by Joe DiBlasi
See video clips below
This was tournament basketball at its best, as well matched middle seeds traded heroic efforts in a desperate attempt to survive and extend their season for at least one more day.
All the drama, as well as the associated jubilation and agony you would expect in a March basketball game, was on display when fourth-seeded Cardinal Gibbons and fifth-seeded Loyola closed out the first day of the 37th Baltimore Catholic League Tournament, last night at Loyola College. In the end, it was Loyola (18-9) which moved on to face top-seed Mount St. Joseph (Tuesday at 6:00 pm), as the Dons hung on for a thrilling 46-44 victory.
Gibbons (15-13) nearly snatched out the win, as Perry Wright banked-in a three-pointer, but it came a split-second after the final horn, leaving the Crusader faithful crushed while the Dons celebrated on the Reitz Arena floor.
Loyola's Matt Rum, who led all scorers with 23 points, hit a big three with 2:48 left in regulation to give the Dons a 41-40 lead. The sharp-shooting junior had 17 second half points, nine of which came in the fourth quarter. Steele Stanwick followed with a deft lay-up to give the Dons a 43-40 advantage, with 1:30 to go, and, after a Crusader miss, Loyola had the ball and a three-point lead with 44-seconds left on the clock.
However, Jamar Briscoe (17 points) kept the Crusaders alive with a key steal and a fast-break bucket to make it a one point game. Loyola eventually led by two, with 8.5 seconds to go, when the Crusaders frantically pushed the ball up the floor for a last second shot. Following one miss, Wright got a rebound and launched a long bank-shot that went in, but it was a moment too late.
"It was teriffic game; we got down early in the second half, and our guys fought back," said Loyola coach Josh Davalli. "At the end we made some free throws when we had to."
Both teams came out white-hot as they matched each other shot for shot in a blistering first quarter that looked like an NBA game. Sal Schittino hit a trio of three-pointers for the Dons in the opening period, while Briscoe and Ryan Zepp combined for 12 long-range points for the Crusaders. The quarter ended in a 18-18 deadlock.
The shooting pace slowed a little in the second stanza, as both teams played more aggressive defense. Both senior laden clubs seemed to be mirror images of each other throughout the first half, which ended in a 25-25 tie.
Gibbons opened the third quarter with seven unanswered points, but they could never figure out Rum. He was the only Don to score from the floor in the third stanza, and he kept Loyola close.
"We've never made it to the second round before," said Rum of his team's previous trips to the BCL Tournament. "Gibbons played a great game. We're very evenly matched teams. I guess things just fell our way tonight."
It was a heart-breaking loss for the Crusaders.
"It was a very close game that could have gone either way," said Zepp, a senior who saw his high school career end with this loss. "I've had a great four year career here."
"This was a really tough loss," said Briscoe, a first-team All-BCL selection this winter. "We always play well against each other. This was the best (tournament) game of the day, but only one of us could win."
Loyola 46, Cardinal Gibbons 44
Loyola: Stanwick 5, Schittino 13, Davenport 3, Rum 23, Floyd 2.
Totals 16 7-11 46.
Cardinal Gibbons: Zepp 5, Briscoe 17, Wright 6, Kuntz 4, Kouvaris 8, Jones 2, Byers 2.
Totals 21 0-4 44.
Half: 25-25.
