Sports

All-American nominee Langhorne strikes for career-high 34

GARRET MEADE PHOTO | Dantré Langhorne rose above everyone else to bring Greenport 34 points, 15 rebounds, seven assists, three steals and three blocks against The Ross School.

Dantré Langhorne, the Greenport High School senior forward who was recently named a McDonald’s all-American nominee, has added something else to his menu: a 34-point game.

Porters fans are lovin’ it.

Langhorne struck for a career-high 34 points and turned in a star performance Tuesday night, leading the Porters to a 76-51 win over The Ross School Ravens in a Suffolk County League VIII boys basketball game at Greenport High School. Indicative of Langhorne’s all-around game were his statistics. In addition to the points, he recorded 15 rebounds, seven assists, three steals and three blocks.

It was the sort of display one might expect of a player being considered for all-American status. The 6-foot-6 Langhorne said he thought it was a joke when he first heard his name linked with the prestigious honor.

“It makes me feel great,” he said. “It makes me want to play a little bit harder.”

Langhorne evidently took that to heart Tuesday night, using his considerable ability to help the Porters (9-0, 6-0) maintain their unbeaten record. There was Langhorne, twisting in the air to make an acrobatic shot. There was Langhorne, hitting a runner at the buzzer ending the first quarter. There was Langhorne, wowing the crowd by following up a teammate’s missed shot with a dunk. There was Langhorne, making a nifty spin move for a layup in the last second of the third quarter.

“The kid’s got game,” Ross senior forward Brandon Pettaway said admiringly.

Greenport Coach Al Edwards said Langhorne did a good job of finding his teammates with passes and following up his shots. He also noted how important Langhorne’s outside shooting will be as the season goes on.

“Zones are only going to get tighter,” Edwards said. “He’s always going to have somebody in his face. The more he dribbles, the more of a crowd he’s going to draw.”

GARRET MEADE PHOTO | Jalen Shelby of Greenport was good for 19 points on Tuesday as the Porters ran their record to 9-0, 6-0 in League VIII.

Then again, Langhorne had some help from his friends. Jalen Shelby added 19 points and Tremayne Hansen had 10 for the Porters.

Ross (3-4, 2-2) may have lost more than a game. It starting shooting guard, Liam Chaskey, collapsed to the floor after turning his right ankle 30 seconds into the fourth quarter. Chaskey screamed in obvious pain while his teammates and spectators watched. The game was delayed for 18 minutes while Chaskey was attended to. The junior was rolled off the court on a stretcher to warm applause from fans.

“Hopefully, it’s just a sprain,” Pettaway said. “We just have to keep our heads up. If we’re missing him, we just have to play for him.”

At the time of Chaskey’s injury, Ross trailed by 14 points. Greenport outscored the Ravens, 16-5, the rest of the way.

Asked about the impact of losing Chaskey for any length of time, Ross Coach Kelly McKee said: “We’ll see what happens. Someone’s going to have to step up.”

Chaskey and Pettaway scored 13 points each for Ross. Hayden Aldredge added 11.

Ross shot out to a game-opening 7-0 lead, but that served as a wake-up call for the Porters. Langhorne & Co. proceeded to go to work.

“We’re always thinking [upset], but we knew they were going to come back,” McKee said. “That’s a good team. That’s a real good team.”

The high-flying Porters put down four dunks, two by Hansen and two by Langhorne, who had 19 points by halftime.

Two big factors that went Greenport’s way were rebounds and turnovers. The Porters outrebounded the guests by 34-22 (17-7 on the offensive glass). They also forced 24 turnovers by Ross while committing nine of their own.

The Porters could clinch a playoff berth as early as Thursday if they defeat The Stony Brook School Bears.

“Now we’re starting to have fun,” Langhorne said. “Everybody’s getting confidence. We’re starting to play more team basketball.”

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