Burke, New Mission advance to City final

By Amara Grautski, Globe Correspondent | February 18, 2010

Falling backward with 2 minutes 20 seconds remaining, Khadijah Ellison pushed the ball off her fingertips and watched it fall through the hoop.

To call her final field goal of the Boston City League semifinals just a 3-pointer is an understatement, as Ellison was standing feet beyond the arc as she released the ball. But the junior guard drilled shots all day, tallying a game-high 35 points to lead Burke to a 66-62 victory over Fenway yesterday at Madison Park High School.

“She came to play,’’ Burke coach John Rice said of Ellison, who finished with five 3-pointers. “She’s tough as nails.’’

Burke (14-4) carried a 3-point lead into halftime, with Ellison and senior guard Kelsea Miles each netting 9 points. But Ellison exploded in the second half, posting 13 points in the third quarter and 11 in the fourth. Junior Frederika Lawson (16 points overall) was the only other player to post points for the Bulldogs after the break.

Sophomore guard Kayla Cox led the Panthers (14-5) with 20 points.

New Mission won the second semifinal, the defending city champion defeating Latin Academy, 52-48.

Nyiesha Kelley led the Titans with a game-high 26 points, while junior guard Robi Cardoso countered with 22 points for the Dragons.

New Mission (15-3) led by 10 points entering the fourth quarter, but Latin Academy (14-7) cut the margin to 5 on a basket by junior guard Davetta Kenner (18 points), setting up a tense final two minutes.

New Mission will face Burke tomorrow at 5 p.m. at Madison Park in the championship game.