In 2005, the Wolverines basketball team was a national power loaded players who would go on to compete at the Division 1 level. This weekend, Niagara Falls traveled to Erie, PA to play in the Burger King Classic. The Wolverines opponent on Friday night was Milton, a team from Georgia that is similar to the Falls team from '05.
Milton entered the Classic ranked #15 nationally and after graduating a pair of Division 1 talents last year, boast four more in its starting lineup this season:
6-5 Shaquille Johnson – Auburn
6-6 Charles Mann – Georgia
6-8 Evan Nolte – Virginia
6-8 Tevin Glass – Ranked #81 by Rivals
Falls junior Jermaine Crumpton, who has been recruited to play for Canisius, was just a fourth grader in 2005 and never even saw the legendary Falls squad, that was declared National Champions by Hoops USA. His performance against Milton at the BK Classic would have made that team proud and certainly got the attention of those in attendance at the Hammermill, located at Gannon University.
Crumpton scored 21 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, both game-highs, in helping Niagara Falls compete with the mighty Milton team for all four quarters. Milton ultimately came away with a 76-55 victory, but needed all 32 minutes to create the 21-point margin of victory over Falls. Milton would go on to win the Classic with a resounding 93-52 win against Jamesville-DeWitt, the four-time defending state champion in Class A in New York. Falls fell in the consolation game to host Cathedral Prep, 65-60, in front of more than 1,500 fans.
"It was fun to play against that level of talent" Crumpton said. "It's good for us defensively to play a team like that and it can only make us a better team".
Even after a valiant effort against an elite opponent, Niagara Falls coach Sal Constantino talked of what they could have done differently to have gotten closer, but did offer high praise for Crumpton's recent play.
"Jermaine has been asserting himself more recently and he's getting more comfortable", Constantino said. "He was really strong against Lockport on Thursday, and continued to assert himself for us tonight".
Crumpton acknowledged that he's made effort and assertion a priority since the team opened its season with a win over Bishop Timon-St. Jude, and that the team's success will hinge on the way they defend.
"Since the Timon win, I've been making sure to give a full effort every game. That's how we have to play, we can't take any plays off and it all has to start on the defensive end for us", Crumpton said.
-centercourt
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