Every other week during the season, Bishop Loughlin’s star junior guard Jasmine Alston takes us into her world on and off the court. In this exclusive diary for NYPost.com, Alston chronicles Bishop Loughlin’s quest to prove itself as one of the city’s top programs and earn a CHSAA Class A state title.
We were told: “We don’t wear those Chicken shirts for no reason, this is supposed to be Chicken’s year.”
And look at what we did.
Our Brooklyn/Queens first round loss Tuesday was an unexpected defeat in the journey and because of the high expectations we had for ourselves. We came out flat for our game and Christ the King took full advantage by pushing the ball and hitting the open man. It was like they basically used our own game against us. We could not buy a shot that game but then again we cannot make excuses for defense. We could have stopped things that were in our control like boxing out, pushing the ball and getting back on defense but that is in the past now.
Our season isn’t over yet.
For my team and I, we are back in the gym probably every day until our first CHSAA Class A city playoff game. We are still feeling that loss to King tremendously, so with our passion we are not going to let another one slip away from us. We want these next couple of wins bad, especially our seniors who do not want to go out on a bad note. We will do anything in our power to accomplish this.
But I think without our outstanding coaches we could not have even gotten this far because I could not imagine how hard it is working with 10 different females, coping with our attitudes and try to help us in the best possible way they can. We appreciate all of them for this.
They put most of their time outside of the few hours in the gym trying to put things together for us to win, give us all the plays, work us out the hardest, but they cannot come on the floor and play for us at the end of the day. And that is when we have to execute what they have given us to the full potential.
Besides basketball, I have started an SAT prep class every Saturday so I can score to the highest of my ability when I take it in May. But it’s good to just go someplace where no one really knows you or can prejudge you except for what you bring to the table. And I enjoy letting my guard down, forgetting basketball for a few hours and just focus on the task at hand.
Also I have recently began getting ready for my last AAU season and will continuously go down to New Jersey and work with Hoop America because of the things they are doing will help me add many aspects to my game. I will be more than ready for this summer.
Thank you for checking in with Jasmine Alston during the season. This is her last diary entry unless the Lions advance to the state Federation tournament.
