NEPTUNE, NJ—GMC Hoops traveled out to Neptune one more time to take in the final night of action at the 2007 Rebounds Fall League. On this night, the league was holding its round of Showcase Games, and all four GMC teams were involved. The marquee matchup of the night pitted Cardinal McCarrick at 6-1, and in second place in Division A with first place and undefeated Neptune. However, there were other intriguing matchups as well including: South Amboy versus Lincroft, South Brunswick taking on Lacey of Ocean County, and East Brunswick battling Manasquan. Meanwhile in non-conference action, Asbury Park was taking on undefeated Middletown South from Division B while Red Bank Catholic battled Monsignor Donovan in a game between two 5-2 teams, and the G-Force Stallions from Union County took on Toms River East in a game pitting two 1-6 squads.
South Brunswick Downs Lacey For Fourth Straight Win To Close Out Fall
After starting the fall with four straight losses, the Vikings of South Brunswick High School turned things around to end the season. In the Showcase Games round of the 2007 Rebounds Fall League at the Division B this season, just couldn’t quite get over the hump in this one as its GMC Red Division opponent kept it at arm’s length throughout. After jumping out to a six point lead at the time GMC Hoops arrived to sit down and watch the action, South Brunswick scored 13 of the final 20 points of the first half to take its twelve point, 33-21 advantage into the brief intermission. Arman Wilson started the key first half spurt with a steal and a drive for a layup attempt, which he was fouled on at the 8:16 mark. Wilson then made one of two at the line for a 21-14 Viking lead. Nearly forty seconds after that, SBHS got another score to take a 23-14 edge at the 6:38 mark. Neither team would score for a span of 2:22 before Wilson drained a three pointer to give the Vikes a ten point, 26-16 lead after Lacey had gotten an earlier score. The Wilson trifecta coerced Lacey’s coach to call for time at the 4:16 mark.
Following the timeout, South Brunswick went back to work as #3 netted a pair of free throws at the 1:58 mark to increase the lead to a dozen at 28-16. After a Lacey three pointer brought the deficit down to single digits again, Jordan Tiecher went to the line and connected on a pair of charity shots to push the margin back over double digits at 30-19 with a minute to play. Lacey then knocked home a jumper from the right side for a 30-21 lead at the 48.0 second mark. Tiecher then went in for a layup attempt, and was fouled at the 26.4 mark, and later made one of two at the line for a 31-21 lead. The Vikings then closed the first half scoring with a steal for a layup by #2 to make the score, 33-21 at halftime. At the start of the second half, South Brunswick High School took its largest lead of the contest with a one of two showing at the line by #3, but Lacey then reeled off four straight points to close the gap to under single digits again at 34-25 with 17:51 left to play.
Unfortunately for the Ocean County School, it would not be able to much closer get for the duration of the contest. Jordan Tiecher, whose father was on the sidelines as coach of the squad on Monday night, went back to work with a score down low on the left side for a 38-27 lead at the 16:19 mark. Then, #3 netted another pair of foul shots at the 13:15 mark for a 40-28 advantage. Wilson then connected on a short jumper along the left baseline for a 44-31 lead with exactly ten minutes left, and finally, Sean Lease made a layup at the 9:31 mark for a 46-33 advantage. Lacey, which competes in the Class A South Division of the Shore Conference, ran off another four points to trim the deficit back down to single digits at 46-37 with 7:52 left, but after the Vikes called timeout, they would never really be threatened. Tiecher made a couple free throws at the 6:16 mark for a 48-37 lead, and then after Lacey scored four of the next six points for a 48-41 SBHS lead, Wilson made a spectacular block off the backboard on a breakaway layup attempt at the 5:25 mark to keep the South Jersey Group IV opponent from getting any closer. Lacey would creep to within five as a player went in for a layup as he was fouled at the 4:31 mark. Although he missed the bonus free throw, Lacey was within five points at 48-43. Lease promptly put the Vikes back up by seven at 50-43 with 4:12 to play to ignite a game deciding 6-0 run. Wilson then added a pair of free throws at the 2:27 mark for a 52-43 advantage, and finally, Tiecher capped the run with a skip pass to Chris Weir underneath for a layup that gave the Vikings a commanding, 54-43 lead with only 1:41 to play. Lacey would close the game with the final four points, but South Brunswick walked away with the win, 54-47.
