The 2024-25 Section 1 boys basketball season gets underway with a pair of games on Tuesday. Below is a look at all you need to know entering December.
Be sure to follow the Daily/Season Schedule on GameDay One for boys basketball here. Bracketology and league standings for all Section 1 sports are updated daily.
Coming Soon: KDJ’s Fab 50 – Top players entering the 2024-25 season
Coming Soon: GameDay One Preseason Rankings
Coming Soon: GameDay One: The Show – Basketball Preview Special
Here’s all you need to know for the season:
Chase for the Gold Ball
Defending Section 1 Champions
Class AAA: Mount Vernon
Class AA: Peekskill
Class A: Byram Hills
Class B: Woodlands
Class C: Haldane
Class D: Greenburgh-North Castle
On the Move
Here are the most significant moves in enrollment classification for the 2024-25 boys basketball season:
Class AAA: Mount Vernon wil have even more competition to another Section 1 title this season. Suffern, with a talented core of players returning from a team that made the Class AA final last March, moves back up to AAA this season. The Mounties will be in the mix with their prolific tandem of guards, Jake Pampolina and Jeph Joseph. So does Scarsdale, which boasts one of the top players in the section in Princeton-commit Jake Sussberg, a 6-foot-5 point guard.
Full Class AAA standings and league alignments on GameDay One
Class AA: Like last year. Peekskill is part of a crowded field of contenders for the Gold Ball this winter. While Suffern and Scarsdale move up, a pair of loaded teams in Rye and Tappan Zee move up in class this season. Rye has four starters back from a team that reached the Class A final last year with standouts Jake Kessner and Carson Miller. Tappan Zee has two seniors who started on the state title team in 2022 in Tommy Linehan and Jack Piccione, as well as returning all-section guard Xavier Leveille and Isaiah Leveille. Nyack also moves up to AA.
Full Class AA standings and league alignments on GameDay One
Class A: There most impactful movement around Class A is schools that moved out of the conference, leaving defending champ Byram Hills as the preseason favorite to repeat. The Bobcats return a dynamic tandem in Zac Efobi and Chris Amenedo to lead the quest for the Gold Ball.
Full Class A standings and league alignments on GameDay One
Class B: A few traditional “small schools” continue to climb up in the BEDS enrollment classifications as Haldane and Leffell School moved up from Class C to B this winter. Those programs met for the Class C crown this season with Haldane winning for the second year in a row. Defending champion Woodlands, with standouts Jamison Stevens and Aaron Woodberry figure to be the frontrunners again, with Dobbs Ferry and standout Anthony Ficarrotta close behind.
Full Class B standings and league alignments on GameDay One
Who’s Back?
Two players selected to the LHBCA First Team return for the 2024 season. Both are coming off seasons where they guided their programs to Section 1 titles.
Tavien Tyler, Mount Vernon
The standout point guard was exceptional in the postseason for the Knights, delivering them another Gold Ball in a season where they didn’t even win the league title. Tyler is coming off a stellar AAU and summer showing and is likely the front-runner to be Mr. Basketball in Section 1 this winter.
Jaden Chavis, Peekskill
The Red Devils program returned to prominence in 2024 thanks in large part to Chavis, a 6-foot-5 point guard who elevated his play in the postseason. Chavis was the MVP of the Section 1 Class AA tournament and overcame an illness to rescue Peekskill’s season in the state playoffs in this unforgettable effort.
Coaching Changes
There are plenty. Here’s the list:
Blind Brook: John Aguilar
Carmel: Joe Loughlan
Edgemont: Al Morales
Hastings: Chris Role
Hen Hud: Steve Purcigliotti
Irvington: Rocco Cipriano
Lakeland: Shawn Sullivan
Ossining: TBA
Panas: Ryan Dobson
Rye: Tom Proudian
Sleepy Hollow: Steve Loscher
Valhalla: Nick Nedwick
Yonkers Montessori: John Satia
Dates to Remember:
William Plunkett Holiday Classic
at Westchester County Center
December 21, 2024
Girls: Harrison vs Ursuline, 1 pm
Boys: Hackley vs. Briarcliff, 3 pm
Boys: Iona Prep vs Poughkeepsie, 5 pm
Boys: Stepinac vs. Scarsdale, 7 pm
Slam Dunk Showcase
at Westchester County Center
January 3, 2025
Girls: Tuckahoe vs Pleasantville, 4:30 pm
Boys: White Plains vs. New Rochelle, 6:15 pm
Boys: Woodlands vs. Peekskill, 8 pm
January 4, 2025
Girls: Ardsley vs. Ossining, 10:15 am
Girls: Panas vs Ursuline, 12 pm
Girls: Albertus Magnus vs Christ the King, 1:45 pm
Boys: Rye vs Mamaroneck, 3:30 pm
Boys: Scarsdale vs Byram Hills, 5:15 pm
Crusader Classic: Iona Prep vs. Stepinac, 7 pm
Section 1 Tournament
Outbracket
at higher seed
February. 20: Class AA, A (if necessary)
First Round
at higher seed
February 20: Class B
February 21: Class A
February 22: Class AA
February 24: Class AAA
Quarterfinals
at higher seed
February 25: Class A
February 26: Class B
February 27: Class AA
February 28: Class AAA
Semifinals
at Westchester County Center
March 1: Class A
March 2: Class B
March 3: Class C
March 4: Class AA
March 5: Class AAA
Championships
at Westchester County Center
March 7: Class A
March 8: Class AA and C
March 9: Class AAA and B
