"There were no egos on this team," said Clatchey, 41, who is a physical education teacher at Our Lady of Victory. 2 Spalding, 63-58, in double overtime 76-75 in overtime and 36-33 in the BCL final. Ray Mullis Coach of the Year by his peers for a third straight season, and his Gaels were more than up to it, sweeping the powerful Cavaliers in three games.
The Gaels, who won their first-ever BCL regular-season and tournament titles last season, faced a major challenge from Archbishop Spalding and McDonald's All-American Rudy Gay this season.Ĭlatchey, who was named the BCL O. 7 Cardinal Gibbons in the MIAA A Conference semifinals. Joseph graduate in his 12th season as coach, the Gaels (29-6) lost only three games locally, two in the regular season to No. 1 team for the first time in school history. He will play in the Charm City Challenge on April 4 at Towson University.Ĭlatchey led the Gaels to repeat championships in both the Baltimore Catholic League and the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference. Thomas finished his high school career with a school-record 1,631 points. Joseph (29-6) to its first-ever BCL title as a junior, Thomas held Spalding All-American Rudy Gay to 10 points while scoring 12, grabbing 13 rebounds and blocking four shots in a 36-33 victory in this season's championship game.Īveraging 18.3 points, 12.1 rebounds, three blocks and three steals, Thomas was a repeat selection to the All-Metro, MIAA A Conference and BCL regular-season and tournament teams. Maria Goretti as players earning multiple tournament MVP awards.Īfter leading Mount St. Frances' Mark Karcher, Derrick Snowden of Spalding and Rodney Monroe of St. Overall, the Gaels were 6-0 against Spalding the past two years. Thomas led the Gaels to Baltimore Catholic League tournament final wins over Spalding the past two seasons and was named BCL tournament Most Valuable Player both times. Thomas, who has accepted a scholarship to George Mason University, led the Gaels to back-to-back regular season and tournament championships, an 82-17 overall record in three varsity seasons and the program's first No. He led us to six championships in two years and that's pretty phenomenal." "He's accomplished things nobody else has. Gaels coach Pat Clatchey says the 6-foot-7 Thomas "has to go down as the best player in St. Gay will play in the McDonald's All-American game March 31 in Oklahoma City, Okla., as well as the Jordan Capital Classic April 17 at Comcast Center. His ability to block shots or make opponents alter them, coupled with having the quickness of a guard, led a Cavaliers defense that was 22-1 when holding teams under 60 points. Including his first two years at Eastern Tech, Gay had 1,588 career points. Gay finished his two years at Spalding with 1,181 points, the third-highest total in school history. In the MIAA final, Gay, who was named to the Alhambra all-tournament team, scored 29 points, 14 coming on seven spectacular dunks, grabbed 10 rebounds and had three steals in front of a record crowd at Gilman.
2 Cavaliers (29-8) to the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference tournament title over then-No. Gay won the Jerry Savage Player of the Year award for the Baltimore Catholic League regular season and led the No. Gay played above the rim, but he also can launch three-pointers from NBA distance or hit short jumpers off his variety of spin moves.įans turned out in big numbers to see Gay put on a show and they rarely were disappointed. The result was a senior season in which the multi-talented forward with long arms and an exceptional wing span averaged 21.2 points, 9.2 rebounds and 3.9 blocks. He also fined-tuned his high flying act and signed with Connecticut before the start of the season. He also received the prestige of being named a McDonald's All-American.Īn All-Metro pick as a junior, Gay grew two inches and put on 15 pounds in the offseason. Gay's showing at national camps resulted in his stock rising from a top-100 player to a top-10 player. Few players have burst onto the national stage in just one summer as the 6-foot-9 Gay did.