Brooklyn power comes up big at crowd-reduced MSG

Junior swingman Lance Stephenson led Lincoln (Coney Island, N.Y.) to its third straight PSAL title Sunday in New York. Al Tielemans/SI

NEW YORK -- The lights were on, but fewer fans were in attendance.

Early Sunday afternoon, Pearl Washington, the 44-year-old former playground king, sat still in his third-row, center-court seat at Madison Square Garden. There to watch his alma mater, Boys & Girls High of Brooklyn, play in the city title game against borough rival Lincoln, Washington was reconciling the depth of on-court talent with the dearth of fans in the seats. "There's just so many quality players on the court today," said Washington as the teams faced off for the third time this year. "It's a shame more people can't get tickets to see it."

That the PSAL's showcase event was reduced to a restricted crowd of 5,000 and shrunk into the toughest ticket in town came as a result of last year's title game that devolved into a tempest. During that game, several fistfights broke out in the arena's upper rings, leading to ejections and evacuations of complete sections. Instead of cheers cascading down upon the Lincoln players as they broke open the game, waves of fans came streaming down aisles to the exits. The heated action did not end there as crowds grew in force outside the arena and spilled into the streets eight blocks north toward Times Square. Twenty-one spectators were arrested. "I'm surprised the Garden had the PSAL back after that," said Washington, who now works with an after school program and helps out at Canarsie High in Brooklyn.

In reopening its gates to the league, the Garden, which took 10 months to deliberate before extending an invitation to the league for this year's event, also closed off some of the holes that allowed the mayhem to reign. The participating schools, which were typically allotted generous amounts of tickets, were allowed 750 tickets each, and there were no game-day ticket sales. "I had to turn down about 100 requests for tickets," said Lincoln coach Dwayne "Tiny" Morton, whose team won their third consecutive city title with an 88-57 win over the Boys & Girls.

Fans arriving in front of the Garden's marquee on Seventh Avenue were greeted by an overwhelming security presence. Uniformed policemen on horseback and foot lined the entryways which included metal detectors and wand-waving officers. In all, more than 400 police offers were deployed to the arena, standing guard both in the hallways and each individual section including those in which fans were not permitted to sit. "Today's a celebration of basketball," said Spike Lee, a Brooklyn native and New York public school product, who sat courtside for both last year's game and the game Sunday. "This is about Brooklyn and hoops. Kids dream of playing in this game on this court."

What those in attendance did see was the sole constant in the two games. Junior Lance Stephenson, the 6-foot-6 swing man for Lincoln, scored 27 points and grabbed eight rebounds, in winning his third straight title. "The bigger the stage, the better he plays," said talent evaluator Tom Konchalski. "He likes the lights."

Still improving with each game and learning to temper his celebrations, the top recruit was able to watch his teammates enjoy the spotlight as well. It was during a closed-door scrimmage last Thursday, though, that Stephenson and Lincoln may have learned the most about themselves. The Railsplitters traveled to Jersey City, N.J. for mettle-testing match with top-ranked St. Anthony and walked away with a two-point loss after four quarters, despite St. Anthony missing two starters. "It doesn't matter where Lance plays, he played like a pro today," said Morton, who coached former first-round pick Sebastian Telfair at Lincoln.

When asked what motivates him to play well on the Garden floor, Stephenson said, "I just want to go out there, dominate, then let my teammates get on the stage, too."

Boys & Girls coach Ruth Lovelace was left to reconcile the difference between her lifeless team and Lincoln's vigorous title defense. "Lance is Lance and Lincoln has a lot more than just him," she said. "We just didn't play like our team and they were at home when the lights were on."