#4 St. Benedict's 23-2 (Newark, N.J.)

Roster

No. Name Ht. Position Year
0 John Paul Kambola 6-10 Center Junior
1 Andris Misters 6-4 Guard Sophomore
4 Tavon Sledge 5-9 Guard Sophomore
11 Tamir Jackson 6-3 Guard Senior
14 Xavier Munford 6-2 Guard Junior
15 Lamar Patterson 6-5 Forward Senior
22 Aaron Brown 6-4 Guard Junior
24 Myck Kabongo 6-1 Guard Sophomore
30 Gilvydas Biruta 6-8 Forward Junior
32 Mike Poole 6-6 Forward Junior
55 Blaise Mbargorba 7-0 Center Sophomore

Head Coach: Dan Hurley — 202-19 record in eight years at St. Benedict’s

Tamir Jackson

Jackson, a Rice recruit, has been the Gray Bees’ go-to scorer. A hardnosed defender who also has a deadly shot from the corner, Jackson averages 13 points, four rebounds and four assists per game.

Lamar Patterson

In his lone year at St. Benedict’s, Patterson has filled the rebounding void left by the departure of Samardo Samuels, who’s now at Louisville. Patterson, a Pittsburgh recruit, averages nine points, eight rebounds and 2.5 steals per game.

Myck Kabongo

As a freshman last year, Kabongo played the role of distributor. But this season he’s turned into scorer. Kabongo, a Canada native who has already committed to Texas, averages 10.5 points, 4.5 assists and 2.5 rebounds per game.

St. Benedict’s started the season by winning its first 19 games. The season’s highlight came when the Gray Bees captured the Nike Invitational in Puerto Rico. St. Benedict’s only two losses came to nationally ranked teams Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) and St. Patrick (Elizabeth, N.J.). Still, the Gray Bees’ small-ball lineup is one of the quickest and most dangerous in the country.

Notable alumni include Denver Nuggets guard J.R. Smith (Class of 2004) and University of Louisville forward Samardo Samuels (Class of 2008).

Head coach Dan Hurley never lets up on road trips. In fact, when the Gray Bees arrived in Benton, Ky., for December's Marshall County Hoop Fest at 9:30 a.m., they went right to practice at 11 a.m.

St. Benedict's is more than 130 years old. The school's motto, which is inscribed throughout the walls of its buildings, reads: "Whatever hurts my brother, hurts me."