🏀 What. A. Night! The energy at Henninger High School was through the roof on Friday for the annual Bravest vs. Finest basketball game! 🚔🔥

🏆 Congratulations to the Syracuse Police, who came out on top with a 81-75 victory, avenging last year’s loss.

Whether you were cheering for the Syracuse Fire Department or the Syracuse Police Department, one thing was clear: the real winner was our Central New York community.

Because of YOUR ticket purchases, concessions and t-shirt sales, we’re raising vital funds to tackle CNY’s toughest challenges.

🤝 Thank You!
A massive shoutout to the Syracuse FD and Syracuse PD for trading their uniforms for jerseys and playing their hearts out to support United Way.

👏 Special thanks to:
The Syracuse City School District and Henninger High School ( 🔥 Athletic Director Kevin Ryan and the volunteer staff) for hosting us and creating a flawless game experience!

The City of Syracuse – Mayor Sharon F. Owens, Ana Maniaci McGough and Sol Muñoz – our partner in putting this game on! Not to mention Corey Driscoll Dunham who generously donated her 50/50 raffle winnings back to United Way!

Printing & Promotional Solutions (Madison Dubach, Todd Ruetsch & Darren) for partnering with us to create our on-site t-shirt press station.

Who Want Smoke BBQ for donating a portion of all proceeds from the night’s sales to United Way of CNY!

John and Laura Lally and the Lally Foundation for generously sponsoring tickets for local Boys and Girls Clubs to attend the event.

Otto The Orange, Tully the Turtle (Tully’s Good Times Restaurants) and MidKnight the Henninger High School mascot for being amazing.

DJ Joe Driscoll for the getting the crowd and teams going all night!

💛 ❤️ 💙 And to every single neighbor who showed up to support United Way of Central New York.

Missed the game but still want to help? It’s never too late to make an impact. Visit unitedway-cny.org to see how you can help us keep this momentum going!

The ultimate community showdown is back! Get ready to see Syracuse Fire and Syracuse Police trade their uniforms for jerseys in the annual Bravest vs. Finest Basketball Game on Friday April 17^th at Henninger High School  (click to open google maps). This isn’t just about bragging rights — it’s about coming together to support United Way of Central New York. Every ticket sold helps us tackle the toughest challenges in our community, from housing stability to childhood literacy.

Tickets are just $10 per person, and children 5 and under can attend for free. Doors open at 5:30, Tip off at 6:30.

Featuring:

Fun for the kids: Otto (Syracuse University), Tully the Turtle (Tully’s), and Byrnsie (Byrne Dairy) will be stopping by

Who Want Smoke BBQ will be offering concessions with 20% of profits donated to United Way.

PPS will be on-site printing Bravest vs Finest t-shirts in finest blue or bravest red for kids and adults for $25. T-shirts can also be ordered in advance below.

Syracuse University student athletes and coaches will be in the stands to cheer on the teams!

Free parking

Purchase a commemorative t-shirt here for $25. Thank you to local artist Mike Borkowski for this design! Free shipping is available. Or get it faster, by ordering and selecting pick-up in-person at  PPS (4596 Nixon Park Dr).

In 2025 the Bravest vs Finest game saw these teams tip off for the first time in over five years. And the game did not disappoint as the Bravest came charging back from a 25-point deficit in the second half to defeat the Finest 92-88.

Watch a recap of last year’s event: