OAKLAND, CA – Elijah Hardy had 19 points and four assists, and Naseem Gaskin filled up the stat sheet as the Bishop O’Dowd starters accounted for all the points in a 67-55 home non-conference victory over St. Patrick-St. Vincent.
The Dragons (13-5) exploded for an 11-0 burst after neither team scored in the first couple of minutes after the opening whistle. St. Patrick-St. Vincent (12-7) climbed back to make it 18-17 Bishop O’Dowd after one but never assumed the lead, and the Dragons slowly but surely tacked on to the lead quarter by quarter.
“It really was us rebounding and getting into our offense,” Bishop O’Dowd coach Lou Richie said. “They played a great game, and we take our hats off to them. We wanted to go a little deeper into our bench. But we wanted to make sure we took care of business.”
The senior trio of Washington-bound Hardy, Gaskin, and Ross Williams did the heavy lifting for O’Dowd. Gaskin had 12 points, 12 rebounds, three steals, two assists, and two blocks, while Williams sank four three-pointers and finished with 17 overall, with 11 of them coming in the opening quarter. William Chavarin picked up two fouls within the first minute of the game, but recovered in the second half and tallied 12 points and six boards.
“We broke down on defense a couple plays, they got a couple easy baskets,” Gaskin noted. “Then our coach called a timeout and we got it back together, our defense and our team chemistry.”
For the Bruins, sophomore big man Dishon Jackson led the way with 16 points, and Akil Edwards added 12.
“The (11-0) run to start the game, we were playing catch up the whole way through,” St. Patrick-St. Vincent coach Derek Walker said, adding that Bishop O’Dowd’s “pressure on defense” was particularly tough. “Outside of the turnovers we performed okay. Our free throw shooting could have been a lot better. Those things we can fix.”
With the win, Bishop O’Dowd remained undefeated against NorCal teams and on their home floor. The Dragons entered the game as the third team in the Prep2Prep NCS rankings, but seem assured of moving up to the two spot with this win and Clayton Valley's loss.
The Bruins came in eighth after a recent strong run following a slow start to the season.
Fans in attendance were treated to a celebrity sighting, as Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr was in attendance.
