By Johnny G. Buckets, Staff Writer
Pandora’s box has officially been opened.
And the Saint John’s Seminary Basketball Invitational is sadly not immune.
Just as the college sports landscape continues to be jolted by an uncontrollable transfer portal [on top of the lunacy of Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) and student-athlete snowflakes who decide to transfer before the first lack-of-playing-time tear can fall … but this reporter digresses], the SJS Hoops Invite, mere days from its third installment (is it Saturday yet?!), has started to see a handful of guys popping up on one roster this year … and on a rival’s list the next.
Look at the evidence: There was a trio of talents who leaped from Resurrection (Hingham, Mass.) in ’23 to help Saint Mary of the Nativity (Scituate, Mass.) in ’24; this year, a Saint Thomas the Apostle pillar the last two Invites who, to his defense, moved away from the Millis area, will now try and push Saint Mary’s of the Assumption (Dedham, Mass.) past the group stage for the first time; and, of course, a priestly ordination sent one 6-foot-4 seminary legend to the yuppie-loaded League Morning Star — the Southie hooper factory capable of supplying enough bodies for two juggernauts for Saturday’s showdown.
“What’s next, mid-Invite trades?!” SJS guard Joe Jasinski griped. “If Invite ‘leadership’ doesn’t get a handle on things, this could turn more Wild, Wild West than the NCAA.”
OK, maybe reality isn’t quite so dramatic or dire. While “church hopping” may now have hardwood connotations, there’s still something to be said about stayin’-put stability, which, within the context of the SJS Hoops Invite (Vol. III), and the performance it powerfully promotes.
“We compete differently,” SJS center Dcn. Brian Daley said of the Invite’s nature, “with all the intensity of traditional basketball and then some. Our desire to win goes further than a number on the scoreboard.”
At this point, the Invite has its “mainstays,” all returning for a third run at the hardware: St. Brendan’s (East Providence, R.I.), Immaculate Heart of Mary (Still River, Mass.), Resurrection/St. Paul’s (Hingham, Mass.), and St. Thomas (Millis, Mass.), traditionally the youngest rosters (minus St. Thomas), are all a year older and appear poised for pushes into the semifinals (uncharted territory for all but the Millis bunch). And second-year squads — Saint Francis (Braintree), St. Mary’s of the Assumption (Dedham), St. Mary of the Nativity (Scituate), and Gate of Heaven and St. Brigid’s in Southie — now know the lay of the land and hope familiarity breeds success. Vol. III’s lone rookie squad, Catholic Weymouth, hopes to not get caught up in Boston College’s Margot Connell Recreation Center’s bright lights and solidify its spot in the day’s later rounds.
All said, though, as Daley mentioned, the day goes beyond basketball. At its core, it’s a collective challenge.
“We are challenged by the Truth and long to find comrades in the faith who love us precisely by challenging us to be excellent,” Dcn. Daley added. “Sport expresses this longing without words. We compete with intensity not simply to defeat, but to challenge our opponent to be excellent, as we hope they do for us.”
Let’s take a look at this year’s Invite lineup:
◼GATE OF HEAVEN — Don’t expect the wedding ring he added in October to alter sharp-shooter Connor Martin’s sniper scope from deep as last year’s 3-point contest champ leads Gatey. With Zachary Nitsche’s interior ferocity and Matthew “Chigs” Chignoli further propelling the perimeter, Gatey’s title aspirations are as high as its East 4th Street steeple.
◼CATHOLIC WEYMOUTH — Ricky Urdaneta, Tahj Augustin, Vasilis Axios, and Reginald Gilbert … it may be a roster of unknowns at the Invite (for now) but the names simply scream hoopers. Feeding off captain Eoin Walsh’s leadership, the Weymouth bunch is out to prove that Southie ain’t the only parish with a poppin’ morning league.
◼IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY — Having taken down the seminary squad in the schools’ previous two December matchups, the Still River contingent searches for its next victims in the Invite. Long-range assissin Brother Patrick Joseph, who came one shot shy of a 3-point contest title last January, twin brother Brother Christopher Isaac, and the rest of Still River’s gritty gang (e.g. Brother Louis on the boards) will look to ignite a blue-collar barrage and bring head coach Brother Anthony Marie the team’s first Invite trophy.
