Majett helps FitzSimons hold off Palumbo
Mike Majett has a message for basketball players who care only about that sport: Don't limit yourself!
Mike Majett has a message for basketball players who care only about that sport: Don't limit yourself!
Football and soccer were not Majett's idea of fun, so last fall he ran cross country. Yup, over hills. Through dales.
"Starting out," he said, "I wasn't going into it with too much emotion. Our coach [Chris Monahan] said we had to do it unless we were doing the other fall sports. I never thought I'd get medals, but I did. Two of them. They're right in my bedroom.
"People think, 'All you do is jog. Run slow.' But they don't realize how far you have to run, and how hard you have to push yourself, and how tough it is. You've got your nose runnin' and your legs crampin', but you have to keep going.
"Not too many kids from my neighborhood [29th and Lehigh] would even think about running cross country. But I did and I'm glad. Not only did I improve my endurance for basketball, I learned a lot about myself."
Tuesday, for a while, Majett again experienced rough going. Sorta.
The 6-2, 165-pound senior swingman went scoreless in the first half as visiting Thomas FitzSimons battled Palumbo in a Public League preplayoff matching Class AA teams from Divisions C and D.
We say sorta because "I wasn't really looking to score that much," Majett said. "If you don't have a good shot, no use taking it. I concentrated on passing and defense."
FitzSimons carved out a 50-45 win. Majett finished with 13 points, seven rebounds and four steals and did the majority of his scoring from the foul line (8-for-9).
"They were doing a lot of reaching and smacking," Majett said. "In the second half [after a two-point second quarter], coach said to go hard to the hole and try to get and-ones, or at least get to the line."
When asked whether he's a good free-thrower, Majett shot back, as in overall, "I'm a good shooter."
Division C swept all eight of the C-D contests. This one was the closest. Each team was led in scoring by a football star, Richard Williams for FitzSimons (18) and Sharif Smith for Palumbo (20); though he plays that sport for Horace Furness via a cooperative sponsorship. Greg Sharp added 14 for Fitz. Maurice Harris, yet another high profile Furness gridder, reached 12 for the Griffins.
"It's tough going on the road," Majett said. "They've got all their students and family in the gym. You have to give extra to overcome that edge. This is my senior year. I want to go somewhere, for myself and my team and my coach."