| Team | 1 | 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Brunswick (4-4) | 33 | 21 | 54 |
| Lacey (4-4) | 21 | 26 | 47 |
Late Clutch Plays Help Lincroft Edge South Amboy, 53-50
Although the South Amboy Guvs finished up the fall with two straight losses, they continued to show great improvement over the season in a tough 53-50 loss to Lincroft. Their opponent, which consisted of mostly, if not all, players from CBA, closed the first half with a 14-3 tear to turn a 21-16 deficit at the 7:09 mark to a 30-24 advantage at the brief break. Lincroft then got a key 14-4 spurt in the second half to take a two point, 34-32 deficit at the 13:32 mark to a 46-38 lead at the 8:38 mark. However, South Amboy, which showed great resilience and fortitude in the second half, fought back to the tune of a 12-1 tear over a span of 6:38 to retake the lead at 50-47 with about two minutes to go. Unfortunately, the Governors were unable to hold the lead, and couldn’t pull out the win as Lincroft rallied with the final six points for the 53-50 victory. Both teams ended the fall at .500, or 4-4.
In a game that saw neither team take a lead bigger than eight points, there were a total of nine lead changes and two ties over the final 27:09 of the contest. At the time of GMC Hoops arrival at the gym, South Amboy was clinging to a five point, 21-16 advantage with 7:09 left in the first half. Several seconds later, Larry Lenahan came up with a block to preserve the slim lead. However, Lincroft stayed determined and focused, and that determination paid off with an offensive rebound and putback at the 5:38 mark to make the score, 21-18. The CBA squad then pulled within one at the 4:38 mark when a player put up a shot over Lenahan in the right low block for a 21-20 South Amboy advantage. Thirty seconds later, Lincroft then got a steal and assist on a driving layup while being fouled for a three point play that make it a 7-0 spurt, and a 23-21 lead for the Monmouth County team at the 4:08 mark. Lincroft would carry its first lead of the contest since our arrival into the locker room by scoring seven of the next ten points for a 30-24 halftime lead.
The final portion of the half closing 14-3 tear included a short jumper in the paint at the 2:45 mark to make it 25-22 after Lenahan made two at the line some twenty-five seconds earlier. Lincroft then got a layup while being fouled for another three point play at the one minute mark for a 28-22 advantage. After Steve Poltrictzky missed a layup at the 51.6 mark, Lincroft made another layup at the 44.5 mark for a 30-22 lead. Poltrtictzky would later redeem himself with a layup that had a kind bounce and roll while being fouled, but missed the bonus free throw to make it a six point game at the half. In the second half, the Guvs opened with two early opportunities that ended up not being cashed in due to turnovers on traveling calls. First, Mark Simko got a steal within the opening seconds of the second half, but South Amboy was unable to convert thanks to a traveling call on John (last name here) at the 19:48 mark. Then, about a minute and fifteen seconds later, Simko took a runner that didn’t fall, and although Lenahan grabbed the offensive rebound, he was called for traveling on the follow with 18:34 left in the game. Lenahan would make amends with a score that pulled his team within four at 30-26, but Lincroft quickly replied with a bucket of its own at the 17:01 mark to raise the lead back to six at 32-26.
Simko began to go to work at that point for the Guvs with a layin at the 16:03 mark to cut the deficit back down to four at 32-28. John (last name here) followed that with a layup at the 15:42 mark that closed the gap to two at 32-30, and also compelled the Lincroft coach to call for time. Following the timeout, the Governors, which were in the midst of an 8-0 run over a span of 2:31, got two more scores thanks to the tandem efforts of Simko and sophomore Joe Charmello. First, Simko grabbed a rebound, and threw an outlet pass downcourt to Charmello for a layup that tied the game at 32-32 at the 13:54 mark. Charmello then returned the favor with an assist on a layup by Simko at the 13:32 mark for a 34-32 lead. The Guv lead would be short lived though as Lincroft connected from long distance to go ahead again, 35-34 at the 12:41 mark. South Amboy quickly reclaimed the advantage with a score that made it a 36-35 game, but Lincroft retaliated just as rapidly with a layup at the 11:34 mark for a 37-36 edge. On the very next Governor possession, Poltrictzky made a nice bounce pass to Lenahan for a layup to put the GMC Gold Division team back up by one at 38-37 with 11:21 left.
