Boys Basketball: Holy Cross rallies past Brother Martin in thriller, 56-54

Area Boys Prep Basketball Report for Wednesday, Jan. 30

NEW ORLEANS – Cor Jesu High School was not long for the landscape of New Orleans but it is not forgotten.

The school operated from 1954-69 in Gentilly and fielded athletic teams during its tenure, including basketball.

The foundation was laid for the merger with St. Aloysius to win a state championship in 1970 as newly named Brother Martin High School, on the same campus Cor Jesu occupied.

Tuesday night, it was a blast from the past as Brother Martin honored its Cor Jesu legacy as the Crusaders battled Catholic league-leading Holy Cross at Bob Conlin Gymnasium.

The flashback inspired the Crusaders for 31 minutes but the game was one minute too long for the home team.

Kalil Thomas scored with 56 seconds left to give Holy Cross its first lead since the end of the first quarter and the Tigers got two stops down the stretch to rally past Brother Martin, 56-54.

With the game on the line, Thomas stole the show scoring 15 of his game high 24 points in the fourth quarter.

“We started off real slow and we knew we had to come out and play tough in the second half,” Thomas said. “We came through and got the win and that’s all that matters. I needed the ball in the fourth quarter. The crowd was getting to me and I knew I had to do what I had to do to win the game.”

Kalil Thomas ⁦@HCTigersBB⁩ after big win over ⁦@BMHSCrusaders⁩ ⁦@CCSprep⁩ pic.twitter.com/HAbx4L1QKW

— Ken Trahan (@kentrahan) January 30, 2019

The win was the eighth straight for Holy Cross (24-5, 7-1) and it enabled the Tigers to maintain their lead in District 9-5A. Holy Cross coach Mister Kirkwood believed when his team was down but was relieved afterwards.

“They’re going to fight and they’re staying with the mission,” Kirkwood said. “We’re playing possession by possession basketball, even when we were down 11. We just told them they would hit shots, you just play good defense, stay in front of your guy and play possession basketball and you’re going to win the game. That was the outcome tonight. I’m proud of my guys. Kalil asserted himself late. He is a team-first guy. We’ve got to stop falling behind like this. It’s hard on my nerves.”

Mister Kirkwood after ⁦@HCTigersBB⁩ win over ⁦@BMHSCrusaders⁩ ⁦@CCSprep⁩ pic.twitter.com/p5Ra67o0iK

— Ken Trahan (@kentrahan) January 30, 2019

The first quarter was tightly contested with Brother Martin taking a 12-11 lead behind five points from T.J. Small.

The Crusaders owned the second quarter, outscoring the Tigers 21-9 as Dillon Delatte had 10 points in the quarter and 12 in the half while Grant DeLord hit a pair of 3-pointers in the period.

The Tigers came alive in the third quarter, going on a 12-0 run to pull within 34-33 but could never get the lead as the Crusaders answered with an 8-0 run to lead 42-35 by the end of the quarter as Small scored five points in the period.

In the fourth quarter, Holy Cross pulled with 43-41 and 45-43 but Brother Martin moved back out to a 50-45 lead with under three minutes left. The Tigers rallied to tie it 50-50 but the Crusaders scored four straight to take a 54-50 lead before Tyler Beaver scored and Thomas performed his heroics down the stretch.

Jeremy Lindsey had nine points for Holy Cross (24-5, 7-1) while Myles Sanders had eight points and Beaver finished with seven points.

Small topped Brother Martin (13-15, 4-4) with 15 points and eight rebounds while Delatte finished with 14 points and 10 rebounds and Victor Tomlinson came off the bench to score 14 points and dish out five assists. DeLord finished with 10 points and five rebounds.

“It’s the worst,” Brother Martin coach Chris Biehl said. “I told the boys that for 31 minutes, they earned the win and in the last minute of the game, we didn’t do what we were supposed to do to finish the game. It’s a credit to Holy Cross. We had opportunities. We went 5-for-14 from the free throw line. It’s a varsity game. You can’t go 5-for-14 and beat the district leader. We did an incredible job on Thomas most of the night. We lost our discipline when it matters most.”

