champions in the second but couldn’t get any closer in an 83-54 defeat.

Junior Jared Rhoden filled up the scoresheet for the Bruins, who won their 37th straight conference game to break a program record. Rhoden poured in a game-high 30 points and added eight rebounds and five assists. Half of his points came from behind the arc, while senior Shane Gatling chipped in 19 and senior Justin Caldwell had 10 points and 12 rebounds. The Eagles, who fell to 2-2 in conference play, were led by senior Amenrah Reid’s 11 points.

“When you play against such a great team like Baldwin, you have such a small margin for error,” VSC head coach Hayward Alfred said. “We settled down after a slow start and made a run, but we missed about four or five layups and gave them too many second and third chances.”

Baldwin led by 13 at halftime and used a 16-8 third-quarter run to pull away. Central got eight points apiece from freshmen Omar Rowe and Justin Hendrick, as well as senior Jaison-Patric Gordon. Senior Jermaine Fraser, the team’s leading scorer at 15.6 points per game, was held to a season-low six.

“Baldwin’s as good as they’ve been,” Hayward said. “Rhoden is quite a ballplayer. He’s 6-6 and only a junior. He hit some difficult shots tonight with defenders in his face.”

Less than 24 hours later, Rhoden was back at it, leading the Bruins to a 78-54 victory over Central Islip as part of the Nassau-Suffolk Challenge hosted by Uniondale last Saturday. Rhoden raked for 28 points and hit for more shots from behind the arc, giving him 45 treys in a dozen games.

“Jared grew a few inches and really worked on his game during the offseason,” Baldwin head coach Darius Burton said of Rhoden, who was the first player off the bench last winter. “He’s much improved offensively, and also better defensively.”

Rhoden and Gatling, who had 21 points against Central Islip, form one of Baldwin’s most dynamic scoring duos under Burton. Rhoden is averaging 22.4 points per game, and Gatling 18.4. “Shane’s picked up where he left off last year,” Burton said. “He’s our only three-year starter and one of only five seniors. He’s a consistent leader.”

Rhoden (seven) and Gatling combined for 12 points during a 20-2 run against Central Islip that broke the game open early. Junior point guard Jabeon Bivins and junior forward Zion Stephens added eight points apiece. The top players off the bench for Baldwin (10-2 overall) are junior Elijah Bovell, the leading scorer for the JV team last season, and backup point guard Norman Wilson, a junior who transferred from Long Beach.

“Central Islip was a great test for us, especially since we played the night before against an athletic Valley Stream Central team,” Burton said.