SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — As the final seconds ticked away, Amir Jenkins waited in the backcourt as CATS’ offense went the other way. He knew it was over, and he was ready for the celebration in front of his own bench.
When the horn sounded, a wild scene ensued. First came his Worcester Academy teammates, then the student section.
The fifth-seeded Hilltoppers, after knocking off the top two seeds in the bracket, won the NEPSAC Class AA championship after holding off CATS, 68-64, in Sunday’s final at Western New England University.
Worcester Academy has now won three of the last four Class AA championships, and this one had to be done the hard way.
The Hilltoppers went on the road to beat No. 4 seed St. George’s in the quarterfinals, then top-seeded Cushing in Saturday’s semifinals. On Sunday, they topped second-seeded CATS in an epic game that featured many lead changes in the second half.
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Jenkins and Cam Hailey provided the finishing touch on defense and at the free-throw line. Hailey scored 19 points, including six pressure-cooking free throws in the final minutes, while Jenkins came up with two steals in the final minute to help secure the victory.
Jenkins was named the Class AA tournament MVP after scoring 17 points in Sunday’s clincher. The junior guard continued a remarkable high school career that has included three championships after winning back-to-back state championships at Worcester North.
Takeaways
1. When the game got tight in the final minutes, Worcester Academy threw a changeup at CATS: a 1-3-1 zone defense. The different look bothered the Griffins, and with Jenkins at the top of the zone, it worked to perfection. Worcester led by one with 40 seconds left when Jenkins poked the ball away from Desmond Bellot to force a steal, which led to two Hailey free throws. On the next CATS possession, Jenkins and Payton Kamin double-teamed Bellot to force another steal, and that proved to be the difference.
2. It bears repeating: Jenkins’ high school resume to date is absurd. Two MIAA state championships – which included a 45-game winning streak – a gold medal last summer with Team USA’s U18 3x3 team and now a NEPSAC championship. He also broke into 24/7 Sports’ national rankings at No. 99 this winter. Jenkins is now set to have a massive summer with BABC, where I see him pushing up those rankings and accumulating several high-major offers.
3. Both teams had to work through some foul trouble and, in my opinion, some inconsistent whistles. Jaylen Harrell picked up two quick fouls in the opening two minutes of the game, the second coming on an offensive foul. He briefly took a seat on the bench but came back in two minutes later. CATS couldn’t afford to be without its star, who finished with 19 points and made some huge plays in the second half.
4. A key moment in the game came midway through the second half, when Worcester took a 48-41 lead on Jenkins’ steal and one-handed dunk, which forced a CATS timeout. Jenkins and the loud Worcester crowd roared in an emotional sequence. CATS then responded with a 16-3 run – carried by Harrell – to take a six-point lead with five minutes to go. But credit Worcester for keeping its composure. The Hilltoppers were excellent defensively down the stretch, and Hailey made big play after big play. The junior guard scored 10 points in the final four minutes, including a go-ahead three-point play and several pressure free throws.
5. CATS center Leo Curtis had another big game with 19 points, including several putbacks around the basket, but Worcester Academy wasn’t afraid to challenge him defensively. Jenkins scored a three-point play on him, Worcester big man Ryan Sullivan held his own with some big rebounds and even had a three-point play of his own against Curtis, and Connor Swider scored a go-ahead layup in the final minute that was goaltended by Curtis.
6. Both teams were banged up in this one. Jaxson Terry has been out for close to a month with a wrist injury, and Jaylin Williams-Crawford was clearly not 100 percent after suffering an ankle injury in Saturday’s semifinal victory over Kimball Union. But he played admirably, scoring nine points – including a 3-pointer to jump start that 16-3 run – and made hustle plays in addition to his typically strong defense. For Worcester, Kamin hurt his elbow in Saturday’s semifinal win over Cushing, but pushed through to play in the championship game. He had six points, far below his season average, but he was still impactful defensively.
7. Providence College head coach Kim English was in the house to watch this matchup. Harrell is a Friars commit and heading to play for English next season, and Jenkins was offered by Providence last summer. It sparked ideas of Harrell and Jenkins teaming up together at Providence. That would be a fun duo of local stars.
