Adam Zagoria covers basketball at all levels. He is the author of two books and an award-winning journalist whose articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Sports Illustrated, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide.
St. Anthony’s 34-game winning streak has come to an abrupt end.
Bishop O’Dowd (Calif.) routed the Friars 69-40 Friday in the first round of the MaxPreps Holiday Classic at Torrey Pines, Calif.
Bishop O’Dowd coach Doug Vierra told the San Francisco Chronicle he never would have dreamed of beating St. Anthony and legendary coach Bob Hurley.
“Never, ever, ever,” said Vierra. “I envisioned maybe 60-57 or 59-58 on a buzzer-beater. This probably won’t sink in until tomorrow.”
St. Anthony went undefeated last year, winning all 32 games en route to the New Jersey Tournament of Champions title and a mythical national championship. That team sent six players to Division 1 programs, including Mike Rosario (Rutgers), Travon Woodall (Pitt) and Tyshawn Taylor (Kansas.)
Third-year starting 6-foot-5 forward Justin Brue beat the Friars (2-1) with 18 points, 13 rebounds and four steals and 6-2 junior guard Nick Capiti came off the bench to add 15 points.
Villanova-bound wing Dominic Cheek managed just eight points, all in the third quarter. Jamee Jackson, a 6-6 senior headed to Quinnipiac, had 22 points for the Friars, who departed on their eight-hour cross-country trip Friday morning.
“Travel might have had something to do with it,” Jackson told MaxPreps.com. “But we really have no excuses. They played better and harder than us. We’ll just have to get some rest and play better the rest of the tournament.”
The Friars are waiting until January to get three frontcourt transfers eligible after sitting the state-mandated 30 days: Ashton Pankey, Derrick Williams and Devon Collier.
“That will definitely give us a boost,” Jackson said. “But until we got to boost ourselves and play better defense. Hopefully this will be a wakeup call.”
Adam Zagoria is a Basketball Insider who covers basketball at all levels. A contributor to The New York Times and SportsNet New York (SNY), he is also the author of two books and is an award-winning journalist and filmmaker. His articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide. He also won an Emmy award for his work on the SNY mini-documentary on Syracuse guard Tyus Battle.
A veteran Ultimate Frisbee player, he has competed in numerous National and World Championships and, perhaps more importantly, his teams won the Westchester Summer League (WSL) championships in 2011 and 2013.
He lives in Manhattan with his wife and children.
St. Anthony’s 34-game winning streak has come to an abrupt end.
Bishop O’Dowd (Calif.) routed the Friars 69-40 Friday in the first round of the MaxPreps Holiday Classic at Torrey Pines, Calif.
Bishop O’Dowd coach Doug Vierra told the San Francisco Chronicle he never would have dreamed of beating St. Anthony and legendary coach Bob Hurley.
“Never, ever, ever,” said Vierra. “I envisioned maybe 60-57 or 59-58 on a buzzer-beater. This probably won’t sink in until tomorrow.”
St. Anthony went undefeated last year, winning all 32 games en route to the New Jersey Tournament of Champions title and a mythical national championship. That team sent six players to Division 1 programs, including Mike Rosario (Rutgers), Travon Woodall (Pitt) and Tyshawn Taylor (Kansas.)
Third-year starting 6-foot-5 forward Justin Brue beat the Friars (2-1) with 18 points, 13 rebounds and four steals and 6-2 junior guard Nick Capiti came off the bench to add 15 points.
Villanova-bound wing Dominic Cheek managed just eight points, all in the third quarter. Jamee Jackson, a 6-6 senior headed to Quinnipiac, had 22 points for the Friars, who departed on their eight-hour cross-country trip Friday morning.
“Travel might have had something to do with it,” Jackson told MaxPreps.com. “But we really have no excuses. They played better and harder than us. We’ll just have to get some rest and play better the rest of the tournament.”
The Friars are waiting until January to get three frontcourt transfers eligible after sitting the state-mandated 30 days: Ashton Pankey, Derrick Williams and Devon Collier.
“That will definitely give us a boost,” Jackson said. “But until we got to boost ourselves and play better defense. Hopefully this will be a wakeup call.”
