Throughout the boys’ high school basketball season, the skeptics and doubters all said that this was not a vintage St. Anthony team, that the Friars had no prayer of contending with state powers like St. Patrick of Elizabeth or Paterson Catholic for the NJSIAA Non-Public B North title.
Well, by virtue of its decision against St. Patrick regarding alleged illegal off-season practice sessions, the NJSIAA took care of the heavily favored Celtics, declaring St. Patrick ineligible for this year’s state playoffs.
Last Thursday, in the sectional title game that they had no hope of winning a few months ago, the Friars took care of the other threat, totally dismantling Paterson Catholic, 63-49, in a game that was not nearly as close as the final score indicated.
And the main reason for the Friars’ big win? Look no further than the legendary coach pulling the strings.
Bob Hurley would never dare take credit for his team’s win. He had never done so in the 36 years and 975 or so victories that came before last Thursday night.
But how else can you explain the Friars easily defeating virtually the same team that trounced the Friars out of the state playoffs – at home, no less – a year ago?
These were virtually the same rosters that faced each other last March and that game was just as close as this one was, only in total reverse.
And that came with coaching. Hurley did his best Bobby Fischer impersonation and moved all the right rooks, pawns, and bishops and put them in the absolutely perfect positions. He controlled the tempo from the opening tip. Hurley instructed his players to be patient, calm, and collected, while the Cougars played at a frantic and desperate pace.
It was a masterpiece.
The Friars jumped out to a 9-3 lead in the first five minutes of the game and it was over from that point. That’s because Hurley’s well-drilled and well-schooled unit wasn’t simply going to allow the previously undefeated Cougars back into it.
Paterson Catholic might have steamrolled through 28 straight games prior to facing the Friars. But the Cougars never had a chance in this one. Hurley saw to it.
So did the Friars’ downright stifling defense. This was one of the best defensive teams the Friars put on the floor. It wasn’t a fluke that they held a perennially strong Linden team to just 20 total points earlier in the season or limited another Union County power Elizabeth to just 27. They defend like their entire lives depended upon it.
When the Friars went to the locker room at halftime of the game against Paterson Catholic, the Cougars had all of 16 points. Imagine that. A team with a handful of Division I products scoring just 16 points in a half of a state title game.
“We wanted to slow them down,” Hurley said after the game. “We wanted to see what would happen if we slowed them down. When you’re the underdog, you have to play like that. This was the fourth team that we beat this year who beat us last year. That’s a remarkable thing. I don’t know if we’ve significantly upgraded our team from last year. These kids just watched what happened last year and didn’t want that to happen again.”
Other than Hurley’s masterful coaching job, the other big reason why the Friars reigned supreme over Paterson Catholic this season was the play of senior guard Elijah Carter, who had 28 points and an astonishing 14 rebounds.
“There’s an example of a kid who didn’t like where he was as a player last year and made himself significantly better,” Hurley said. “He became a better player and we played off him. He just gets it now.”
And Carter will take that performance with him to St. Bonaventure in the fall.
While the season ended one win short of another slice of state history, as the Friars dropped a 57-56 triple overtime decision to Trenton Catholic in the Non-Public B state title game two days later – the first time the Friars lost an overall state championship game since 1979 – nothing will defray from the memorable evening at the Rutgers Athletic Center last Thursday.
Because the fabulous Friars added another state sectional title to the overflowing trophy case in the school on Seventh Street in downtown Jersey City.
“Their will to compete is unbelievable,” Hurley said. “I think you could put two baskets up in the parking lot here and these kids would play on adrenaline alone. I like what we’ve done with these kids, bringing them along.”
And turning them from a complete question mark into the most unlikely of state sectional champions, on a night where Hudson County crowned two champs in a span of a couple of hours. It was the first time ever that two Hudson County teams won state sectional championships at the same venue on the same night.
The Friars’ victory came a few hours after St. Peter’s Prep won the Non-Public A North sectional crown, making it a complete historic night at the RAC.
“I feel good for them,” Hurley said of the Marauders. “J.J. Hladik has been a camper of mine for years and worked for me at [Jersey City] Recreation. It’s a great accomplishment for them.”
And it was a great night for the coach who has made a habit of having great nights. It’s a shame that there wasn’t another great night two nights later.
Jim Hague can be reached at OGSMAR@aol.com.