Bishop Alemany falls to Crespi in boys basketball

There is no debate whether there is a rivalry between the Crespi Celts and Alemany Warriors. Wednesday night showed that there was no dispute between which team enjoyed itself more. Crespi still had a sour taste in its mouth after having relinquished a 17-point lead over Alemany in the fourth quarter last season. The Celts repeatedly shot and made a total of eight threes thanks to Brandon Bolosky’ five three-point baskets. Bolosky finished with a game high of 18 points as the Celts defeated the Warriors, 56-51.

The Warriors started out tall with three of their starters, Daron Henson, Kevin Summers and Earnie Sear, measuring six-foot-four and over. Rounding out the Warriors’ starting five were junior Shac Dawkins and sophomore Brandon Davis.

The game became ugly quickly for the Warriors. Alemany had a heap of turnovers early, uncharacteristic of the team. Mistakes and miscues continued to pile up for the Warriors. Not only turnovers troubled Alemany early on, but also missed free throws and poor shot selection started to take its toll. Players accustomed to making shots such as Dawkins suddenly found themselves running inside to grab their own rebounds. The array of shot missing, referee decisions, and turnovers led to the increasing intensity of Alemany Coach Trey Meeks on the court. Although the Warriors finished the half strong, they found themselves down, 30-23, going into the locker room.

The Warriors came out in the second half running a full-court press, demonstrating their defensive tenacity by stealing inbound passes on two straight possessions. However, Crespi’s zone defense became too much for the Warriors offense as they continued to miss from outside and turn the ball over. At the end of the third quarter, the Warriors still found themselves down by nine going into the fourth. Alemany battled back into the game during the fourth quarter—they were down seven with just over a minute remaining. But, with 18 seconds remaining, Alemany’s DJ McDonald cut down the Celts’ lead to just four points. The Warriors however had to resort to fouling Crespi players and forced them to shoot free throws. The Crespi team’s stamina shown through and they bested Alemany in a close 56-51 victory. 

There were some notable standout players for both teams including Alemany’s Henson, McDonald and Summers as well as Crespi’s De’Anthony Melton and Bolosky. Although Henson went one for six from the free-throw line, he showed his offensive versatility by hitting three three-pointers during the game. More importantly, he provided good defense on the low post and rebounded as efficiently as the Clippers’  Deandre Jordan.

Senior Summers, a familiar face for the Warriors, ran the floor well, propelling him to a 14-point and 10-rebound game. Summers earned most of his points inside the paint and from the free-throw line. McDonald is widely regarded as one of the best freshmen in the city and showed it against the Celts. McDonald provided a major boost to Alemany’s defense while also producing seven points off the bench. It was Crespi’s Bolosky and De’Anthony Melton who stole the show as they combined to score half of the Celts’ total points. Perhaps most impressive, Melton had a double-double, totaling 10 points and 10 rebounds. Alemany and Crespi will both look to continue the season on high notes.