New tournament director, same exceptional tournament experience. 

Once again, the 53rd annual Msgr. King Memorial Basketball Tournament returned to the iconic green floor at St. Thomas Aquinas Parish, Flatlands, Dec. 26-30. For the first time, the parish sports association’s new director, Brian Shea, ran the festivities, and it was a smashing success. 

The eight-team field included local CHSAA participants St. Edmund Prep H.S., Sheepshead Bay, and Cristo Rey Brooklyn H.S., Flatbush. They were joined by Ralph R. McKee Career and Technical Education H.S., Staten Island; Far Rockaway H.S.; Bedford Academy, Bedford-Stuyvesant; Stevenson H.S., the Bronx; Maspeth H.S.; and CSI McCown, Staten Island. 

In the championship, Stevenson took down McKee Tech, with St. Edmund Prep turning in an impressive third place showing with a victory over Bedford. 

From his days as a towel boy at the tournament to playing in it as a member of the St. Edmund’s Eagles to now running the whole show, it’s been a full-circle journey for Shea, who said he’s grateful to former tournament director Guy DeFonzo for serving as a mentor. 

“This was the first tournament where I either didn’t play in it or was at the clock,” said Shea, a former Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) basketball player at St. Thomas who is now the head varsity boys’ hoops coach at Adams Street Academy, Downtown Brooklyn, as well as the head coach of the 16U New York Jayhawks Amateur Athletic Union program. “It kept me more engaged in the games and making sure everything was running smoothly.” 

Shea received a helping hand from his Adams Street student-athletes. The players volunteered as greeters at the door, snack-stand attendees, and announcers for the games. This allowed Shea to keep the tournament’s longstanding history of professionalism intact. Once again, spirited crowds filled the bleachers for the winter tradition. 

“There are people that come to the tournament because they love it,” said Shea, who also runs the St. Thomas Aquinas Sports Association. “They’ve been coming to it for 30 or 40 years, and I want to keep that going.” 

From its beginnings in 1962, the tournament — which uniquely pits Public School Athletic League teams against CHSAA teams — has featured top boys’ varsity high school teams in New York City and beyond. The tournament is named after former St. Thomas Aquinas pastor Msgr. Jeremiah King, who in 1954 oversaw a fundraising campaign to help construct three new parish buildings, one of which was the basketball gymnasium. 

At the time it was founded, the tournament was the first high school basketball tournament to be played at a grammar school gymnasium in the country. Since then, the legend has grown, with the likes of former NBA stars Chris Mullin and Metta Sandiford-Artest taking to the gym’s floor. 

After a 10-year hiatus, the Msgr. King Tournament made its triumphant return in December 2014 under the direction of the parish’s pastor, the late Msgr. John Brown. Originally slated to be part of a five-year plan, the tournament was brought back to life a few years early. 

The historic feel of the tournament easily makes it the premier holiday hoops competition in the area, with the games taking on an early-season playoff atmosphere. It’s always a special time for St. Edmund Prep head boys’ varsity basketball coach Dan Wiatre, who won a few tournaments as a player with Nazareth H.S., East Flatbush, and also played CYO at the parish. 

“I always see someone at the King Tournament that I haven’t seen in years,” he said. “There’s always a standard of basketball no matter what teams are there. Since I’ve been at St. Edmund’s, I feel like we’re the home team, and it’s our job to set the standard that other teams follow.” 

Eagles senior team captain Gavin Paulsen said he was honored to be named to the All-Tournament of such a prestigious event. In the third-place title game, he recorded a double-double with 22 points and 13 rebounds. 

“Just playing in that gym is very special,” said Paulsen, a shooting guard/small forward. “Getting a chance to play there during the King Tournament, which is so popular in the city, was awesome.” 

It can be tough for student-athletes during their holiday break from school to realize the thrill of playing in the King Tournament. If they took a moment to step back and appreciate it, surely they’d know that they were forming lasting memories. 

Year by year, the return of the holiday tournament continues to cement the tradition of the St. Thomas Aquinas gym being known as the “Madison Square Garden” of local youth basketball.