St. Anthony’s HS, NJ Hoop Powerhouse, To Close

Nothing can save New Jersey hoop powerhouse St. Anthony’s located in Jersey City, NJ. For many years, St. Anthony’s has dominated the men’s basketball scene with Bobby Hurley Sr. as head coach. Now the most storied high school boys basketball program in New Jersey history is closing its doors.

NJ.com reports, St. Anthony High School will suspend operations at the end of the 2016-17 school year in June due to a lack of funding and declining enrollment. Bob Hurley Sr., the school’s principal and basketball team’s Hall of Fame coach, was meeting with his staff to announce the news on Wednesday.

The Archdiocese of Newark came to the decision to close the small school near the mouth of the Holland Tunnel after meeting with St. Anthony officials earlier on Wednesday, determining that St. Anthony’s fundraising efforts were not enough to overcome its crippling financial issues.

St. Anthony opened its doors in 1952, and Hurley took over as head basketball coach in 1972. It didn’t take long for him to turn the team into a state champion. Over the next four decades he built the Friars into the most prolific team in New Jersey and arguably the most successful program in the nation.

The Friars won 28 state titles with Hurley at the head. The Tournament of Champions has been played 28 times, and St. Anthony won 13 of them. That includes the 2015-16 season when the Friars went 32-0, the eighth Bob Hurley team to go undefeated.

Hurley said in recent days that enrollment was not far off its typical number but was not as strong as the school hoped. He described the possible closure as “a cloud hanging over the school all year” when it came to enrollment efforts. Despite a series of successful fundraisers held since the school’s money situation was revealed, there was still a financial gap that the school was unable to close to help the institution’s future.

Source: NJ.com