On Ash Wednesday, the Blue Jays basketball team celebrated Senior Night, honoring 5 seniors and their parents for their contributions to the basketball program. To cap off the celebration, the Blue Jays notched their ninth district win over Shaw, 52-35.

The seniors being honored before the game were players Drew Black, Michael Hull, Will Landrieu, and Patrick Schwing, and team manager, John McMahon. Through the years the student manager has held a special place at Jesuit High School and has often gone on to a leadership role and much success in his career. F. Edward Hebert ’20, manager of all sports teams, went on to become a powerful U.S. Congressman. Mike Early ’33, manager of the baseball team, became the nationally recognized leader of WWL-TV in the second half of the 20^th century. Hap Glaudi ’36, manager of the baseball team, became an endeared New Orleans fixture as a journalist and sportscaster at WWL-TV. As the servant leader, the Blue Jay manager has exemplified the best traits of a Jesuit graduate, and John McMahon has lived up to that standard for many seasons.

About this group of seniors, Coach Chris Jennings ’78 said “I’m just very impressed with their intensity from day to day, all the effort that they put forth. When I watch film of the games, it’s so impressive to watch this team get after it on the court.” Jennings also said how much recognition John McMahon deserves for his service to the team.

Michael Hull fights for a rebound early in the game against Shaw.

The four senior players were starters against the Catholic league opponent, and after a few minutes of warming up, jumped out to an 18-6 lead by the end of the 1st Quarter.

Although Jesuit and Shaw had striking similar shooting percentages in the game from the field and from 3-point territory, Jesuit nearly doubled Shaw’s shot attempts, shooting 58 shots to Shaw’s 37. Jesuit was able to get so many shots because they forced 26 Shaw turnovers with an impressive 21 steals and because they pulled down 19 offensive rebounds.

Elijah Morgan led all scorers with 19 points, including four 3-pointers. Morgan also led the defensive effort with an incredible 11 of Jesuit’s 21 steals. Will Landrieu had 13 points, and Drew Black had 8 rebounds.

The team is now 9-2 in district and concludes district play on Friday night at John Curtis at 7 PM. In the race for the top spot in district, Jesuit still is a game behind St. Augustine, who still has Shaw and Holy Cross on their schedule.