BE boys’ basketball falls short in playoffs
In a season of great expectations, the Bishop England boys’ basketball team came up two games too short. The Bishops, who had dreams of winning the program’s first state championship in the school’s long history, will truly appreciate what they accomplished in a memorable 2019-20 season once the pain and hurt subside.
The Bishops had one of those nights where things didn’t go exactly as scripted or hoped in a third-round game against Wade Hampton. The Red Devils brought the Bishops’ season to an end with a 53-46 victory at Father O’Brien Gym on Feb. 25.
The Bishops finished with a 26-3 record, a Region 7-AAA championship and a school record for the longest winning streak to open a season: 20 games. That’s a great season. But the Bishops wanted more.
“This team, I really felt, this team was the one that could do it,” Bishop England basketball Coach Bryan Grevey said. “Unfortunately, we fell short. It wasn’t the lack of effort. It just wasn’t our night. In the playoff game, that’s the difference between winning and losing. It was one of those games where the shots weren’t falling. In past games, if we had one player who was having an off night, we had three or four players pick it up. But that didn’t happen. We were 3 of 17 from 3-point range, our worst performance of the year. But you have to give Wade Hampton credit for some of that.”
The Bishops hit a respectable 43% from the field, but the visitors hit 70% from the field, hitting 21 of 30. That negated the Bishops’ big night from the foul line. The Bishops hit 13 of 14 from the free throw line. But it wasn’t enough to extend the season.
Wade Hampton took a 10-8 lead at the end of the first quarter in a game that had numerous ties and lead changes. The visitors led the Bishops 26-25 at halftime and extended the lead to 35-31 after three stops.
Versalius Johnson led Wade Hampton with 19 points, while Jamie Risher tallied 17.
Aidan McCool was the only Bishop in double figures with 20 points as he hit 67% from the field (4 of 6) and 90% from the foul line (9 of 10). Daniel Brooks collected eight points and eight rebounds.
The Bishops were the talk of high school basketball in the Palmetto State with a 20-0 record to begin the season. The team went 9-1 in league play and 2-1 in the playoffs.
“This is a great bunch of kids,” Grevey said. “We have eight seniors, and all of them contributed in some way whether it was a game, practice or simply by offering emotional support.”
He added, “The big thing was how unselfish these guys were. They didn’t care who scored or who made headlines. All they wanted to do was win.”
Wade Hampton advanced to Saturday’s state championship game against Keenan with a 68-44 victory over Cheraw in the Lower State championship.