I grew up all through elementary and middle school dreaming about playing in the Bellarmine vs. Saint Francis games. And let me tell you, they are just as fun, or even more fun than what I dreamt them to be as a little kid. This game was one of the loudest I have ever played in, the stands were packed and the student sections were going at it. The back and forth chants started around 15 minutes before the game, it was like the game was in the last minute during warm ups. The atmosphere was insane! Even Jimmy Frazier's (#20) littler brother, who we like to call "Johnny Tsunami" was getting into it!
(No surprises here, but Johnny Tsunami, infamous for causing trouble and being crazy, is the kid in the red shirt jumping in front of the Sportswurlz camera.)
(The Bellarmine "Bros," the night's theme, were getting at it early. They were amazing all night! They provide us with so much support and make it obvious they love our team. And the team loves them! They are awesome. They make the games so much more fun to play. They are definitely the best student section in the WCAL, hands down!!)
Present at the game was Martin Silver, a family friend of ours and a true lover of the game of basketball. Mr. Silver, unfortunately suffered a stroke over the summer. Although this was so tragic, the fight inside of Mr. Silver has put him on a meteoric path to recovery. He is currently walking independently and gaining back his ability of speech. It was amazing to see him at the game with a giant smile on his face. God bless him and the Silver family.
Although returning "home" to Mountain View was awesome and playing in the game is completely incomparable, the fact of the matter is, we lost, again. And this time it was to our rivals in their house, which is never a fun one to lose.
When we break down the game, we will notice that we lost the John Wooden game. The John Wooden game consists of the first four minutes of the game, the first four minutes of the second half, and the last four minutes of the game. We have trouble starting and finishing games, which is not a good thing. Against Saint Francis, we started the game down 10-0 after allowing two wide open 3's and two offensive rebounds for baskets. However, after going down ten early, we ended up leading by four entering the fourth quarter. That lead turned out not to be enough as we allowed the Lancers to come back and tie the game to send it into overtime, where we were outplayed in those last four minutes.
Not starting and finishing games has been a chronic problem for us this season and has been a major factor for all of our losses this season. Although we are upset we left Mountain View with a loss, I couldn't be any more proud of the team. We bounced back from the tough game at Riordan and played with a constant intensity the entire game. We were the recipients of multiple cheap shots and hard fouls after the whistle, and yet we kept our cool and played with amazing integrity. This type of hard, clean play made me so proud to be a member of the Bellarmine team. I love all my teammates and I wouldn't trade them for anyone.
One player I'd especially like to recognize is Kenneth Olugbode. He played an amazing game. He got Khalid Johnson, the stud point guard for Saint Francis, into foul trouble early and played amazing defense. When guarding Drew Dickey, who also played an amazing game (he really is a special player), he kept him off the boards...literally the score board, and the offensive glass. Kenneth really exemplified the Bellarmine way in his play, and its awesome to have him on my team, cause I would HATE to have him guard me. He guards me in practice every day, and boy is it difficult to get a decent shot off, let alone score the ball.
In addition to that, I'd like to mention the Frazier brothers for Saint Francis. I grew up going over to their house 24/7. I played basketball with them, hung out with them, and just spent just about all of my time with them. Alex Frazier, who is currently a sophomore, played an amazing game, putting up double digit points and pulling down multiple rebounds. And then there is Jimmy, that guy is awesome. It was hard to take him seriously, we were laughing with each other two minutes into the game just having a great time. But later in the game, it was no joking around and he came up clutch for the Lancers. He hit a 3 in overtime which gave the Lancers a five point lead. This shot was ridiculous! He was sprinting towards the baseline on an inbound play, caught the ball on the run, faded away out of bounds behind the backboard, and STILL swished the 3.
(Not to mention my hand was in his face!!)
Personally, I played well. I put up 16 points along with some rebounds and assists. I even had nice tip-in, I wish it was a dunk but I'm waiting for my vertical to magically get better for that to happen. But until then I will be happy with my lay-ups!
Overall, those rivalry games are so fun to play in, especially when you are facing some of your closest friends from your younger years. Congratulations to the Saint Francis Lancers! I can't wait to play them again, this time at Bellarmine! But until then, we need to take care of business in our other games. Starting with Saint Ignatius, Friday at 7:30!
Go Bells!
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