Julian O’Brien-Wyomissing

A career-high 33 points in a victory at Antietam followed by a game-winning shot against Oley Valley; not a bad 24 hours for Julian O’Brien. The Wyomissing senior guard came up big for the Spartans in the second half of a 42-41 win on Saturday. O’Brien had just five points at halftime. He finished with 24 including ten in the final quarter. O’Brien told me that he was forcing things early on. Wyomissing committed nine turnovers in the first quarter. The (8-6, 5-2) Spartans trailed 15-8 after the first period. They were down 22-10 midway through the second quarter after a three-point play by Danny Turchi. The 6’2 senior poured in 22 points for the Lynx, but only three in the second half. Turchi is averaging 17 points. O’Brien isn’t far behind him at 16.5 per game. We discussed the final possession and his go-ahead shot with five seconds remaining. We also talked about Nevin Carter’s clutch 3-pointer from the right corner with 1:31 to go. Carter’s fourth trey of the season pulled Wyomissing within one point. After an Oley Valley turnover, O’Brien sank a floater with 50 seconds left to put the Spartans in front 40-39. However, Turchi responded moments later with a reverse layup. That set the stage for O’Brien’s heroics in the closing seconds. The (11-4, 5-3) Lynx missed a half-court shot at the buzzer and their 7-game winning streak came to a sudden halt. Oley Valley was held to 14 points in the second half. Chase Reifsnyder chipped in with eight points. He splashed a 3-pointer from the right corner to give the Lynx a 34-29 advantage entering the fourth quarter. Jaden Kelly connected from beyond the arc with four minutes left for a 39-33 edge. Wyomissing ended it with a 9-2 run. O’Brien stressed that being able to practice recently has really helped. The Spartans got a late start to the season due to a long postseason for the football team. They were also shut down twice for Covid-19 related issues. Carter, Amory Thompson, Ben Zechman, and Drew Eisenhower helped Wyomissing reach the Class 3A state championship football game. All four of them start on the basketball team. Thompson and Carter were all-state selections on the gridiron. They’re both committed to California University of Pennsylvania. Thompson had eight points vs. Oley Valley. The Spartans were a perfect 9-9 from the free throw line, while the Lynx went 9-13. Oley Valley made six triples; twice as many as Wyomissing. The Spartans are just a-half game behind first place Fleetwood in Division 3. The Lynx are one game in back of Antietam and Tulpehocken in Division 4. Wyomissing came into the weekend #10 in the District 3-4A power rankings. The top ten squads will qualify for the playoffs. O’Brien knows this was a very significant victory. He mentioned his expectations for his team, and the hard work that he put in during the offseason. O’Brien has nearly doubled his scoring output from last year when the Spartans won their first District 3 playoff game since 2012. They eventually fell to Littlestown 50-46 in the District 3 semifinals. The top three scorers from that group graduated. O’Brien is now providing the scoring punch. Finally, I learned that he’s a 76ers fan, but LeBron James is his favorite player.