Statistics in basketball are a complete waste of time. Unless, of course, you’re using them to support your opinions. Then they’re great.

I researched through all stat sheets from the postseason and took a deeper look into Varsity Central, trying to explore any statistical explanations as to why Mount Vernon, Peekskill, North Salem and Tuckahoe are still alive in the state tournament.

You can chalk Mount Vernon’s and Peekskill’s run up to overwhelming talent. That’s fair. But there are a few numbers behind that worth knowing. North Salem’s success is very analytical, while Tuckahoe’s run is just a product of two very good players emerging as great ones.

Here’s a look:

Mount Vernon
Consistency is a luxury if you’ve got it. The Knights consistently get a few explosive drives to the basketball by Sherrod Wright, a bunch of turnovers off their press, a handful of nifty passes by point guard Ketema Brooks to lead into easy baskets.

But above all, Mount Vernon can pencil two stats onto the sheet that are not only as close to a guarantee as the sun rising, they make the Knights a very difficult team to compete with:

Kevin Jones will get 22 points and 12 rebounds.

Jones has had some good games over the past two months. He’s had a few mediocre ones. And he’s had maybe one bad one. Yet he’s always come through with his 22 points and 12 boards. That’s a great game from most players. For Jones, it’s a starting off point.

Check out his game-by-game stats on Varsity Central for proof. It’s incredible. And I’ve been to a lot of these games. The stats are legit.

Jones has recorded a double-double in 21 of the last 22 games. He’s had 20 and 10 in all but six of those games, most of which were a product of playing three quarters, if that.

Those stats are almost like a quota for Jones. And, like a good business man, he always hits his numbers.

Peekskill
The fact that the Red Devils have won their four postseason games by a total of 164 points, which is 41 per game, is jaw-dropping. It’s annihilation unlike anything I’ve ever seen before.

And it’s all because of they start. Here are their first-quarter scores:

31-6 vs. Yonkers
20-13 vs Tappan Zee
26-6 vs. Panas
26-13 vs. Port Chester

Peekskill has only had three quarters all postseason (out of 16) where it didn’t score at least 20 points. With this team, there’s no taking a possession off. The only way I can explain how this team plays: It’s almost like the players don’t realize that the scoreboard is even on.

Check out the game-by-game production from their top seven players (Yonkers-TZ-Panas-Port Chester—Playoff Avg.)

Daquan Brickhouse: 16-19-18-14—16.8
Mookie Jones: 18-27-2-17—16.0
Ralph Watts: 16-6-23-14—14.8
Elliot Watson: 18-13-4-16—12.8
Karl Baker: 14-6-9-10—9.8
Darien Thomas: 8-0-9-12—7.3
Jayme Gooding: 12-0-7-6—6.3

Those seven players have combined to score in double figures 17 times (out of a possible 28). We’re playing 32 minutes of basketball here, don’t forget.

North Salem
You think that North Salem is just a disciplined team that wins because it plays an old-fashioned style of basketball, predicated on defense. That’s true. But there are a few overwhelming stats responsible for this team’s Cinderella run.

The number one stat is this:

78-29.

What is that? Well, 78 is the number of times North Salem has attempted a free throw in the last three games. The 29 is how many its opponents have taken.

When you beat Irvington by 8, Briarcliff by 6 and Red Hook by 7, that’s pretty significant. Opposing teams are just not attacking the North Salem’s defense as much as the Tigers are. Josh O’Neill is a great shooter. But what has made him invaluable in the playoffs is his ability to go to the hole. Right now, he’s either making acrobatic lay-ups or getting fouls. Sometimes, he gets both.

North Salem’s free throw numbers:
Overall: 56-78 (72%)
In second half (and OT): 31-42 (74%)
In fourth quarter (and OT): 23-33 (70%)

In case you don’t realize, anything above 70% in high school is phenomenal.

It also helps that North Salem’s patience on offense has allowed it high-percentage looks, especially in the second half of games. Look at the second-half (and OT) shooting stats from the past three games:

Irvington: FG: 12 for 29 (41%); 3pt: 4 for 11 (36%)
Briarcliff: FG: 16 for 28 (57%); 3pt: 1 for 4 (25%)
Red Hook: FG: 10 for 33 (30%); 3pt: 0 for 2 (0%)

Note: There was a 3-4 minute stretch in the third quarter of the Red Hook game where North Salem missed a large portion of those shots. Most of them were in the paint as balls were simply rolling off the rim.

But the key when looking at the 3-point numbers are the attempts. The Tigers realized that they weren’t falling, especially against Red Hook, and altered their game. Sometimes the shots weren’t there, yet they didn’t force anything. That takes a lot of self-awareness and poise. It’s also a product of good coaching.

Check out the rebounding numbers per game:

Semifinal: North Salem 45, Irvington 29
Final: North Salem 31, Briarcliff 27
State regional: North Salem 38, Red Hook 24

That’s North Salem 114, Opponents 80. The Tigers have 24 more rebounds in these games and have won them by a combined 21 points. No coincidence.

Marc Miller’s three-game stats:  14 points, 11 rebounds vs. Irvington; 21 points, 11 rebounds vs. Briarcliff and 19 points and 12 rebounds against Red Hook. Talk about consistency.

But North Salem has also gotten that great second effort on the boards. Tom Kruze handled the task in the first two games, tallying 14 rebounds against Irvington and 11 versus Briarcliff. And Karl Miras had 12 against Red Hook.

Miras, by the way, is averaging 10.3 points in the last three games. Miller is at 18 points and 11.3 boards. Josh O’Neill has scored 14, 19 and 24 points in three games (19 ppg).

Tuckahoe
Robert Johnson is great. He’s the best player in Class C and was a deserving choice for MVP at the County Center last week when the Tigers won the title as a No. 4 seed.

But he couldn’t do it alone. By watching this team over the last four games, I can tell you the difference in this team since the postseason began was the play of its big men.

John Foster and Shaquille Griffiths are both very good players. Together, when the 6-foot-4 seniors are each hitting the boards and scoring off offensive rebounds, they are darn-near impossible to stop.

You might have expected one of the two big men to step up their games in the playoffs — but certainly not both, and not this much.

Foster averaged 10.3 points in the regular season. He’s averaging 16 points and 14.3 rebounds in the four playoff games. He had 25 points in the quarterfinals vs. Hamilton, seven above his season-high. His numbers in the last four games (points-rebounds): 25-13, 9-12, 12-17, and 18-15.

Griffiths, a junior, scored under 6 points per game in the regular season and was only in double figures three times. He had 22 in the Section 1 final. Good timing. His four playoff game numbers (points-rebounds): 8-9, 1-12, 22-13, 2-8. Those are pretty solid considering he’s a fourth option and has a vacuum as a rebounder in Foster right next to him.

Combined, those numbers have skyrocketed in the playoffs. I don’t have exact rebounding numbers from the entire season, but I can attest they weren’t both this good.

And this is all while defenses cater their game plans to Johnson, a 5-foot-11 guard who has been magnificent when it matters.