This one should get your attention, Lancaster-Lebanon League boys’ basketball fans. Our sports editor, Keith Schweigert, is reporting that McCaskey star Lamar Patterson will leave the School District of Lancaster and head to St. Benedict’s in New Jersey for his senior year before going to the University of Pittsburgh. Here’s Keith’s scoop from Monday’s New Era:
Lamar Patterson is already one of the brightest stars in McCaskey basketball history.
But the 6-4 forward and University of Pittsburgh recruit will not finish his career with the Red Tornado.
Patterson will transfer to St. Benedict’s, a college preparatory school located in Newark, N.J., for his senior season, the New Era has learned.
“I wanted to go to a school that would get me better prepared for Pitt,” Patterson explained from his home Sunday night.
“St. Benedict’s is a great school, and it has one of the best basketball programs in the nation. It felt like the right place for me.”
Patterson, who gave a verbal commitment to Pitt last fall, is ranked 15th in the nation among players in his age group by Rivals.com.
He averaged 18.7 points per game for McCaskey last season, helping the Red Tornado earn its fourth Lancaster-Lebanon League championship in a row.
Patterson was named to the Associated Press Quad-A All-State Second Team and was the Lancaster Newspapers Player of the Year.
He said his decision to leave McCaskey was not made lightly.
“It was tough,” he said. “I love McCaskey. But this is something I feel I need to do to better myself.”
Patterson’s older brothers both graduated from McCaskey. The eldest, half-brother Lorne Creighton, starred in basketball and went on to play for one season at Kutztown University.
His other brother, Perry, was one of McCaskey’s most heraled athletes. A star quarterback and guard on the basketball team, he went on to start at quarterback for Syracuse University.
Patterson said he considered transferring to the school before the start of his junior season at McCaskey, but changed his mind.
He said his mother, Lorraine, who works as a nurse for the School District of Lancaster, was initially hesitant to allow the transfer.
“She wanted all three of her boys to graduate from McCaskey,” Patterson said. “It was a tough sell, but she eventually came to see that this was a good opportunity for me.”
Patterson said St. Benedict’s will help prepare him both mentally and physically for the rigors of Division I college athletics.
“If it was just about playing basketball, I wouldn’t go there,” he said. “Their academic standards are very high, and the classes are hard.”
But Patterson admits that basketball was his primary motive for transferring.
St. Benedict’s went 24-1 last season against some of the nation’s top high school programs.
The Gray Bees are coached by Dan Hurley, the son of legendary coach Bob Hurley and the younger brother of Bobby Hurley, the former Duke star.
Dan Hurley, who played high school ball for his father at St. Anthony’s and later played at Seton Hall, led St. Benedict’s to a 24-1 record last season.
Ironically, the Gray Bees were ranked No. 2 in the nation by USA Today at the end of last season. The top-ranked team was St. Anthony’s — Bob Hurley’s program.
Patterson expects to split his time between shooting guard and small forward with the Gray Bees — the same positions he’s likely to play for Pitt.
He said he’s spoken to Pitt coach Jamie Dixon, who supports the move.
“He said I’ll be better prepared, both mentally and physically,” Patterson said. “And he told me this will really help me get some playing time as a freshman.”
Still, Patterson said he understands that his decision to change schools will come as a disappointment to some Red Tornado fans, friends, coaches and teammates.
“I’m sure there will be people who don’t like it,” he said. “But in the long run, I hope they’ll understand that I’m trying to do the best I can to prepare myself for the next level. It’s just something I felt I needed to do.”
