Taking their A game demonstrated through multiple tournaments in Northern California and their most recent home game and continuing to travel with it, the St. Bernard’s Crusaders boys basketball team took their first two games in the Boys Nike Tournament of Champions in Phoenix, Arizona, on Thursday and Friday, readying themselves for their final game on Saturday. The Crusaders got the added thrill of meeting and getting their picture taken with the son of National Basketball Association star Chris Paul, who was also playing in the tournament.
That “premier event is a collaboration between the Arizona Basketball Coaches Association (producers of Section 7), the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame (producers of Hoophall West), and the organizers behind Nike’s flagship girls’ basketball event, the Tournament of Champions,” according to the organization’s website.
Thursday, St. Bernard’s bested Westwood 70-46 before taking down North Salem 55-49 early on Friday.
On Friday, the Crusaders played on the Westwood (a school with 3,400 students in Arizona) court that was “collegiate level” according to SB coach Pat Shanahan. But on Thursday, they played the host school in the first round of their four-team round robin bracket. There are 12 other brackets consisting of eight teams apiece, for a total of around 100 teams. Schools from Nevada and California were there as well, North Salem coming from Oregon, but Shanahan said it was mostly Arizona squads, teams being matched up according to “competitive equity.”
Garrett Shanahan and Luke Brunton combine for a block against Westwood in their tourney's first round. (Taunya Brunton/Contributed)
Taunya Brunton
Garrett Shanahan and Luke Brunton combine for a block against Westwood in their tourney's first round. (Taunya Brunton/Contributed)
Against Westwood, Liam Dyer had 25 points, nine rebounds, and three blocks. Carson Costa contributed 14 points and Garrett Shanahan had 10 points and 15 rebounds, and Prince Latimer had 10 points.
“The difference, really, was Burke Morrow and his defense,” said Shanahan. “We came out a little sluggish in the first quarter, giving up 18 or 19, and we played much better in the second, third, and fourth. Burke coming off the bench really sparked us, diving for loose balls, being really aggressive and tough. That sort of woke us up, and then we were able to play all our players during the course of the game.”
Tony Pena hit a three and Dang Le and Braylon Johnson got credit for their efforts, along with Tyler Hinrichs and Luke Brunton, all of whom played “strong minutes across the board. I was really happy with how we finished the game,” said Shanahan.
Liam Dyer dunks for St. Bernard's. (Taunya Brunton/Contributed)
Taunya Brunton
Liam Dyer dunks for St. Bernard's. (Taunya Brunton/Contributed)
In the 55-49 win over North Salem, the game was a tale of two halves, with the first being a slow-paced contest against a strong defensive team boasting a 6’8″ post player who “really locked down the paint” according to Shanahan, along with some guards “who are ballers.” St. Bernard’s was able to match their opposition’s physicality in the opening half, but in the second, North Salem “started lighting it up from three. We finally made some adjustments as a coaching staff to help our team, and we were able to hold them at bay and win by six.”
North Salem only managed 12 points in the opening half. Dyer and Garrett Shanahan finished with 17 points for SB, Costa scored 12, and Latimer nine. Garrett Shanahan had 13 rebounds, with Dyer earning six, as the team amassed plenty of steals and assists.
“We didn’t get many looks, and this team we played was flying around,” said Shanahan of North Salem. “So I was happy with our guys looking for advantages when we could find them.”
Carson Costa rises with a baseline three for the Crusaders. (Taunya Brunton/Contributed)
Taunya Brunton
Carson Costa rises with a baseline three for the Crusaders. (Taunya Brunton/Contributed)
SB’s next game with Queen Creek would take place Saturday at noon, the opposition being another big school from Arizona without a stellar record but sporting a strong strength of schedule.
Finally, asked how his previous sentiment of his squad’s being very unselfish in terms of ball movement and assists was holding up in this tournament, Shanahan said, “It’s been pretty darn good. These kids, a big part of basketball is about spacing and cutting and we’ve talked about it. It is about calling plays, but those are just to set up opportunities. And these kids really adjusted well again to what the other team was trying to do. It took a while at times both these games, but we figured it out just enough to continue to score more points than them.”
St. Bernard’s is now 11-1 on the season.
Ken McCanless can be reached at 707-441-0526.