Well, in those 16 years, one tiny school from downtown Jersey City has totally dominated the boys' tournament, winning nine of the 16 T of C titles. That school is nationally-renowned basketball powerhouse St. Anthony.
Last Sunday, at the Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, St. Anthony captured its ninth T of C championship by defeating Bloomfield Tech, 67-55, to cap a remarkable undefeated (30-0) season. Only one other school, St. Patrick's of Elizabeth, has gathered more than one T of C title, winning twice. With this victory, St. Anthony has also won the T of C in three of the last four years.
So it's safe to say that the tourney has become St. Anthony's own little private playground. Last week, St. Anthony tied a national record by winning the 24th parochial state championship, either in the Parochial B or now defunct Parochial C classification, in the history of the school, tying the mark set by Cheyenne National High School in Cheyenne, Wyoming.
While the T of C title was a feat in itself, completing an undefeated season was even more of an impressive accomplishment, considering that there have been only four St. Anthony teams to ever complete a year without a loss.
Those teams were the 1974 team, the 1989 team (considered by most experts to be the best high school basketball team of all time, featuring future professionals Bobby Hurley, Terry Dehere, Jerry Walker and Rodrick Rhodes) and the 1996 team.
"We've now had one undefeated team in each decade," said Bob Hurley, the legendary architect to all the achievements and championships. "Not only did this team win it, but they put themselves in the history books by doing so."
The Friars never trailed in the championship game, taking the ball right to the Group I champions from the Essex County Schools of Technology. It was the first time ever that a Group I enrollment (up to 500 students) school ever played in the Tournament of Champions final.
Junior forward Barney Anderson, who would earn the game's Most Valuable Player honors, scored eight of his 15 points in the first quarter as the Friars took a commanding 18-10 lead.
Then, the Friars increased the lead in the early stages of the second quarter, when point guard Derrick Mercer canned a 3-pointer, then added two free throws, and senior forward Otis Campbell, returning to action just recently after missing most of the season with a broken foot, capped an 11-3 run that pushed the lead to 29-13 with 2:14 remaining before halftime.
"It was frustrating for me when I wasn't playing," said Campbell, who finished the game with nine points. "I knew I had to come back and try to contribute, because this was my senior year and my last chance. Coach [Hurley] told me that I needed to just relax and let the game come to me, so that's what I did."
The Friars led, 33-16, at the half and had things under control, although Bloomfield Tech did make a slight run in the third quarter, cutting the lead to 42-31 with 2:17 remaining in the third period.
"It's high school basketball and everyone gets a run," Hurley said. "So we congratulated them on their run and then decided we'll have a run of our own. That's just the way the game goes."
The Friars quickly increased the lead back to 16, then protected the ball down the stretch to seal the victory, the overall state championship and the No. 2 national ranking from USA Today.
Hurley never wants to compare one team with a former team. It's just not something he likes to do. However, this team definitely had its distinctions.
"I know I've never had a better defensive team," Hurley said. "Finishing the season undefeated, they've achieved as much as any other year. But we did not build this team to go undefeated. We wanted to do well in the state tournament. I don't think anyone could have ever imagined that this team would go undefeated, so they definitely exceeded all expectations. Our attitude is that we never try to lose. But to win day in and day out with the schedule we play is truly remarkable."
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