St. Mary’s hoop star leads remarkable turnaround
Brian Gardenhire is a proud young man, driven by a strong will and determined to succeed. When his St. Mary’s basketball team suffered through a dismal 5-18 campaign last year, the worst season in recent memory, Gardenhire wanted to guarantee that there would be no repeat performance this time around.
“I was ready to be a leader,” Gardenhire said. “And make this team into something special. I had a hunger to win this year, because of what happened last year. That was really bad. I really wanted to turn the tables and put this team on the map.”
However, halfway through the season, things didn’t look good for the Ramblers. After losing their sixth straight game, they had a 5-8 record overall and a 1-5 mark in the HCIAA. It had all the makings of a rerun.
“It looked like everything was all wrong,” Gardenhire said. “I blamed myself. I thought I had to be more of a leader. It had a feeling that it was going to be the same thing like last year and I certainly didn’t want to repeat that again.”
Veteran St. Mary’s head coach Tom Lalicato didn’t know what to think.
“I tried to make Brian understand that if he played well, the rest of the team would play well,” Lalicato said. “He would make everyone around him better and it would make him better. I always thought that if Brian took over and played to his ability, that we had a chance to be pretty good. When we were 5-8, I thought we could sink back into the same hole we were in last year. We needed a full team commitment to get us out, but it had to start with Brian.”
Gardenhire then proceeded to take it upon himself to lead the Ramblers out of the doldrums.
“I had to take control of the situation,” Gardenhire said. “It was my senior year and I wanted to make the most of it. I figured that if I played a little better, maybe that could give us a little uplift. We started to win a few and the chemistry just kicked in. And my shots started going in as well.”
Since Gardenhire decided to pick up his game, the Ramblers have been on a roll, winning eight straight games. Last week, St. Mary’s earned three crucial wins against St. Peter’s Prep, North Bergen and Bayonne, to catapult themselves into the fifth seed in the upcoming HCIAA playoffs.
Gardenhire had 18 points in the win over Prep, 16 in the victory over North Bergen and 24 in the win over Bayonne.
And for his efforts, Gardenhire has been selected as The Hudson Reporter Athlete of the Week for the past week.
Gardenhire isn’t the most conventional Hudson County athlete – because he doesn’t even live in Hudson County. He is a resident of lower Manhattan who was introduced to St. Mary’s after an unsuccessful stint at St. Anthony.
“It has been a sacrifice for me to come to school every day,” Gardenhire said. “But I really look forward to coming to school. I like the guys and Coach [Lalicato] is like a second father to me. It’s been worth it, coming here every day.”
“Every once in a while, I get lucky and get a good one,” Lalicato laughed. “He came to us last year and he’s been able to really take hold here. I think it’s all a reflection of his maturity. He’s committed to the game of basketball. He’s very serious about everything he does, especially basketball. Basketball is not something he does for fun. He said that he was going to do everything he could to make this team better and he’s done that. He’s become more vocal, a captain, a leader. His maturity has turned himself around and the entire program.”
Gardenhire is a fine point guard, averaging 17 points and almost six assists per game.
“He’s one of those point guards that is thinking like me,” Lalicato said. “He’s making calls during the game that I make in my head. It makes things easy to be on the same page with your point guard. He’s like a football quarterback, making all the young players better.”
Gardenhire is hopeful that his latest streak of success can carry into a collegiate career. He has already been selected to participate in the annual Hudson-Essex All-Star game, which is usually a good showcase for college recruiters.
“I want to go to college and play in college,” Gardenhire said. “That’s a goal of mine. I think the way the season has turned around is going to help. I think people will look at me a little more now.”
Gardenhire added, “It really has been an unbelievable run for all of us. Everyone’s happy. We’re winning and playing well. It’s like magic.”
And Gardenhire is hoping that the magic remains for a few more weeks.