KNIGHTS’ HOOPS DUO STICKS TOGETHER
Lansingburgh basketball players Jones and Wallace both headed to Brockport
TROY, N.Y. » Davonte Jones and Jahidi Wallace took most of their college visits together. They knew that in an ideal situation, they’d get to play alongside one another at the next level.
The two signed their Letters of Intent to play at Brockport, a Division III school in New York. The two Lansingburgh seniors that lead the Knights to the first Section II championship in 50 years aren’t done being teammates.
“It’s a great feeling,” Jones said. “We won the championship together. Now we’re going to bring it on to the next level. We’ve got another grind to go through. It’s a great feeling. We finally got it done.”
The moment was celebrated with a brief ceremony in the Lansingburgh media center. The entire basketball team and the two players’ families were in attendance. Head coach Marc Fruscio said a few words about having known both players since they were in eighth grade. Then everyone in attendance watched the players put pen to paper. Both players wore the same Brockport basketball shirts.
Jones lead Lansingburgh in scoring at 15.8 points per game last season. Wallace added 12.7 points per game. Wallace’s game-winning shot in overtime against Averill Park sent the Knights into the state playoffs. Lansingburgh won their first game against Massena before losing to Jamesville-Dewitt.
“It’s a great accomplishment for us,” Wallace said. “We’re starting a new chapter at the college level. It’s not going to be the same as high school. But we’re still going to play basketball. Do what we do here.”
Brockport finished at 17-9 last season, and have been above .500 since the 2008-09 campaign. Wallace and Jones have a chance to add to the success of an established and successful program. And now their addition to the program is official.
“Out of all the schools that we visited,” Jones said, “we liked Brockport the best.”