Boys Basketball – St. John Vianney Pays Back Donovan Catholic, Advances in South Non-Public A
HOLMDEL -- During his breakout senior season, Nate Williams is doing things few St. John Vianney boys basketball players have done and leading his team to places few Lancers teams have been.
One destination the Lancers did not reach, though, was the Shore Conference Tournament quarterfinals and they came up short because Donovan Catholic came into St. John Vianney's gym as the No. 13 seed in the conference tournament, shot the lights out and shocked the fourth-seeded Lancers in overtime.
It took Williams and his team some time to recover from the sting of that loss, but by Wednesday in the opening round of the NJSIAA South Jersey Non-Public B Playoffs, St. John Vianney was not just ready to move on; it was ready for revenge.
Donovan Catholic returned to Holmdel Wednesday and this time was no match for the No. 7 seed Lancers, who rolled to a 69-43 win behind a quadruple-double from Williams and reached the 20-win mark for the first time since 2006.
PHOTO GALLERY: Donovan Catholic at St. John Vianney by TPS Sports Images
The Shore's second-leading scorer finished Wednesday with a modest 13-point total for his standards, but those 13 points by Williams came with a side of 14 rebounds, 11 assists and 10 steals.
"This is definitely redemption," Williams said. "We wanted to win bad. We wanted to get to 20 wins and but that Shore Conference game behind us. We played hard and the coaching staff did a really good job giving us the scout and helping us with what we needed to get better at from last time."
Senior Omar Calderon led St. John Vianney with 16 points and junior Kyle Verriest scored 12 of his 15 in the first half, during which St. John Vianney got off to a 35-20 lead before heading into the locker room. Junior Connor Howard also chipped in nine points for the Lancers.
PHOTO GALLERY: Donovan Catholic at St. John Vianney by TPS Sports Images
"They definitely wanted the Shore (Conference Tournament), so this has been a gut-check for us," St. John Vianney coach Ryan Finch said. "A win like tonight is so impressive because it shows how they have been able to handle the last two weeks."
Donovan Catholic cut the St. John Vianney lead to 40-31 with an 11-2 run, but the Lancers responded with a 10-0 run of their own to run the lead back up to 19 and later close the game on a 15-3 run.
PHOTO GALLERY: Donovan Catholic at St. John Vianney by TPS Sports Images
St. John Vianney relished a chance to bury Donovan Catholic after the Griffins won at SJV, 67-64, in the Shore Conference Tournament round of 16 behind big nights across the board from senior Dan Schwartz (18 points on six three-pointers), Kyree Drake (16 points and eight assists), Nunes Bukula (14 points), Alex Melon (11 points and six assists) and Jalin Butler (six points, nine rebounds, four assists, three steals and three blocks).
"It was hard for us, because we wanted to go far in the Shore Conference and win the Shore Conference," Williams said. "It was hard on us, but all of us came to practice, came to play tonight and we all played with heart."
"I won't lie, it took us a good week to get over it," St. John Vianney coach Ryan Finch said of the Shore Conference Tournament loss. "Honestly, it wasn't until the Shore (Conference Tournament) was actually done, Marlboro won it was over that we kind of moved on. As a coach, you try to figure out words to tell them and and the only thing I knew to tell them was to put their heads down and keep working. We talked less and just kept working."
PHOTO GALLERY: Donovan Catholic at St. John Vianney by TPS Sports Images
On Wednesday, none of those five were a major factor, with Butler out with an injury and Bukula not playing despite being dressed because of a coaches' decision. Vianney held Schwartz to one three-pointer, while Drake finished with eight points and Melon five. Junior Brian Farrell led Donovan Catholic with 10 points.
St. John Vianney, meanwhile, played without sophomore Dylan Seay, who suffered a torn AC joint in his shoulder at practice this week and will miss the remainder of the season, according to Finch.
St. John Vianney advances to the sectional quarterfinals and will go on the road to play St. Thomas Aquinas -- the No. 2 seed in the bracket and No. 3 ranked team in the state by NJ Advance Media. The Trojans are 26-1, have not lost to a New Jersey opponent and are coming off a Greater Middlesex Conference championship.
PHOTO GALLERY: Donovan Catholic at St. John Vianney by TPS Sports Images
The Lancers have challenged themselves during their 27-game schedule, with a win over Manasquan in December and losses to Red Bank Catholic, Marlboro and Rutgers Prep. All of those teams are ranked in the Top 20, so Finch and his team are hopeful that cluster of games has prepared them for a St. Thomas Aquinas team that is a serious Tournament of Champions contender.
"We really built this game up," Finch said. "It was a chance to play another home game, a chance to beat a team that beat us, a chance to win our 20th game, so tonight was important. We have done it the hard way: our schedule has been pretty tough, we have challenged ourselves, so hopefully, when we go up there Friday, we'll have some confidence and we'll see what happens."
"We're going to play like it's our last game," Williams said. "Keep on playing hard, the same way we did today."
PHOTO GALLERY: Donovan Catholic at St. John Vianney by TPS Sports Images
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