During St. Thomas More’s exciting 68-65 victory over St. Patrick’s on Saturday at the PrimeTime Shootout, 6-foot-10 Omari Spellman was feeling it from beyond the arc.
ROSELLE, N.J. — During St. Thomas More’s exciting 68-65 victory over St. Patrick’s on Saturday at the PrimeTime Shootout, 6-foot-9, 265-pound Omari Spellman was feeling it from beyond the arc.
The Villanova-bound big man made a trifecta of three-pointers en route to 11 points as the Chancellors ended up knocking off one of New Jersey’s top teams thanks to a three in the final seconds from St. Joe’s commit Charlie Brown.
“It’s come on in the last two or three years,” Spellman, who ran this summer with the PSA Cardinals AAU program, said of his ability to hit the long ball.
“I feel like I’ll give [Villanova] another dimension, a big man that they can go down [low], who’s just offensively versatile and will fit right in.”
Villanova likes to shoot the three-pointer, but isn’t necessarily known for having bigs who can do it effectively. Consider that senior forward Daniel Ochefu hasn’t made a single three this season, while Spellman has drained 26 this season at St. Thomas More.
Omari Spellman with back to back threes late! St Thomas Moore up 7 with 3 mins. #PrimetimeShootout pic.twitter.com/W10mfKvPRM
– #Jersey (@NJHoopRecruit) February 14, 2016
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Spellman is averaging 16.5 points and 7.5 rebounds while shooting 54 percent from the field and 34 percent from deep for the Chancellors (26-3).
The No. 2-ranked center in the Class of 2016 by 247Sports.com, Spellman has had a strong year already. He won MVP honors at the Sharette Dixon Classic in New York in October, and was recently named to the All-Tournament Team at the National Prep School Invitational in Rhode Island. He was selected to the prestigious Jordan Brand Classic on April 15 in Brooklyn.
“I think he’s a kid where you have to use his abilities,” said STM coach Jere Quinn, whose team has seven Division 1 signees. “We have some plays where we push him outside and bring the big people outside. I think [Villanova] will 100 percent get his body to where it needs to be in the next couple of years, so his play around the basket will improve exponentially. He knows these things but he likes to sneak away, he likes to fade.”
Spellman transferred to St. Thomas More from the MacDuffie (MA) School before the season. Now Quinn, a legendary coach who has coached pros like Andre Drummond, is trying to prepare him for the next level.
“We’re trying to toughen him up on a daily basis for the grind of playing for one of the top programs in the nation,” Quinn said.
By way of doing that, Quinn sat Spellman for the end of the first half against St. Pat’s because he failed to get back on defense and missed a box out.
“H’s such a nice kid, such a young kid, he’d rather be part of the group but we just want him to take that next step to be the best player in today’s gym and then the best player in tomorrow’s gym and then the best player in Connecticut and then the best player in New England,” Quinn said.
Spellman stays in regular touch with the Villanova coaching staff, speaking to head coach Jay Wright “just about every other day” and to assistant Kyle Neptune “just about every day.”
Spellman was especially excited when the Wildcats were installed as the No. 1 team in the nation last week. Since then, they have beaten DePaul and St. John’s.
“I’m happy for them and I’m happy I’ll be there next year,” Spellman said.
Villanova has lost early in the NCAA Tournament the last two seasons despite lofty expectations, but Spellman believes they can break through this March.
“I wouldn’t commit to a school that I didn’t believe could compete for a national championship,” he said. “I think they’re going to be there and I believe in them.”
Spellman committed to Villanova a year ago after also considering Kentucky, Ohio State, UCLA, UConn, Pitt, Arizona, Miami, West Virginia, Virginia, Florida, Indiana, Wake Forest, St. John’s and Seton Hall.
As for his role, Spellman sees himself simply as a basketball player who will fit in.
“That’s the thing about Villanova, they have guards and they have wings and I’m just going to play my game,” he said. “And that’s what coach Wright and I have talked about, just being myself when I get there and being a great teammate and I think it’s going to be fine.”
Like all big men, he must keep his weight under control and stay in shape. He said he weighed 257 pounds at the beginning of the summer but slipped a little after badly spraining his ankle during the summer. He was on crutches at the Peach Jam after the injury.
“I got hurt and I got lazy and I sky-rocketed, got to an uncomfortable weight and I just lost weight from there,” he said. “[I’m] just doing the things that helped me get to 257, just running, doing core work. I just got really lazy when I got hurt and that’s unacceptable.”
Villanova hasn’t had many one- or two-and-dones, but Spellman could become one if he stays in shape.
“If he really is dedicated to the weight room and becomes really dedicated to making his body a temple,” Quinn said, “I think he’s got a really good chance.”
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