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The doors to the Carmody Center at Gonzaga College High School were closed an hour before game time Tuesday night as 1,200 people packed into the gymnasium well before tip-off. Those who made it into the game were treated to one of the season’s best. Gonzaga, ranked No. 1 in the area and riding a 17-game winning streak, hosted DeMatha, the No. 6 team in the city and winners of three straight. Although DeMatha only had one senior on the floor for the majority of the night, the Stags fought hard against a veteran Gonzaga team and won 45-42. That senior, however, was named Kenny Tate and he pulled down a career-high 18 rebounds to go along with 10 blocks and three points.*
“I think some people have kind of disregarded his impact on our team,” DeMatha Coach Mike Jones said. “He’s not going to score 30 points a game, but what he does for this team is more valuable than any basket. I would say he’s the most important player on our team. If anyone on this team tells you differently, he’s lying.”
Gonzaga was in control for the majority of the night until DeMatha pulled within one point with 1:14 to play in the fourth quarter. The Stags were able to get back-to-back baskets, including a goaltending call on the Eagles that stretched DeMatha’s lead to 45-42 with 11.2 seconds left in the game. Gonzaga had one last desperation shot, but it fell short, handing the Eagles their first loss of the season.
“The pressure’s off,” Gonzaga Coach Steve Turner said. “This is going to make us a better team, and we have to find out now how we handle adversity. We’re playing two of the top five teams in the area over the next few days with Good Counsel and O’Connell. We’re going to find out what we’re made of.”
DeMatha played the majority of the season without Kenny Tate because the 6-foot-4, 210-pound senior was preparing for the U.S. Army All-American Bowl. He has also taken official visits to Illinois and Maryland and has one planned to Penn State this weekend. Tate wasn’t even sure if he was going to play basketball this year, but he decided to take the court for one last season.
“I would never have had the chance to play organized basketball again,” Tate said. “I enjoy the game, I love DeMatha, I love the team, the coach, everybody. I just felt the need to come back and play.”
Tate’s physical play seemed to overwhelm Gonzaga at times. Ian Hummer, Gonzaga’s biggest body on the floor, was held to one point and only Max Kenyi (17 points) and Cameron Johnson (11 points) were the only players effective on offense.
“In the past we’ve had Jerai Grant and Chris Braswell to correct things down low,” Jones said. “Earlier this year we didn’t have any guys that can do that, but they are going to develop. Having Kenny back is huge.”
Josh Selby (12 points) and Marcus Rouse (11 points) were the only DeMatha players to score in double figures. Naji Hibbert was able to score eight points with an injured wrist. According to Jones, he was a game-time decision and didn’t practice on Monday.
Gonzaga (17-1, 8-1) will play at Good Counsel (15-3, 5-3) Friday night at 7:30 while DeMatha (10-5, 4-3) plays at O’Connell (14-3, 5-2) the same time.
No. 6 DeMatha 45, No. 1 Gonzaga 42
DeM (10-5, 4-3): Selby 3 6-8 12, Rouse 5 1-2 11, Hibbert 4 0-2 8, Oladipo 1 2-2 5, Smith 2 0-0 4, Tate 1 1-2 3, Cook 1 0-0 2.
Totals 17 10-18 45.
GZ (17-1, 8-1): Kenyi 7 1-2 17, Johnson 4 3-7 11, Thornton 3 1-2 7, Lindsay 1 1-2 3, Hanagan 1 0-0 2, Dunning 0 1-2 1, Hummer 0 1-2 1.
Totals 16 8-17 42.
Halftime: Gonzaga, 22-19.
Three-point goals: D (Oladipo); G 2 (Kenyi 2).
*Stats provided by DeMatha. Photographs by Josh Johnson. Video by Chris Lehnert.
