OLG 32, OLR 26

Coming off a disheartening loss to St. Josephs, the 4A OLG Saints rebounded with a tremendous win over OLR by a score of 32-26. The Saints were led by a sensational all-around effort from Hekili J. who scored 16 points and was a force on both ends of the court. He also received some help from Tyler L, Conner G, and Azaria A who each scored 4 points each. Overall it was a terrific team effort in a physical game that saw the team move to 3-2 in league play and 6-4 overall, while OLR dropped to 2-3.

Have a great Christmas and New Year's!

SCORING TOTALS:

Hekili J - 16
Azaria A - 4
Conner G - 4
Tyler L - 4
Brandon J - 2
Wayne R - 2

ST. JOSEPH'S 30, OLG 28

In what may prove to be a costly loss down the stretch, OLG fell in OT to St. Joseph's 30-28. The loss was agonizing for the fact that OLG led 22-15 through three quarters and seemed to be in total command. However, some critical turnovers, poor shot selection and important missed calls by both refs paved the way for the improbable collapse. No matter, the Saints playing short-handed fought hard from the opening tip to the final buzzer and will certainly rebound from this defeat. Hekili J. led all scorers with 7 points, while Chris P. added 6. With the loss, OLG falls to 2-2 in league play and 5-4 overall, while St. Joseph's moves to 3-0.

SCORING TOTALS

Hekili J - 8
Chris P - 6
Tyler L - 4
Wayne R - 4
Azaria A - 2
Conner G - 2
Brandon J - 2

ST. EDWARDS 31, OLG 13

After a 2-0 start to the season, OLG faced off against the new league power, St. Edwards and learned they still have a long way to go before reaching the top of the MVAL after being overwhelmed 31-13. Facing a big, athletic team, OLG packed in the zone and forced St. Edwards to shoot from ling range in the half court, which effectively neutralized some of their advantages, however the problems came in turnovers that the Spartans used to get numerous fast breaks for easy baskets. It was a good learning experience for the team though and it will only serve to make them work on their current weaknesses. Hekili led all OLG scorers with 6 points, whil Chris added 4. Next up is a battle with St. Joseph's for possession of 2nd place on December 5th! Have a great Thanksgiving OLG families!

SCORING TOTALS

Hekili J - 6
Chris P - 4
Wayne R - 2
Jacob B - 1

OLG SAINTS 24, HOLY SPIRIT 15

The 4A OLG Saints continued their nice start to the 2009-2010 season with a 24-15 victory over Holy Spirit. While Holy Spirit is a traditional league power, the team is suffering a down year, but they still showed plenty of effort and fight. Hekili J. led the Saints' attack as he scored 8 points, while Azaria A. had a season-high 5 and wayne R. aded 4 points. The team started quickly by opening a 9-2 lead in the first period, and continued to race to a 16-6 halftime advantage. In the 2nd half, Holy Spirit rallied to close the gap to 18-11, but back to back buckets by Tyler and Hekili to start the 4th quarter, opeded the lead back up to a comfortable 22-11 advantage. With the win, OLG moves to 2-0 in league play and 5-2 overall, and moves towards a tough game against the league powerhouse, St. Edwards of Newark.

SCORING TOTALS

Hekili - 8
Azaria - 5
Wayne - 4
Tyler - 3
Jacob - 2
Nick - 2

OLG 22, ST. ANNE'S 17

MVL League play opened for the OLG Saints with a most challenging assignment, as they faced a rematch with the powerful team from St. Anne's of Union City. When the teams met in the Consolation finals of the St. Bede's pre-season tournament, St. Anne's overwhelmed the Saints in a 43-20 blowout that found OLG unable to cope with their opponent's speed and press. However, if there's one thing I know about our team, we never stop fighting, and I was eager to see how well would could play them in a rematch.

While the challenge would be daunting, the game itself went according to script. After focusing our practice efforts on handling their press, the team was much more succcesful this time in breaking it which led to plenty of good looks on offense. Even more important was the team playing excellent defense and rebounding well to limit St. Anne's offensive opportunities. By controlling the boards, we were able to deny them the ability to set up their press as much as they would have liked. Overall, it was a sensational effort from the players. Tyler L led all scorers with 9points, while Hekili J added 7 and proved to be the game's leading rebounder. Chris P scored 4 points, including the game winner, while Conner G added a bucket. With the 22-17 win, OLG moves to 1-0 in league play and 4-2 overall for the season.














