The late, and legendary, college basketball coach John Thompson for decades relied on his team’s relentless defensive skills to run even the most talented offensive opponents out of the gym. That same formula – stifling defense – has ignited the Jeremiah Burke High School boys’ team on its run this year through the regular season, and now, in the Division 4 state tournament.

Last Friday, Burke played its first game of the MIAA state tournament at Madison Park gymnasium and easily defeated Blue Hills Tech, 88-48. That win came after a remarkable late-February run through the City Tournament as the Burke boys claimed their second straight championship with thrilling wins over TechBoston Academy and Charlestown High School.

To date this year, only St. Mary’s (Lynn) High School and Archbishop Williams have held off the quick Dorchester team. For most of the season, the team has remained high in the state power rankings, and that’s a tribute not to sizzling shooting or powerful post play, but to defense and more defense.

“We press and defend well. It’s who we are,” said Sean Ryan, the head coach who guided the 2019-20 Burke team to a Division 3 State Championship. “We’re not big and we have to create a lot of points off of our defense. I think we do a very good job of that. Outside shooting is not our identity. I thought it was early in the season, but we stopped playing to our strength, which is getting to the rim and stealing the ball in transition. The team has really bought in on that now and they see some great results when they play that way.”

In fact, Burke’s scoring mostly comes from steals and blocked shots rather than offensive playmaking. Ryan noted that sophomore Jaeden Roberts averages 18 points a game, while senior Matt Drayton averages 14, and Jaeshawn Rogers and Jasaad Fenton average 11 – a balanced attack.

TechBoston Academy’s Leo Bowman (11) tumbles for two points on Friday night in the opening round game of the Division 3 MIAA tournament in Madison Park’s gym, where TechBoston, in a dominating performance, toppled Medway, 87-53. TechBoston faced off against Norwell Tuesday night at Madison Park and came away with another impressive win, 60-46. They will face St. Mary’s (Lynn) High School in the Elite 8 at Salem State University on March 11, at 1 p.m.

“I have four guys in double-digits on average whereas last year I had a couple of guys with high numbers,” he said. “I really like our balance…We were co-champs for the state right when Covid hit [in 2020]. We couldn’t play our final game, so it was a tie. That was a great effort. I’ve had talented teams. I think this team probably is the best defensive team that I’ve had. I do think we can make some noise.”

They certainly brought the noise against Blue Hills Tech last Friday night, with the game very competitive in the first quarter. Burke lay back and relied on its half-court offense, and Blue Hills countered that with good passing and tough rebounding. By the end of the first quarter, it was still competitive at 22-17, though Burke was up.

Then, Ryan installed the press, and from then on, the game was over for Blue Hills as all five Burke players relentlessly harassed their ballhandlers, disrupting and stealing passes, and thoroughly frustrating every other offensive move.

A key turning point came when in a full court press situation, Blue Hills ballhandlers were getting run in circles by Fenton, and one of them threw a long pass to halfcourt. Waiting there was Rogers, who intercepted the pass one handed like an NFL free safety, drove to the basket and after two or three dips and dos, laid it up and in.

Then there was the play when Roberts built on the Burke lead by hitting a rare three-pointer from the top of the key, then followed that with a one-handed dunk off a steal near half court as the gym erupted.

This year, Burke’s style of play differs greatly from last year when some of the same players, like Roberts, were contributors, but the team relied on now departed 6-foot-6 center Nahkeem Singleton and senior Takei Galloway for post play and outside shooting.

“Last year I had a dominant post player – a big kid – and when in doubt you could just throw it to him,” said Ryan after Friday’s game. “I don’t have that type of player this year, so it’s really playing with great energy. It’s not that we didn’t play hard last year, but this is a group where we have to play hard, or we can’t win. We always talk about five guys playing really energetic and for the most part it’s been a good formula for us.”

Burke returned to the practice floor early this week to work on better discipline on the offensive end and to eliminate some “sloppiness” the coaching staff identified during the game. They play Tyngsborough High School (14-7) in the Round of 16 in the Madison Park gym on Wednesday and dominated the game once again, winning 80-44 in a contest that was never in question. They face Randolph High School on Saturday, March 11, in Madison Park gym at 5 p.m.

Junior Jaeshawn Rogers goes up for a layup against Blue Hills Tech in the opening round game of the state tournament at Madison Park gym.

Sophomore Jasaad Fenton drives on the baseline during the fourth quarter of Friday’s opening round game of the State MIAA tournament, as Head Coach Sean Ryan looks on. Coach Ryan said of the many talented teams he’s had at Burke; this one is the best defensive team he’s fielded.

Senior Josh Jean Charles wins the opening tipoff Friday night over Blue Hills Tech player Dominic Capaccioli at Madison Park gym.

Senior Matt Drayton put in another two points during Friday night’s opening state tournament game against Blue Hills Tech. Drayton has been a force down low for the fast-playing Burke team.