Victor star has MVP outing in Buffalo: Section V boys basketball spotlights

KENMORE — Victor knew its basketball schedule would be challenging.

And now with an injury to their leading scorer Garrett Clar, the winter slate for the reigning Class AA state champion Blue Devils just became a little bit tougher.

Victor has lost three of its last four games. In their latest loss, the undermanned Blue Devils were no match for Buffalo catholic school Bishop Timon, falling to the state-ranked Tigers 81-57 in the sixth annual Centercourt Classic on Saturday at St. Joseph's Collegiate Institute.

Coach Tyler Roberts has leaned on a mix of veteran stars and key reserves to weather the storm. Nick Leonard did much of the heavy lifting against Timon when the senior forward scored a game high 26 points.

"I'm learning a lot. We're tough. We've got a lot of hard-nosed players who care more about the team than themselves, and you saw it tonight," said Roberts, whose Blue Devils fell to 10-6. "We were down a big margin and we didn't give up. We played right until the final buzzer. I'm very proud of our guys."

Nick Leonard earns MVP

Nick Leonard mirrored Nikola Jokić with his array of assists and tough buckets in the finale of the Centercourt Classic's six-game, two-day showcase.

An All-Greater Rochester first teamer in basketball and football, Leonard awed the Buffalo crowd as he spun around a defender for his first basket. Standing around 6-foot-4, 250 pounds, Leonard was the largest player on the court, bullying Tigers on box outs while grabbing offensive and defensive rebounds. His ability to absorb contact in converting contested layups made him a man among boys.

Leonard's nifty no-look passes and backdoor dimes from the high post were his highlights that pleased spectators most. He even drew a charge and made 8-of-10 free throws.

"Nick's a special player," Roberts said. "He's a great passer, great scorer, great teammate. He cares on defense. He's one of our best leaders. I'm really proud of Nick. I think he's a very underrated player for all the things he does for us."

MVP of the 2023 Section V and state tournaments, Leonard has managed to improve on his breakout junior season and has been a major focus of opposing coaches' film rooms. Leonard was proud of his teammates who've earned more minutes recently.

"It's next man up," Leonard said. "(Colin Kubrich) is starting now and (Brody Burgess) is stepping up from being probably the 15th man on our team, now he's working his butt off. I couldn't be prouder of both of these guys. … It's really hard to respond to injuries and a tough schedule."

Victor's next men up

Burgess, a junior, was Victor's only other double digit scorer. The 2023 All-Greater Rochester Golfer of the Year, the left-handed Burgess hit a 3-pointer and scored 11 points.

"It was tough to prepare because we had a game last night (at Penfield)," Burgess said. "The positive is we battled well, and we're looking forward to practice Monday to have a chance to get better."

Kubrich, a senior, chipped in six points for a Victor team that made honorable mention in the latest New York State Sportswriters Association rankings.

"They're a great team. Very physical," Kubrich said. "We did a good job responding to their physicality, and we're really just worried about Schroeder (on Wednesday)."

Colin Barber, Everett Webb and Alex Long are some other Victor reserves playing larger roles alongside Leonard, Griffen Hopkins, Owen Dake and RJ Johnson. Hopkins scored five points and barely played the second half against after receiving a technical foul against Timon, but the junior guard dropped 33 and 26 points in his previous two games.

"It's been all about team basketball all season and with Garrett out that gets magnified even more," said Roberts, 2023 AGR Coach of the Year. "Everybody needs to chip in and do what they can to help us win."

Garrett Clar could be back

Roberts is optimistic about Clar's return but plans to be patient.

Clar hurt his leg in a loss to Section III's Liverpool on Jan. 27, and missed the following three games. Without Clar Saturday, Victor struggled shooting and protecting the ball against Timon's full court pressure.

The game could have been competitive if Clar was available. He's that good. Local coaches consider Clar — a 2023 AGR first teamer — as one Section V's best players. Since Clar's injury, Victor fell to Brighton and beat Penfield before falling to Timon. The Blue Devils' final four regular season games feature Webster Schroeder, Fairport, McQuaid and Rush-Henrietta.

Timon (15-2) is, at the very least, as talented as anyone on Victor's schedule. Senior guard Jaiden Harrison earned MVP for the Tigers (15-2) after scoring 24 points. The 2,000-point scorer is on pace to breaking former Cheektowaga Central, St. Bonaventure and Alabama star Dom Welch's Western New York scoring record of 2,376 set in 2017.

Nakyhi Harris — son of former Niagara Falls and Syracuse star Paul Harris — added 24 points of his own for Timon coach Jason Rowe's Tigers, the 2023 catholic state runners-up who are ranked 10th in the latest NYSSWA poll after spending the first six weeks at No. 1. Timon outscored Victor 30-3 from the 3-point line, led 24-12 through one, and 47-30 at halftime.

Section V boys basketball spotlight

• Bishop Kearney's Alejandro Aguilar scored 12 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter of a 71-67 win over Aquinas on Thursday. The Kings are 9-7. "We all executed as a unit. We did what we had to do. Up the stretch, game of runs, and we executed. That's all we did. We had fun doing it. I can't do it without these boys," Aguilar said.

• East High sharpshooter Micah Johnson-Breedlove scored 18 points in a 61-47 win at Monroe on Tuesday. The Eagles (14-1) are the NYS Class A No. 1 team. "We want a (state championship) ring. That's our goal this year," Johnson-Breedlove said.

• Tyson Totten dropped 35 points during Pembroke's 67-43 win over Section VI's Barker on Saturday. The Dragons are 11-4.

• Matt Tones drained a 3-pointer at the buzzer during Penn Yan's 68-67 win over Honeoye on Friday. Tones scored 20 points on five 3-pointers for the 7-8 Mustangs.

• Hornell's PJ Picco dropped 27 points as the Red Raiders (14-3, 7-0) clinched Livingston County Division I title with a 86-30 win over Wayland-Cohocton on Friday.

• Greece Athena (16-0), the No. 1 ranked NYS Class AA school, used 14-point performances by Khorie Reaves and Zee Johnson in a 61-50 win over Pittsford Mendon on Thursday. The Trojans are the only undefeated Class AA team in the state.

• Avon (17-1, 7-0) clinched the Livingston County Division II title after a 64-59 win over York on Wednesday. Michael Rowland scored 13 points and became the program's all-time leading scorer.

Marquel Slaughter is a journalist for the Democrat and Chronicle, specializing in high school sports.He has been reporter for 14 years. Follow him @MarquelSports on X or on Instagram. You can contact him at mslaughter1@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Section V boys basketball spotlights: Nock Leonard has MVP outing