SCORING TOTALS

Tyler L - 9
Hekili J - 7
Chris P - 4
Conner G - 2

ST. ANNE'S 43, OLG 20

The St. Bede's Tournament ended on an emphatic note with a decisive 43-20 loss to St. Anne's of Union City. The victors were the faster, more experienced team and simply had too many weapons for OLG at this point of the season. However, after a lackluster 1st half that saw OLG trail 24-10, the boys responded with an effective 3rd period where they outplayed their opponent and won the quarter 10-8. This gives hope that as the season progresses and OLG gains more experience, they will be able to compete with one of the Mission Valley powers. Hekili led all OLG scorers with 7 points before fouling out early in the 4th period. Despite the loss, OLG had a very successful tournament experience, placing 6th out of 16 teams, finishing with a 3-2 record, recording two buzzer-beater wins, and gaining valuable experience by playing the maximum five games. The future looks bright for the 2009-10 season!

SCORING TOTALS:

Hekili J - 7
Wayne R. - 4
Chris P. - 3
Connor G. - 2
Brandon J. - 2
Tyler L. - 2

OLG 28, ST. BONAVENTURE 26

Who says lightning can't strike twice? For the second straight game, the 4A OLG Saints played in a thriller that went down to the wire and came out on top with a hard fought 28-26 OT win over St. Bonaventure of Clayton. This time, Chris P. stepped into the hero's role as he he calmly sank a 20 footer from the baseline as time expired in OT to lift the Saints to another dramatic tournament victory. However, he wasn't the only hero as everyone stepped up and played a tough game. Early on, OLG started quickly and were able to carry a 16-13 lead into halftime. However after a slow third quarter, the team trailed 20-18 heading into the final period. The team played strong though and rallied down the stretch to tie it up and sent the game into OT. After falling behind by 1 late in the period, Tyler L converted a free throw to tie it up, then the team forced a turnover with three seconds which opened the door for a win. Inbounding from the baseline, Hekili J hit Chris P in the corner and he lofted the shot which resulted in his only bucket, yet the hugest of the game. With the great effort, OLG moves to 3-1 and advances to the Consolation Bracket finals on Sunday.

SCORING TOTALS:

Hekili J. - 7
Brandon J - 6
Tyler L - 4
Wayne R - 4
Chris P - 2
Nick B - 2
Azaria A - 2
Conner G. - 1

OLG 21, ST. LAWRENCE 20

On Thursday night, with the team trailing by 3 points and 20 seconds left in the game, things didn't look bright for OLG's continued tournament existence. However, digging deep down, the team pulled off a near-miraculous rally, as Hekili J. scored a layup with 11 seconds, then forced a turnover. As the ball rolled to the corner, Brandon J astutely gave chase and collected it with 4 seconds left. Without any sense of panic, he cooly drove the baseline and converted the layup to give OLG a 21-20 win as time expired. It was a great team effort that saw the Saints refuse to quit, and with the win the team advanced to 2-1 and moved into the Consolation Bracket semi-finals for a match-up with St. Bonaventure of Clayton.

SCORING TOTALS
Hekili J - 9
Brandon J - 4
Nick B - 4
Azaria A - 2
Tyler L - 2

ST. RAYMOND'S 30, OLG 9

After an exciting start to the St. Bede's 4A Tournament for the OLG Saints, the team came crashing back to reality with a 30-9 wake-up call from St. Raymond's of Dublin. From the opening tip, St. Raymond's was able to move the ball effectively for easy shots, and clamped down on OLG with a smothering man-to-man defense. If this game proved anything, it was that OLG still has a long way to go before league play opens in November. Nick B led all Saint scorers with 4 points, while Wayne R. and Jacob B. each had 2 points. Tyler L rounded out the scoring with 1 point from the free throw line. With the loss, OLG falls to 1-1 and moves into the consolation bracket of the tournament.

SCORING TOTALS

Nick B. - 4
Jacob B. - 2
Wayne R. - 2
Tyler L. - 1

OLG SAINTS 34, ST. BEDE'S HORNETS 4

The 4A Saints opened their 2009-2010 campaign in impressive fashion today, with a 34-4 thrashing of the St. Bede's Hornets to tip off the annual St. Bede's 4th Grade Tournament. After a slow start, the team picked up steam midway through the 1st Period with an effective press and began to force numerous turnovers. From there the team settled into a nice rhythym of stealing the ball and getting out on the fast break. Hekili led all scorers with 10 points, while Wayne and Chris each added 6. Tyler and Azaris chipped in 4 each. Overall it was a good start to the season, and moves the team to the Elite 8 round of the tournament, where they will match up with last year's tournament champions, St. Raymond's.

SCORING TOTALS

Hekili J - 10
Chris P - 6
Wayne R - 6
Tyler L - 4
Azaria A - 4
Brandon J - 2
Conner G - 2

Welcome!

Welcome to the home page for the 2009-10 OLG Saints' 4A Boys basketball team. In the coming weeks, this site will provide team news, game recaps, stats, pictures, videos, and more! Check back often for updates, and feel free to contribute to the site!