Tampa Catholic-Jesuit: The game that never was
31-25. That is what the scoreboard displayed with 6:43 left in the third quarter.
No basketball was played after that due to poor court conditions and then a 15-minute delay that proceeded. The officials and coaches agreed to call the long awaited rivalry matchup between Tampa Catholic (11-2) and Jesuit (13-1).
Kevin Knox’s two free throws were the only points of the second half as the game was called shortly thereafter following a slip by Jesuit guard Thierry Moliere. There will be no makeup date so that means the meeting at Tampa Catholic on Feb. 3 will represent the lone game between the two sides.
This one was announced as a sell out early in the week and the respective student bodies came into the Jesuit gym early into the JV game around 6:30. The amount of fans inside the gym certainly made an impact to the condensation inside as doors were open often and it got noticeably hot early into the varsity game. I felt the floor in the third quarter and was definitely damp.
Jesuit never considered moving the game over Tampa Catholic despite the two schools being located near one another. Games used to be played at local colleges, the University of Tampa and Hillsborough Community College over the last 15 years. Perhaps that is something they can go back to in the near future.
Coaches and players were bummed as that was the last chance for seniors to play in this game on its home floor. That’s what makes the Feb. 3 meeting at Tampa Catholic that much more special.
Knox, the highly sought after senior forward had 18 points and seven rebounds while Darren Robinson, Tim Carter and Messiah Turner each had three points for the Crusaders. Alijah Harrison and Tai Strickland scored two points in this shortened game.
Jesuit was led by Tyson Dunn and his 11 points. Dunn brought the Tigers within four at the half with three 3’s in the second quarter. Lucas Uzdavinis recorded five points and Stevie Darst had four.
It was a shame that this game couldn’t be finished or won’t be made up, but player safety is much more important than anything else. The chants were going back and forth between the Tampa Catholic and Jesuit students as the two sides displayed a lot of anger towards one another. The delay brought chants galore.
Expect the lone matchup of the year that comes next month to be very heated and a close one. Tampa Catholic and Jesuit always find a way to make things entertaining for the crowds in attendance. This one seemed to be getting really good right before the referees made the decision to end it.