Friday, February 7, 2025
With the door to the Nassau Class AA boys’ basketball playoffs barely open, Long Beach played like there was no tomorrow Monday night and stayed within striking distance of Valley Stream Central until the closing minutes.
A pivotal foul call and subsequent technical with 2:40 remaining in regulation time helped the Eagles double their lead on the way to 65-54 Conference AA-III victory at Memorial Junior High.
Senior Jamin Legagneur’s traditional three-point play and pair of technical foul shots boosted Central’s lead from five to double digits and took all the wind out of the Marines’ sails. Legagneur scored a game-high 24 points and had 8 rebounds, and junior point guard Sean O’Neil added 21 points and 5 assists as the Eagles (9-3 overall, 5-2 in AA-III) won their fourth straight.
“We have great depth and we weathered some injuries earlier in the season,” Central head coach Mike Wimmer said. “We have a lot of guys who can score the ball and it’s a close-knit group. We have the pieces.”
Seniors Brody Schuh (21) and Matty Hayes (13) scored in double figures for Long Beach (4-8 overall, 2-5 in AA-III), which saw its playoff hopes take another punch.
“I don’t know if we would’ve won, but we had late momentum,” Marines head coach Scott Martin said. “Kids are playing hard and we did what we set out to do. We kept our turnovers down and stayed in the game the whole night. Central is a talented team that finishes strong. They can hurt you in many ways.”
Sophomores Jaiya (9) and Julian Vera combined for 15 points for the Eagles, who took the lead for good on Legagneur’s three-point play midway through the first quarter. O’Neil scored their final six points of the frame and the lead was 19-12 after eight minutes.
“We’re a hard-working team and feel we can go far,” said O’Neil, who averaged 19 points over the first dozen games. “We talk about winning the county championship as that’s our goal, but we don’t lose focus on one game at a time. We’re looking forward to our rematches with Baldwin and Great Neck South.”
The Eagles dropped the first meeting with Baldwin, the four-time defending county champions down a classification this season due to enrollment, and took unbeaten Great Neck South to overtime.
Central led Long Beach by eight at halftime but the Marines hung tough behind Schuh, Hayes, sophomore Zach Brymer (8 points) and senior point guard Jamar Burns.
Schuh trimmed the deficit to 52-47 late in the fourth but the visitors couldn’t swing the lead in their favor.
“Our margin for error is down to zero,” Martin said. “We have to steal a couple of games against teams higher than us in the standings. It’s entirely possible. We’ve played everyone tough. Even if we don’t make it happen, I’m proud of these guys. Can’t say enough about their effort.”
Long Beach visits Jericho on Thursday. Central is back in action Friday at Baldwin.