The win completed a season sweep of the Crusaders by the Tigers, who beat Brother Martin 59-49 at home on Jan. 5.

Both teams return to 9-5A action Friday night with Holy Cross hosting Jesuit while Brother Martin entertains Archbishop Shaw.

“This team is special, man,” Thomas said. “Everyday in practice, we go hard. My teammates push me every day in practice to be better. I love this team. We stayed tough. Friday night is a big one. We have to get back to practice tomorrow and be ready for Friday.”

Final
HC 12 9 14 21 — 56
BM 11 21 10 12 — 54

Scoring
HC—Kalil Thomas 24, Jeremy Lindsey 9, Myles Sanders 8, Tyler Beaver 7, Tyler Kirkwood 3, Sidney Madison 3, Aaron Ursin 2

BM—T.J. Small 15, Dillon Delatte 14, Victor Tomlinson 14, Grant DeLord 10, Brock Ranlett 2, Peter Schneller 1,

Rebounds
HC 26, BM 29

Turnovers
HC 12, BM 11

Area Boys Prep Basketball Results from Tuesday, Jan. 29

New Orleans Area

Crescent City Christian 82, Holden 62

Donaldsonville 67, De La Salle 49

East St. John 73, H.L. Bourgeois 68

Hahnville 64, Terrebonne 60

Hammond 71, St. Paul’s 64

Holy Cross 56, Brother Martin 54

Independence 46, Pope John Paul II 41

Jesuit 61, Archbishop Rummel 38

Karr 62, McDonogh 35 41

J.F. Kennedy 90, Riverdale 59

KIPP-B.T. Washington 78, Country Day 71

Lakeshore 87, Franklinton 69

Northlake Christian 45, Pine 40

Northshore 68, Fontainebleau 51

Ponchatoula 67, Mandeville 61

Slidell 59, Covington 58

St. James 55, St. Charles Catholic 46

Patrick Taylor 46, Fisher 30

West Jefferson 77, Higgins 63

Sophie B. Wright 89, Thomas Jefferson 43

St. Martin’s Episcopal 54, Ecole Classique 42

Baton Rouge Area

Brusly 68, West Feliciana 52

Catholic (BR) 89, Riverside Academy 57

Denham Springs 62, Live Oak 59

Doyle 75, French Settlement 57

East Iberville 68, Ascension Catholic 56

Glen Oaks 56, Baker 53

Jehovah-Jireh 75, University High 73

Plaquemine 67, Lee Magnet 62

Springfield 61, Family Christian 51

St. John 66, West St. John 51

St. Michael 58, Parkview Baptist 45

Tara 55, Lutcher 50

Walker 69, Scotlandville 65

White Castle 79, Southern Lab 53

Zachary 77, Dutchtown 60

Bayou Area

Assumption 67, South Terrebonne 42

Berwick 62, Highland Baptist 37

Centerville 68, Vermilion Catholic 49

Franklin 100, Loreauville 25

Jeanerette 66, Catholic (NI) 61

Lafayette Christian 56, Central Catholic 42

Morgan City 67, E.D. White Catholic 58

Thibodaux 59, Destrehan 52

David Thibodaux 54, Patterson 49

Vandebilt Catholic 52, South Lafourche 46

West St. Mary 52, Delcambre 43

Area Boys Prep Basketball Schedule for Wednesday, Jan. 30

New Orleans Area

Ascension Catholic at Clark, 6 pm

Bogalusa at Albany, 7 pm

Bonnabel at East Jefferson, 7 pm

Chalmette at John Ehret, 6:30 pm

Cohen at West St. John, 7 pm

Crescent City Christian at Riverside Academy, 6 pm

Grand Isle at Phoenix, 6:15 pm

KIPP Renaissance at Newman, 7 pm

South Plaquemines at Fisher, 6:15 pm

St. Charles Catholic at Lusher, 6 pm

Baton Rouge Area

Central at Belaire, 5 pm

East Ascension at Madison Prep, 7 pm

Opelousas Catholic at Catholic (PC), 6 pm