The Blair Academy boys’ varsity basketball team saw their remarkable 2025-2026 campaign come to an end on Thursday night. Despite a valiant effort throughout the National Prep Championship tournament at University of St. Joseph in West Hartford, Connecticut, the Buccaneers fell to the Newman School (MA) in the title game, 92-72.
The loss marks a bittersweet end to a season where Blair established itself as the premier program in the country, but ultimately couldn’t contain a red-hot Newman offense that secured its first national title in program history.
Blair entered the tournament in West Hartford as the clear favorite, having dominated the national circuit for months. Blair opened the tournament by defeating Bridgton Academy, showcasing the defensive grit that defined their season. In the quarterfinal round, the team defeated Link Academy’s postgraduate team 87-53, with five players in double-digit scoring led by Jaen Chatman ’26 with 16 points.
In the semifinal round, the Buccaneers returned to the court against IMG Academy’s postgraduate team. In a statement performance, Blair secured a 79-58 victory to punch their ticket to the evening’s final, relying on the leadership of seniors Deron Rippey Jr. ’26 and Jaen Chatman ’26. Deron dominated the game with 19 points, shooting 3-4 from the three- point line and 50% from the field.
The final was a rematch of a high-stakes regular-season meeting in December, which Blair won 91-87. However, Thursday night belonged to the Cardinals.
The game was a tightly contested affair in the first half, but Newman pulled away in the second, fueled by an extraordinary shooting performance from tournament MVP Chase Geremia. The Penn commit hit seven three-pointers—five of them in the second half—to break the game open.
While the final result wasn’t what the Buccaneers hoped for, the 2025-26 season stands as one of the greatest in program history. Blair concludes the year with a staggering 30-2 overall record, a testament to their consistency and elite talent level. Perhaps most impressively, the Buccaneers held the #1 spot in the National Prep regular season rankings for much of the year.
As the program bids farewell to a legendary senior class, they do so having cemented their status as a national powerhouse, finishing as the National Prep runner-up.
“This year marked the intersection of an uber talented and deep team with a player-led culture,” said Joe Mantegna, Blair head boys’ basketball coach. “As a coaching staff, all we ever had to worry about was basketball. This team was full of guys who rooted each other on, starred in their roles and sought to be a part of something bigger than themselves. While we fell short in the National Prep Championship game, this group will be the standard that every team that follows them will strive to match and surpass.”