This was a Knight to remember for Pine Crest Panthers, as they defeated the American Heritage Patriots 74-72, in an early district 14-3A match-up. Brandon Knight (Pine Crest) scored the game high 35 points, 9 assists and Kenny Boynton, Jr. (American Heritage) finished with 32 points in Round 1. 

With all the hype of Brandon Knight vs. Kenny Boynton, Jr. in the same place at the same time, more than 500 people failed to witness this instant classic, as they were turned away from the door. More than 2,300 basketball fans stood in line since 6:00pm for a 7:30pm tip-off.

American Heritage fell behind early, trailing by 9, before they got their first basket. Boynton had to sit with two early fouls in the 1^st quarter, however was inserted back into the lineup to provide offense. Boynton’s first two points came on a driving layup with 2:16 remaining in the 1^st quarter. Boynton finished the 1^st half with 4 points, as American Heritage trailed 34-23 at the half.

In the second half, Boynton matched Knight’s intensity by scoring 28 of his game total, 32 points. “My mindset was to be aggressive and to whatever it took to help my team win,” Boynton said. The Patriots erased a 12-point deficit in the second half when Boynton connected on a four-point play, two consecutive 3-point goals and two made free throws to tie the game at 72 with 20 seconds remaining.    

Brandon Knight was fouled with 13 seconds remaining, as he sealed the deal with 2 successful free throws to put the Panthers up 74-72. This is when things got interesting, as Remi Barry (American Heritage) was fouled with 4 seconds remaining. Barry missed both free throws but American Heritage caught a break when Ed Waite rebounded the missed free throw and was tied up by Raymond Taylor. This jump ball favored the Patriots and gave them possession underneath their basket with 2 seconds left. Ed Waite (Pine Crest) stole the inbound pass to preserve an 2-point victory for the Panthers.

Ed Waite (Pine Crest) added 17 points for the Panthers and grabbed 13 rebounds.

“I struggled from the line tonight and counted on my teammates to make shots when we need it,” said Knight. “We just wanted to win this game against them to gain momentum for the next time we play them,” Knight added.