Basketball standout Brice Flenory to take place with uncle, B.B., in A-K Valley Sports Hall of Fame

By: Mark Nitowski
Saturday, March 9, 2024 | 4:03 PM

Longtime local basketball fans might remember Brice Flenory for his deadly fade-away jumper.

A 1998 Valley graduate, Flenory apparently hasn’t lost his touch over the years.

“My fade-away shot still is unstoppable, even at the age of 45,” said Flenory, who is a dean of students for the Pittsburgh Public Schools. “I don’t play that much anymore, but when I get in the gym, that shot is unstoppable. With a fade-away, you either have it or you don’t. I picked it up by watching Michael Jordan.”

Flenory used his silky shooting skills and defensive prowess to carve out an outstanding career at the high school and professional levels. For his basketball exploits, he will be among those inducted into the Alle-Kiski Valley Sports Hall of Fame on May 4 at the Pittsburgh Shriner Center in Harmar.

“I think getting in (to the A-K Hall) reflects the hard work that I put in while playing,” he said. “It also makes me think about my old teammates, guys like Erin Russell, who was our point guard (at Valley), Josh Schreckengost, Rudy Wade, Jim Richardson and Llewellyn Johnson.”

Flenory is the nephew of former Valley great B.B. Flenory, who starred for the Vikings in the mid-1970s and then was a standout at Duquesne. B.B. was inducted into the A-K Hall in 1997.

“I heard about the glory days in New Kensington and Pittsburgh, but I was too young to see him play,” Brice said. “I tried to carry on the (Flenory) name and tradition, but I didn’t feel any pressure. I was doing it for me, not anyone else. I was more into watching (former Valley star) Tom Pipkins when I was a kid.”

Flenory grew up in the Parnassus section of New Kensington before his family moved to Arnold. He described Monte Banks, a teammate of Pipkins on Valley’s 1993 WPIAL championship team, as one of his early mentors.

“Monte lived two doors down from us,” Flenory said. “We had a hoop in front of our house, and he would come over with his brother, Ralph, and we would play three-on-three with Antawun Harris and some other guys.”

At Valley, the 6-foot-2 Flenory scored more than 1,200 points, finishing fifth on the school’s all-time points list.

“What a lot of people don’t realize is that I scored those points in basically two and a half seasons on varsity,” said Flenory, who also was a three-year letterwinner in track and field. “A senior started in front of me at the beginning of my sophomore year.”

Flenory was a first-team Valley News Dispatch all-star selection as a junior and senior.

“We had some good teams,” he said. “We split the section with North Catholic in ’96 and had a nice run in the state playoffs in ’97. We had a 7-7 (section) record my senior year but didn’t make the playoffs.”

As a senior, Flenory was the A-K Valley’s leading scorer, averaging 23 points. In the Comcast Tipoff Tournament, the Vikings defeated rival Burrell behind Flenory’s 24 points, including 14 in the pivotal fourth quarter and overtime. Later in the season, he scored 27 points in Valley’s upset of Knoch.

Flenory capped the 1997-98 season by being named one of the top 11 players in western Pennsylvania.

After high school, Flenory stepped away from competitive basketball. In his mid-20s, he was playing pick-up games at Pitt’s Trees Hall when he decided to try out for the Pittsburgh Xplosion, a minor-league team in the American Basketball Association.

“It was real high level. Guys were flying in from all over the country for the tryouts,” he said. “It was an eye opener for me because I hadn’t played in college and didn’t have that experience. But I think that made me hungry and ready.”

Flenory made the Xplosion roster for the 2006 season. He recalls sharing the court with former NBA players and Pittsburgh natives Armen Gilliam and Myron Brown.

“The coach made me a defensive stopper, and I played well,” he said. “We made good money, and our games were played at Mellon Arena. It was a great experience traveling to play teams across the eastern seaboard.”

After the Xplosion folded, Flenory played for the Pittsburgh Phantoms, another ABA franchise.

“With the Phantoms, I was the elder statesman on the team,” said Flenory, who was inducted into the Valley High School Sports Hall of Fame in 2006.

A Point Park graduate, Flenory said he serves as an assistant junior varsity boys basketball coach and the baseball coach at Perry High School.

Flenory relies on his experience in athletics to help build positive relationships with students.

“Sports teaches you to be disciplined and builds integrity and focus,” said Flenory, who lives in Pittsburgh’s Observatory Hill neighborhood with his wife and their family. “It’s a lot of the things that young people will need to become successful businessmen and women.”

If you’re going

What: 53rd A-K Valley Sports Hall of Fame induction

When: 7 p.m., May 4

Where: Pittsburgh Shriners Center, Harmar

Tickets: $40

Contact: Larry Lutz, 724-882-3695; Fred Soilis, 412-736-1809; Bill Heasley, 724-882-3079

Tags: Valley