Despite Playoff Loss, Phoenix’ Season a Cause for Optimism

It is difficult enough for a student-athlete to travel to an away game on the precipice of New Jersey with papers and exams looming over her on a cold, mid-winter Monday afternoon and fail to come away victorious. So, when that away game is not just another road match, but in fact the first round of the playoffs, it is all the more disappointing, as it spells the end of both a tremendously successful season and the illustrious careers of several seniors who have poured their hearts into the game and team they love for almost half a decade.

Unfortunately, this scenario was the reality for the Stuyvesant Phoenix, Stuyvesant’s girls’ basketball team, who were narrowly eliminated by the Port Richmond Raiders, 55-50, on February 12, despite a late-game push. However, considering all that the Phoenix have accomplished over the past few months, and, in the case of the graduating seniors, over the past four years, the end to the season should not be viewed with mourning, but with pride and celebration.

Firstly, it must be noted that the Phoenix battled through a historically slow start to even have the opportunity to square off against the Raiders. With just three wins over the first seven games, the Phoenix were suddenly face-to-face with their first losing record of the past four years, which was considered to be uncharted waters for a team that is normally dominant from start to finish.

Then, after another two games, the Phoenix had racked up a fifth loss, matching the previous season’s total just nine games into the season. This was disconcerting, but the team responded with vengeance, taking six of their next seven contests and vaulting themselves into the top half of the Manhattan A South Division.

Part of this had to do with the emergence of junior Talia Kirshenbaum, who burst onto the scene in early January like someone shot her out of a cannon. In just her second start since her return from the Mountain School, the imposing, lanky forward tallied her first double-double, snagging a team-high ten defensive rebounds while leading the Phoenix to a 67-55 victory over Bayard Rustin Educational Complex.

This late-season resurgence must also be attributed to the team’s clear improvements in multiple facets of the game. For instance, one factor that severely plagued the Phoenix in 2016 was their poor free throw shooting, which contributed to numerous close, heartbreaking losses against teams like Bayard Rustin. This year, the Phoenix again started off slow at the stripe but improved vastly toward the end of the season, making more than half of their free throws in each of their final four games and going a perfect 4-4 against Port Richmond.

This strong progression and acutely evident will to improve did not go unnoticed by the team’s leadership. Senior and co-captain Shannon Lau said, “In the middle of the season, it was hard, especially when we kept playing better teams, but that’s the part I love most, because this team showed so much grit and fight to climb back.” Lau specifically lauded the Phoenix’s effort in their second encounter with Seward Park Campus, a scrappy 44-40 victory during which Stuyvesant saw five different players score five points or more. This was a notable accomplishment, especially considering their previous reliance on Lau for scoring.

Even in the playoff loss to Port Richmond, the Phoenix still did a great deal of good. Most notably, they out-rebounded the Raiders significantly (37-28) behind a dominant effort from junior center Ally Archer, who finished with 12 boards. Unfortunately, despite such a performance, the Phoenix were clearly outplayed in two vital facets of the game.

Firstly, Port Richmond was far more successful at getting to the basket, as evidenced by their free throw totals (13 made on 17 attempts). These totals are more than triple the Phoenix’s totals (four made on four attempts), and indicate a higher level of prowess for getting to the rim and drawing contact.

The other area of victory for the Raiders was outside shooting. According to senior and co-captain Delaney Demark, this may have actually been the deciding factor in the game. “The main turning point really seemed to be in the third quarter when Port Richmond started hitting a lot of their outside shots, because before that, we had shut them down pretty well. If we had responded by hitting our shots, we definitely could have had a better shot at winning,” Demark said.

However, even in what seems to be an area of deficit, there is still a major bright spot to be noted: perimeter defense. As Demark pointed out, the Phoenix had shut down the Raiders, who had been an excellent shooting team all season throughout the entire first half. The second quarter is especially notable, as the Phoenix held Port Richmond to just nine points, which tied the Raiders’ lowest single-quarter total since almost a month prior against a fearsome 13-1 Tottenville opposition.

With the season drawing to a close, what should be celebrated more than anything are the tremendous careers of the team’s three seniors: Lau, Demark, and Joan Ngai. With the first two, their performances year in and year out speak for themselves. They each made legitimate contributions from the get-go, with Lau in particular averaging 5.9 points per game as a freshman, putting her third-highest on the team. When asked about Lau, head coach Vincent Miller utterly raved about her, saying, “Shannon Lau was our franchise player. The offense ran through her, and she was a leader and coach on the court.”

For Ngai, however, her play may be especially notable considering her tremendous progress over her final season. Nearly tripling her points per game average from 1.3 as a junior to 3.4 this season. Ngai also established herself as one of the Phoenix’ best free throw shooters, finishing the season with a team-high 80.0% clip. According to Miller, his favorite memory of Ngai was her final home game. “She made most of her shots and played excellent defense in that game. The crowd was chanting her name and it was great to see and hear,” Miller said.

Demark pointed this out specifically, saying that she was glad to see everyone grow, but “especially Joan Ngai for her last season.” Now, with vacancies opening up at both guard (Lau and Ngai) and forward (Demark), look for some of the younger players to emerge next season. One player to watch is rising junior Eve Wening, who averaged 5.4 rebounds a game—the team’s highest figure among guards by a sizeable margin.

More than any on-court accomplishment, though, is the team’s attitude and culture over the past several years that should be revered. “When I think about my basketball career at Stuy, I am filled with an immense gratitude for the people who have supported me,” Lau said. An atmosphere like this breeds winning and resilience, and could have been another major contributing factor to the Phoenix’ mid-season surge.

Coach Miller has high hopes for next season, saying, “I expect a playoff berth again next year.” However, if the team can find another “franchise player,” they could go a great deal further than that. If players like Wening and Kirshenbaum are able to step up, next season could be smooth sailing for the Phoenix.