On a night set out to celebrate its seniors, the St. Joseph boys basketball team turned Tuesday night into a celebration of their entire program as they slammed and jammed their way to a 61-31 victory.
The end of the third quarter was when things really started to heat up for St. Josph as the Irish made one exceptional fast break basket after another. With players like CJ Moore, Donnie Smith and Jerrian King leading the charge, the Irish outscored the Colonels 17-4 in the third quarter to remove all doubt about the outcome of the contest.
“I was pleased with the effort of our team,” St. Joseph coach James Hunter said. “We had played six games in nine game, so I knew they were pretty tired.”
In a balanced scoring attack, Jerrian King led St. Joseph with 12 points Tuesday. Jamal Bryant scored 11. CJ Moore scored nine, and Donnie Smith and Jordan Jennings both scored seven.
With Tuesday night’s victory, St. Joe finishes its regular season at 14-1. The Irish, the top seed in their district, will host next week’s District 2-4A Tournament.
Before the game, the five seniors on the team (Jordan Jennings, Jamal Bryant, Donnie Smith, Dillan Reed and Van Locket) presented Coach Hunter with a signed green pennant with a fold shamrock emblazoned on it.
Coach Hunter said all four of them should be proud of the leadership they have shown this season.
“I love this group a lot, even though this is the first year I have coached a couple of them,” Coach Hunter said.
Coach Hunter finished by saying a few words about each of his seniors.
“Donne (Smith) plays with great intensity and he never slows down. He is a great leader.”
“Jamal (Bryant) has really stepped up on defense, and his play has been a big reason why we are successful.”
“Van (Locket) doesn’t play as much as the others, but there is no doubt that he is a team leader. He does a great job of getting everybody up and keeping everything positive.”
“Jordan (Jennings) has been with me for six years. He is a three-sport athlete and a great leader for this team. He meant so much to this team over these years.”
“Dillon (Reed) has not been here as long as the others, but he has come in quickly and filled his role for this team. He has done all that we asked of him and more.”
