Hopatcong Girl Will Play D 2 Basketball

Lexi Breheny cherishes looking into the Pope John stands and seeing her parents, Paul and Brenda.

That tradition will continue into college.

Breheny, a Hopatcong resident, recently committed to play basketball for Division 2 St. Thomas Aquinas in Sparkill, N.Y. The Lions senior point guard signed her letter of intent last Tuesday.

Breheny, second all time in scoring for Pope John with 1,067 points, said family weighed heavily into her decision.

"I didn't want to go too far," she said. "I want to be able to see my parents. They've been at all my games since like fourth grade. It would be weird not having them there."

St. Thomas Aquinas head coach Kim Lusk said Breheny, who averaged 16 points, six rebounds and four assists last season, will be part of a strong 2012 freshman class.

"We're thrilled to have her," Lusk said. "We think she's going to be a great fit for our program academically and athletically."

Pope John head coach Mike Attomare said Breheny could make an early impact.

"She's going to go in and get a lot of playing time and contribute right away as a freshman," he said.

"She has so many strengths. She never gives up. She has a desire to win. She would do anything for her team to win, whether it be 30 points that game or 10 points and 20 assists. She's the ultimate team player."

Breheny, who has started every game of her high school career, trails only Georgetown's Vanessa Moore in Pope John scoring history. Moore graduated in 2009.

"I'm not going to say (Breheny) knows the offense better than I do, but it's an extension of the coach on the floor," Attomare said. "She has eyes in the back of her head. The girls respect her. She makes everybody better."

Click here to watch video Breheny unknowingly score her 1,000th career point.