Long Island Lutheran defeats IMG Academy in overtime: Live score, updates of high school boys basketball (2/9/2024)

Follow for live updates from a top 20 matchup between VJ Edgecombe, Crusaders and Donnie Freeman, Ascenders

While several states around the country are entering the playoffs for high school boys basketball, the EYBL Scholastic League rolls on with several more weeks of conference games featuring some of the nation’s top teams.

Long Island Lutheran (New York), the No. 4 team in the SBLive/Sports Illustrated Power 25 national rankings, is one of two ranked squads visiting Southwest Florida this weekend to take on No. 17 IMG Academy.

The top 20 matchup between the Crusaders and Ascenders on Friday night features a bevy of highly-touted recruits, including a pair of McDonald’s All-Americans in Baylor commit VJ Edgecombe and Syracuse signee Donnie Freeman.

Long Island Lutheran (14-3) enters the night on a three-game win streak, which includes a victory against No. 8 Link Academy (Missouri). Meanwhile, IMG Academy (15-7) has won eight games in a row, including last week’s win over No. 7 Prolific Prep (California).

The game is being streamed on YouTube by League Ready and is scheduled to tip off at 7:00 p.m. ET.

(FINAL/OT): LONG ISLAND LUTHERAN 83, IMG ACADEMY 81

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Long Island Lutheran junior Nigel James passes the ball during a win over Link Academy (Missouri) at the City of Palms Classic on Dec. 21, 2023.  :: Photo by Amanda Inscore/The News-Press USA Today Network-Florida/USA TODAY NETWORK

OVERTIME

-- IMG Academy gets the stop it needs on defense and races down the court, but the potential game-winning three by Darius Acuff Jr. bounces off the front of the rim. It was a decent look for Acuff, who finishes with a team-high 26 points for No. 17 IMG Academy (15-8). VJ Edgecombe scores 27 points in the victory, and No. 4 Long Island Lutheran improves to 15-3 this season with its seventh win over a top 25 team. 

-- Cole Certa drains a clutch three from the corner to keep IMG's hopes alive. The Ascenders trail 83-81 with 38.2 seconds to go.

-- Kayden Mingo nails a three for LuHi after Jacob Ross cleans up a miss on the previous possession. The Crusaders lead by five, 81-76, early in the overtime period.

FOURTH QUARTER

-- On to overtime. Long Island Lutheran junior Nigel James misses a scoop layup at the buzzer that would have won the game for the Crusaders. 

-- A corner three by IMG senior Gerard O'Keefe hits off the rim, and Long Island Lutheran comes up with the rebound following a wild chase. The Crusaders call a timeout with 7.5 seconds to go.

-- IMG Academy gets a stop and calls a timeout with the game tied 76-76 and 33.6 seconds remaining. Eight seconds separate the game clock and the shot clock, but Ascenders will have a chance to hit a potential game winner.

-- Edgecombe is heating up. The five-star Baylor commit has 12 points in the fourth quarter and 27 points total with 2:10 to go and the game tied 74-74.

-- Long Island Lutheran leads once again. VJ Edgecombe comes through with an acrobatic finish in transition to give the Crusaders a 68-67 lead.

-- Florida State commit Alier Maluk buries back-to-back three pointers to bring Long Island Lutheran back within one point, 65-64. The 6-foot-10 senior has some range to his game offensively.

-- IMG continues to build its lead, going up by nine points on a corner three by Chase McCarty.

THIRD QUARTER

-- A three-point attempt by VJ Edgecombe misses at the buzzer. IMG Academy wins the third quarter by 12 points and leads 62-54 entering the fourth quarter. 

-- Khani Rooths, future Michigan Wolverine, goes 2-for-2 at the free throw line to extend IMG's lead to 58-50. It's an 8-0 run for the Ascenders. 

-- Donnie Freeman has scored eight straight points for IMG Academy. The McDonald's All-American gets to the basket twice in a row to give IMG its largest lead of the night, 54-51.

-- The lead is changing hands at a high rate right now. After a three ball by Donnie Freeman puts IMG ahead 50-49, Kayden Mingo goes 2-for-2 at the free throw line to put LuHi ahead 51-50.

-- Long Island Lutheran is bailed out with a foul on a deep three, and Kayden Mingo cashes in for Long Island Lutheran. The four-star junior hits all three shots to put LuHi back in front, 47-45.

-- Darius Acuff Jr. sinks back-to-back three pointers to give IMG its first lead of the night, 45-44. The five-star junior is considered one of the top scorers in the country, and he showed why on those deep shots off the dribble.

-- Cole Certa starts the scoring in the third quarter by going 1-for-2 from the free throw line. IMG Academy trails by three, 42-39.

SECOND QUARTER

-- Five-star junior Darius Acuff (12 points) knocks down a pair of free throws for IMG Academy to close out the first half. Long Island Lutheran leads 42-38 behind a combined 23 points from VJ Edgecombe (13) and Kayden Mingo (10).

-- Notre Dame-bound Cole Certa hits a long three and gets fouled, but he misses the free throw to make it a four-point play. IMG is hanging around, now 40-36 with less than a minute to go in the half.

-- It's a three point game after Khani Rooths and Darius Acuff Jr. drill back-to-back three for IMG Academy, cutting the lead to 34-31.

-- IMG senior Chase McCarty finishes a slam over Alier Maluk, and the Houston commit lets the Florida State know he just got dunked on.

-- A block by Alier Maluk results in a wide open layup in transition for Kayden Mingo. IMG Academy, scoreless for a few minutes now, calls a timeout down 29-16.

-- Kiyan Anthony scores his first points of the night, going 2-for-2 at the free throw line as his father Carmelo Anthony watches from the bleachers. 

-- Back-to-back layups from Kayden Mingo has Long Island Lutheran up 25-16 early in the second quarter. 

FIRST QUARTER

-- Edgcombe throws down a thunderous, high-flying slam dunk that will be a candidate for dunk of the year. LuHi wins the first quarter, 21-16.

-- VJ Edgecombe nails a mid-range jumper to push LuHi's lead to 17-10. The five-star Baylor commit has five points in the quarter.

-- Donnie Freeman shows off his range with a three for IMG Academy to cut the deficit to 10-8.

-- Ben Michaels starts the scoring with a corner three for Long Island Lutheran, followed by a pair of strong drives by Kayden Mingo. It's 7-0 in favor of the Crusaders.

-- Starting lineups for are getting introduced for both teams, and the talent is vast. Long Island Lutheran goes with Kayden Mingo (4-star junior), Nigel James (4-star junior), VJ Edgecombe (Baylor), Ben Michaels (senior) and Alier Maluk (Florida State). IMG starts with Cole Certa (Notre Dame), Darius Acuff Jr. (5-star junior), Donnie Freeman (Syracuse), Khani Rooths (Michigan) and Chase McCarty (Houston).

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Friday, 7:00 p.m. (ET) | IMG Academy, Bradenton, FL

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-- Zach Shugan | zshugan@gmail.com | @SBLiveSports