By STEVE SINISKI
It was a dramatic game full of twists and turns, including 19 lead changes and foul trouble that put two of Baldwin's top players on the bench for extended periods of time.
In the end, however, Baldwin emerged triumphant, with sophomore Chris Mauldin propelling the Bruins into their first Nassau County championship game since 1993, ending the Knights' run of five consecutive titles when he drained a three-pointer with 7.8 seconds to play.
"That's how he is," Baldwin coach Darius Burton said of Mauldin. "He's had a number of game-winning shots, and hit two clutch free throws against Elmont earlier in the year."
The Bruins (15-5) will now face No. 3 Hempstead (16-4) on Saturday at SUNY-Old Westbury at 8 p.m. for the Class AA championship. "Every year I tell the team our goal is to win the county championship," Burton said. "I want them to experience something I've never experienced."
Even more fitting than Mauldin's winning shot was the way it was set up. Chris Manning, the quarterback of the offense and the glue that holds the Bruins together, missed a running jumper but managed to grab the rebound in a crowd of players that included Uniondale's Steven Priestley, who pulled in 19 caroms for the game. After bumping into a teammate in the lane, Manning delivered a perfect cross-court pass to Mauldin, who calmly let fly the game-winner.
"No one plays harder than him on the defensive end and offensive end," Burton said of Manning, sounding not the least bit surprised that the senior had a hand in the biggest play of the game.
Simply staying within striking distance of Uniondale (14-6) was a testament to Baldwin's strength, as foul trouble plagued versatile forward Scott Henderson and starting center Andrew Baker from the start. As big a hero as Mauldin was, the Bruins' depth had a huge impact on the outcome of the game. The super-subs scored 20 of the team's 56 points, led by Mauldin's 12 and five from sophomore Keenan Hawkins.
"That's how we are," Burton said, noting his penchant for using an expanded playing rotation. "I'm not someone that plays just six or seven players."
Mike Woods paced the offense with 15 points, while Henderson added 10 and Manning nine. Eight Baldwin players in all scored points, but the championship berth wouldn't have been possible without a strong performance on the defensive end of the floor. Having already seen Priestley account for a combined 25 points and 31 rebounds in the two previous meetings, the Bruins knew who they had to limit. Doing so was something many other Uniondale opponents hadn't managed.
"Going in, we knew in the half-court they would look to get the ball to Priestley, so we played a gimmick [defense]," Burton said. "We tried to limit his touches. We did a decent job of doubling down low."
And while Priestley did net 15 points, he didn't have much of an impact down the stretch, netting just two points in the fourth quarter. Even that dunk, which gave the Knights a 44-42 lead and whipped their fans into a frenzy, was answered on the next possession by a three-pointer by Hawkins.
"We wanted to force them outside because they were bigger and stronger than us," Burton said. "We just hoped they'd miss more than they'd make."
Baldwin advanced to the semifinal round by knocking off No. 12 Hicksville 52-48 on Feb. 20. Manning led the way with 15 points, six rebounds, six steals and five assists, while Henderson had 11 points and nine rebounds. The Bruins turned the game in their favor by outscoring the Comets 23-11 in the second quarter to take a 33-23 lead at the half.
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