8:13 p.m. – Here are some final stats from Mount Vernon’s 64-52 win.
Kwinnyata Mercer had a game-high 23 points, seven rebounds and four assists.
Teammate Nadia Duncan had 15 points to go along with 11 rebounds.

Teneka Whittaker led Lourdes with 19 points.

Okay, with the big day in Mount Vernon-land behind us, we concentrate now on who the Knights will play in the Class AA girls championship on Sunday. Don’t fear, I’m staying right here with all of you to keep everyone informed of what’s going on in this other semifinal game between No. 10 White Plains and No. 6 North Rockland.

I’ll be back in a few minutes with another post to set things up for that game.

8:08 p.m. – It’s a final. Mount Vernon has defeated Lourdes 64-52 to advance to Sunday’s Class AA final. The Knights will take on the winner of tonight’s game between No. 10 White Plains and No. 6 North Rockland.

8:06 p.m. – The Mount Vernon chant has finally been heard. The Knights lead by 12 with 25.8 seconds to play, but in all reality, this game was over midway through the third quarter. The final score is all that remains to be decided.

8:02 p.m. – Lourdes is rallying right now with a 14-3 run. It’s a case of too little, too late, though. Mount Vernon still leads 63-51 with 1:15 to play.

7:55 p.m. - Mount Vernon holds a 60-39 lead with 3:42 left. It remains to be seen when the famous M-O-UNT, VER-NON, Mount Vernon, Mount Vernon chant starts to be heard. The Knights’ crowd always seems to know when the game is in hand and it certainly appears that it is now.

7:51 p.m. – With 5:08 left in the game, Mount Vernon holds a 58-37 lead. Kimberly Dweck still has not entered the game in the second half for Lourdes and it appears very, very doubtful that she will.

7:46 p.m. – The scoring has stopped here in the fourth quarter. Fortunately for the Knights, that’s fine with them as the team still holds a 55-35 lead with 6:17 remaining in the contest.

7:41 p.m. – Through three quarters Mount Vernon is comfortably ahead, 55-25. The Knights ended the period on a 5-0 run despite Nadia Duncan and Kwinnyata Mercer sitting on the bench. Mercer did have a huge quarter with 12 points.
The biggest applause seemed to come when 7th-grader Lubirdia Gordon connected on a free throw attempt for her first (of many?) career points at The County Center. She’s back on the bench to start the fourth quarter, though.

7:39 p.m. – Mount Vernon has extended its lead to 51-35 with 20.4 seconds left in the third. In other news, 7th-grader Lubirdia Gordon has entered the game and grabbed her first rebound.

7:33 p.m. – With 1:54 left in the third quarter, Mount Vernon still leads 46-33. It doesn’t appear to be getting any better for Lourdes as Kim Dweck hasn’t entered the game in the second half and is sitting on the bench wearing her warmups.

7:29 p.m. – With Nadia Duncan on the bench, fellow senior Kwinnyata Mercer has stepped up with back-to-back makes from downtown. The Knights now lead 46-33 with 3:24 left in the third quarter.

7:26 p.m. – Nadia Duncan just picked up two quick fouls giving her four already with still over 5 minutes left in the third quarter. We’ll see how the Knights respond with the senior standout on the bench.

7:22 p.m. – Taylor Palmer just converted on a layup to give Mount Vernon a 40-25 lead, with 6:05 left.
For those of you wondering, 7th-grader Lubirdia Gordon has not entered the game yet for the Knights. 8th-grader Sade King has.

7:00 p.m. – Mount Vernon will take a 36-25 lead into halftime. Nadia Duncan has 14 points and 8 rebounds, and Kwinnyata Mercer has 9 points and 4 assists.

For Lourdes, star guard Kimberly Dweck (Cortlandt Manor) has been ineffective with an ankle injury. The junior started, but sat out the entire second quarter. Teneka Whittaker leads the Warriors with 11 points and 2 assists.

6:05 p.m. – Lourdes just called a timeout with 2:31 left in the second quarter. The Warriors seem to be finding their stride on offense, but still have not found an answer for the Knights’ potent offensive attack. Let’s see if they can make any adjustments coming out of this timeout.

6:03 p.m. - Kwinnyata Mercer just added another basket to put Mount Vernon in front 32-21, with 3:30 left in the second quarter.

6:57 p.m. – A driving layup by Kwinnyata Mercer has put Mount Vernon in front, 28-13 with 5:56 left in the second quarter.

6:51 p.m. – After one quarter, Mount Vernon leads 24-13 in a high-scoring affair. Lourdes is going to have to slow the pace down if it has any chance of pulling off this upset.

6:44 p.m. – Mount Vernon is up 18-9 with 3:05 left in the first. The Knights have already connected on three 3-pointers, two more than the boys team did in its entire game.

6:35 p.m. – We’re underway and Mount Vernon has grabbed a 6-0 lead with 6:20 left in the first. Nadia Duncan just knocked down a rare 3-pointer from the right wing. Not a good sign if you’re a Lourdes’ fan.