Pace for News

Pace for News

Jennifer O'Neill, of the St. Michael Academy, takes home the girls award.

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The Daily News honored more than 60 high school basketball coaches and players Monday night at its annual All-City dinner, held at the 40/40 Club in Manhattan.

All-City and All-Borough teams were chosen by the Daily News high school sports staff, with input from area coaches and others familiar with the city's hoops scene.

The News also continued its decades-old tradition of honoring the top players and coaches, in recognition of the very best performances in boys and girls basketball.

Here, we present the Daily News Players and Coaches of the Year for 2008-09:

PLAYERS OF THE YEAR

Jennifer O'Neill, St. Michael Academy

With her mouthpiece dangling past her teeth during games, Jennifer O'Neill often resembled a heavyweight boxer as much as she did a 5-6 junior point guard.

She played like a pugilist, too, administering plenty of knockouts this season. The gutsy scorer never shied away from burying opponents by nailing big shots. As St. Michael coach Apache Paschall said, "She's fearless."

For her consistency in the clutch, O'Neill is the Daily News Player of the Year.

O'Neill's ability to rise to the occasion was unequaled. When St. Michael's faced St. Peter's for the CHSAA state ‘AA' title, she poured in 22 points, keying a 66-43 rout. When the Eagles battled Copiague in the state Federation Class AA semis, she drained four free throws in the final 1:01, lifting her squad to a 50-46 win.

O'Neill saved her best for last, scoring 13 points — and earning tournament MVP honors — as the Eagles upended defending champ Bergtraum, 62-58, in the state Federation title game.

Behind O'Neill's shooting, the team hoisted its first-ever state Federation title — and Paschall wasn't shy about heaping praise on his standout guard.

"She's definitely a big-time player who's not afraid to take the big shot," Paschall said.

Durand Scott, Rice

When the season began, the spotlight wasn't focused on Scott, but by winter's end, the Miami-bound swingman had helped Rice to the state Federation Class AA title and the CHSAA Intersectional crown while making a name for himself.

There was the mid-January performance against Pine Crest (Fla.) and touted junior Brandon Knight, when Scott scored 26 while harassing Knight into 1-of-15 shooting in the first half. And there was his defense against Lincoln in the Federation semifinals, when he held McDonald's All-American Lance Stephenson to 12 points as Rice dismantled the Railsplitters, 77-50.

Add all that to his heroics in the Federation title game, when he practically willed the team to victory after slow start, and it's no wonder Rice coach Maurice Hicks said Scott, the Daily News Player of the Year, is just as good as former Rice greats Kemba Walker (now at UConn) and Edgar Sosa (Louisville).

"He's right up there with the rest of them," Hicks said. "He has a unique style . . . but he gets the job done."

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COACH OF THE YEAR

Girls

Apache Paschall, St. Michael Academy - Exodus NYC

Paschall, the Daily News Coach of the Year, dangled the perfect carrots in front of his players all winter, coaxing the team to its first state title.

Before the Eagles faced rival Christ the King in the first round of the CHSAA ‘AA' state tournament, Paschall reminded his players that they'd often been considered "second-class citizens" compared to the Royals. The Eagles responded by rolling past CK en route to their first CHSAA state crown.

Two weeks later, Paschall pulled out more motivational ammunition to prepare St. Mike's for its state Federation Class AA final, highlighting the lengthy championship history of opponent Bergtraum.

"We're playing against a uniform," he said.

St. Michael Academy edged the Lady Blazers, 62-58, for the state title. It finished 25-3, ranked No. 5 in ESPN's final girls basketball poll.

"We finally got the monkey off our backs," Paschall said afterwards. "What are people going to say now?"

COACH OF THE YEAR

Boys

Maurice Hicks, Rice

Senior leader Durand Scott sat out the first two weeks of the season with an ankle injury, and Rice's youthful supporting cast didn't exactly intimidate the rest of the CHSAA.

Even Scott says he doubted that Rice had the makeup of a champion before the season.

When the Raiders struggled in the early going, losing by 20 to nationally-ranked Findlay Prep, Maurice Hicks, the Daily News Coach of the Year, used the blowout as fuel.

Immediately after the Findlay loss, he told his team it needed a reality check if it planned to emerge as a contender.

"That was one of the top teams in the country," Hicks told his players afterward. "If you want to be a top team, you see that we need a lot of work."

Rice reeled off eight straight wins, and never looked back.

Hicks gradually fused the senior leadership of Scott and forward James Stukes with the talent of sophomores Jermaine Sanders and Kadeem Jack, leading Rice to the ‘AA' Intersectional and state Federation titles and becoming the first coach in CHSAA history to claim six city crowns.

Even in victory, he credited the players that he'd prodded to the title.

"Every day, they came in the gym and were prepared to work," he said. "Through that, what resulted is a state championship."