Back to back! The St. Xavier Tigers basketball team repeated their profound success at the locally famous Louisville Invitational tournament (LIT) for high school basketball. Led by 6’5″ junior phenom Jeremiah Jackson also known as “Captain Jack”, the St. Xavier Tigers won the LIT for the second year in a row and for the fourth time in school history.
The first game of the LIT was a breeze for St. X as the Tiger basketball team cruised past Christian Academy of Louisville (CAL) in our very own Willis Arena with a winning score of 95-60. In the second round, the Tigers took care of business and beat a feisty Moore squad with a score of 86-48.
The challenge arose in the semifinals of the tournament when the Tigers went toe to toe with the Ballard Bruins who were 11-5 and the number 11 team in the state according to Max Preps. The Tigers struggled with shooting and shot only 22% from three. However, Jeremiah Jackson’s 27 out of St. X’s 61 points carried St. X to a second half comeback win. The Tigers won in a last second contested mid-range pull up jumper by Jackson to lift St. X to the championship game by a score of 61-59.
The fun came on Sunday when the Tiger basketball team pounced on Trinity and won by a whopping 24 points. Once again, junior Jeremiah Jackson led the team in scoring with 17 points; however, it was a full team effort as Chief Cameron, Brandon Dayes, and Chance Dillingham all scored double digit points. St. X played some of the toughest defense they played all year, holding Trinity to only 44 points the whole game and only three points in the third quarter. The St. X rage cage was as loud as it has been all year, while the opposition with very little to cheer for.
The Tigers have won the two biggest in-season tournaments in Kentucky by winning the King of the Bluegrass (KOB) Invitational and now the LIT. This team is special and has big things to come. Coach Klein is on a “generational run” according to senior captain Will Hanke. The Tigers look to carry this success into the back half of the season with big hopes to win the two most important trophies of the season, the region championship, and more importantly, the state championship.
