The St. Louis U. High basketball team used what was initially scheduled to be a week-break to schedule games vs. Cardinal Ritter and Miller Career Academy. SLUH split the games, falling at Cardinal Ritter on Jan. 28 by seven points and defeating Miller Career Academy on Feb. 1, a game that was postponed in December due to COVID-19 testing. The Jr. Bills moved to 6-5 after the two games.

 Cardinal Ritter (11-3) entered the game vs. SLUH on a dominant six game win streak, beating its opponents by an average of 23.5 points per game in that span. Three Cardinal Ritter players—Mario Fleming, Illyaas Harris, and Robert Lewis—scored in double figures and lifted the team to a 63-56 victory.

 SLUH’s defense—which held Cardinal Ritter to its third fewest points on the season—and another stellar performance from junior Nick Kramer kept the game competitive to the wire. Cardinal Ritter shot just 32.1 percent from the floor, including just 21.7 percent from beyond the arc. Fleming, who entered the game averaging 21.4 points per game, was held to a dismal 4-for-27, connecting on just two of his 14 three-point attempts. 

Despite locking down Fleming, SLUH allowed Cardinal Ritter forward Lewis to go off for 20 points, his third most of the season, on an efficient 9 for 13 from the floor. Harris pitched in 15 points, his career high.

 On the offensive end for SLUH, junior phenom Kramer continued his tear. He led the way with 29 points, besting his career-high of 28, and accounted for over half of SLUH’s total points for the second consecutive game.

After the loss to Cardinal Ritter, SLUH began a four-game homestand with a 48-47 win against Miller Career Academy (6-2). The Jr. Bills dug themselves out of an early hole to take the narrow victory, trailing by as many as 12 in the first half.

Aaron Walker Jr. scored the games’ first points with a layup on the first play, but then SLUH was swarmed by Miller Career’s aggressive full-court press. Miller Career picked sophomore Jaden McClain’s pocket and converted with an easy layup, and then forced another turnover on Kramer, who dribbled the ball off his foot in the corner of the court. Miller Career capitalized on SLUH’s array of turnovers and bleak 1 for 7 start on field goal attempts, jumping out to a 9-2 lead and taking a 15-9 lead into the second quarter.

 SLUH’s offensive woes continued in the second quarter, scoring just six points and falling behind 27-15 at the half. Miller Career’s potent defense forced Kramer to a poor first-half performance; he had just four points at the half.

“We’ve been struggling to take care of the ball, especially in the beginning of the games,” head coach Erwin Claggett said. “My main message to the team (at the half) was to stay locked in and be smart with the ball.”

The Jr. Bills flipped the script in the beginning of the second half, using a quick 7-0 run to trim the lead to just five. But Miller Career responded with another stretch of strong defense and solid transition offense to push the lead back to double digits. After McClain connected on a triple, Miller Career guard Vemetrius Jackson was whistled for an offensive foul and was tagged with a technical foul after voicing his dissatisfaction with the call, giving SLUH a pair of free throws and the possession. SLUH scored four points off the encounter, closing Miller Career’s lead to 34-30 at the end of the third quarter.

“We made better decisions and took care of the ball,” Claggett said of the team’s third quarter performance.

Kramer, who struggled in the first three quarters, carried the Jr. Bills to a dominant fourth quarter performance and the win. Kramer had nine of SLUH’s 18 fourth-quarter points, and his bucket midway through the quarter gave SLUH its second lead of the game and first since leading 2-0. SLUH pushed the lead to eight with over a minute to go, and Miller Career did not have enough time for a chance to win or send the game to overtime, trimming the lead to one with a last-second three-pointer.

The thick of MCC play awaits the Jr. Bills, who are 1-2 in conference play thus far. SLUH faced Chaminade (12-1, 4-0 MCC) last night and will face CBC (10-2, 3-1) tomorrow night and De Smet (10-5, 1-3) on Feb. 10. All games will begin at 6:30 p.m. and will be live streamed on SLUH Sports Network.