◼REZ/ST. PAUL — Despite former SJS captain Fr. Marcelo Ferrari recruiting 20-plus young adults to go to FOCUS’s SEEK Conference, the Hingham talent pool runs deep as the Invite vets return to seek revenge in their second group-play game against the host Eagles, who took down the South Shore crew in OT in ’23. The biggest sign of humility shown: 6-foot-6 head coach Eric Lowther not checking himself into a game and mercilessly owning opps in the paint (please don’t get any ideas, Eric).
◼SAINT BRENDAN’S — Could this be the year? It almost seems inevitable that St. Brendan’s time is coming as the young roster gets into their upperclass years of high school down in East Providence. After an 0-for stint in Year 1, the young men in forest green flipped the script in ’24, going 2-1 and narrowly missing out on the semifinals. The back-to-back recipients of the “Best Fans” award are back and hungry … and hoping to finally be suiting up for the afternoon knockout contests.
◼SAINT BRIGID — Despite landing itself in the group of death, last year’s runner-up could still play Grim Reaper against other tourney front-runners. Connor Neville is as savvy as they come; Colin Warner gets an open look? Say goodnight; Kyle Olander jumps like he’s on the moon; and Joe Milosh has Mamba's scoring touch and Mama's intercession after recently completing a Marian consecration. What’s more? With the recent birth of his first son, Michael Hilborn now has another superpower: dad strength. Competition … look out.
◼SAINT FRANCIS/SAINT CLARE — Just like their patron saint from Assisi, the Braintree bunch knows a thing about suffering. After claiming a 3-0 record in last year’s group round, a close loss in the semis had Saint Francis/Saint Clare collecting bronze in its first tourney go-around. But guess who’s back? Andy McCabe and the Big Boys of Braintree — all but two rock XL T-shirt sizes. The two who don’t? Double XL. Gulp.
◼SAINT JOHN’S SEMINARY — With 11 new men in the house this year, the hoops squad has reaped the benefits, adding a half dozen names to its roster (the largest in program history) — defensive pest Patrick Earley, advanced statistician Ed Fantauzzo, Zion Williamson’s clone Samuel Kalu, military maniac John Manning, rebounding guard Kennedy Ogujiuba, and low-post bully Juan Ortega. Can the swell in numbers correlate to a swell in dubs on Saturday? Faithful coaches Pat Nee, Tom Biggins, and Joe Bernardi III sure hope so.
◼SAINT MARY’S OF THE ASSUMPTION — Joe Casey and Charlie Boles look to go full John Henry/Larry Luchino (R.I.P.) and bring St. Mary’s from “worst to first” after coming up short in last year’s group of death. The duo has assembled what one rival renamed the “Wentworth volleyball team,” which could spell nightmares for opponents on the glass and make head coach Fr. Dominic Ngo’s squad the true terror last year’s crew’s “St. Joseph: Terror of Demons” uniforms trumpeted.
◼SAINT MARY OF THE NATIVITY — No pain, no gain, right? Welp, pocketing gold last year cost two Scituate sharpshooters their teeth in the effort (one chipped, one lost), which has led to a slightly revamped roster to prevent repeat casualties. Anchoring the title defense, though, is returner Gavin Lanard, the parish’s faith formation director whose arched 3-point bombs skim the International Space Station. And after serving as the main celebrant at Saturday morning’s Mass, Nativity pastor Fr. Matthew Conley hopes to be seen at day’s end, too, hoisting the parish’s second straight golden basketball.
◼SAINT THOMAS THE APOSTLE — The only thing more eye-popping this past year than the newly installed angels in St. Thomas’ church sanctuary was its squad’s early exit from last year’s Invite after a third-place finish in Year 1. Team captain Sean Parrish vows to not let it happen again. Teaming up with floor general Alex Newsome, sturdy slasher Greg Holt, and others, the parish from the quiet southwest corner of the Archdiocese of Boston hopes to make plenty of noise.
◼TRIVIUM — Taking it back to the days of Aristotle, “trivium” implied the three main academic subjects: Grammar, Logic, and Rhetoric. How these disciples will benefit the Lancaster lads on the court is a mystery — one captain Michael Josephs and teammates are excited to solve Saturday. They’ll rely on familiarity, with three pairs of brothers — Patrick and Michael Josephs and Joseph and Tim Doyle and Hilaire and Ed Pastrone — plus two brothers-in-law in Nate Schroeder and Oscar Cheffers and years of collective pick-up experience all around to get the job done. Sounds logical enough.
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