It was at this point that Lincroft made a pivotal move. The Monmouth County squad reeled off six straight points, and nine of the next eleven to take a 43-38, and 46-40 lead. Lincroft started the rally with two free throws at the 10:25 mark to make it 39-38, and then added to it with a nice entry pass underneath for a layup on the right low block for a 41-38 score with 10:10 to play. Lincroft would score again some twenty-four seconds later for a five point, 43-38 advantage with 9:46 to go as South Amboy was forced to take a timeout. Following the stoppage, the Guvs got on the board as Lenahan grabbed an offensive rebound, and put in the follow for a 43-40 Lincroft edge with 9:14 to play. Lincroft responded promptly with yet another crucial three point play with 8:38 remaining to cap the 9-2 spurt for a 46-40 lead. Simko, who ended up scoring 14 points in the second half, sparked the Guvs with eight points as South Amboy reeled off 10 of the next 11 points for a 50-47 lead with two minutes left. Simko ignited the late rally with a three pointer from the left side that cut the Lincroft lead to three at 46-43 at the 7:45 mark. The senior guard then followed that up with a rebound, and a drive down the length of the floor for a layup to make it a one point game at 46-45 with 6:08 remaining.
Forty-three seconds later, the Guvs had a chance to take the lead as Poltrictzky stepped to the line. The senior forward missed the first foul shot, and then after a Lincroft timeout, missed the second, but frontline mate Lenahan picked him up with an offensive rebound and putback for South Amboy’s first lead in 8:07 at 47-46. Lincroft then made one of two at the line for a 47-47 tie, Simko launched a three pointer with two minutes left for a 50-47 lead. Lenahan had a chance to increase the lead for South Amboy with a layup attempt, but it was blocked at the 1:07 mark. Lincroft then canned a three pointer from the left wing for a 50-50 tie at the 40 second mark, and then after a teardrop shot by Simko didn’t go with 19 seconds remaining, the Lincroft squad closed out the game with one of two at the line at the 9.3 mark, and then an offensive rebound and bank shot on the left side for the 53-50 win. With the victory, Lincroft finished the fall at 4-4 while South Amboy dropped to 4-4.
| Team | 1 | 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincroft (4-4) | 30 | 23 | 53 |
| South Amboy (4-4) | 24 | 26 | 50 |
Neptune Overcomes Fast McCarrick Start To Roar Past Eagles, 66-49
In a game that matched up the top two teams in the Division A standings, there was really no contest. Although McCarrick started the game strong, Neptune’s relentless pressure, quickness, and up tempo style of play proved to be too much for the Eagles in the end. After Cardy Mac jumped out to a 12-4 lead at the 14:31 mark of the first half, Neptune surged the rest of the way with a 28-9 showing for a 32-21 halftime lead, and then in the second half opened with 10-3 tear for a 38-12 rampage over a 20:53 span for a 42-24 lead. From there, the Fliers were never threatened as they went on to win, 66-49. Neptune finished undefeated on the fall after losing to Freehold Township in the Showcase Game last season. Meanwhile, McCarrick ended up 6-2. As previously mentioned, the Eagles started out fast with 12 of 14 points over a span of 5:35 for an eight point lead. Julio Rosario sparked the run with nine points on three trifectas while Mike Burwell added one of his own.
Neptune got the first points of the game on a layup at the 19:44 mark that made it 2-0. Nearly forty seconds later, Rosario put McCarrick on the board with a three pointer from the left wing that made the score, 3-2 at the 19:06 mark. A little more than a minute later, Rosario struck again, but this time from the right wing off an assist by Wil Snider for a 6-2 Eagle edge at the 18:05 mark. Neptune managed to close the gap to two on an offensive rebound and putback attempt that resulted in a foul, and two free throws for a 6-4 score at the 17:37 mark. On a subsequent McCarrick possession, Rosario, who factored in all the first twelve points for the Eagles, fought through a Neptune double team, and made a bounce pass to Burwell for a three pointer from the left wing that made the score, 9-4 at the 16:50 mark. Over two minutes later, Rosario struck again with his final trey during the run that was set up by a rebound by the junior guard, and outlet to Snider, who passed back to Rosario for a shot from the left wing that made it 12-4 with 14:31 to go in the half.
Gradually chipping away at the lead, Neptune rallied with 12 of the next 14 points over the next 4:54 to take its first lead of the game since the opening seconds at 16-14 with 9:07 left in the first half. The Fliers started out with one of two at the line with 14:01 to go in the half to make the score, 12-5. Neptune then followed that up with a baseline drive along the left side for a layup that closed the gap to 12-7 at the 12:48 mark. The hometown team continued to knife into the lead with a layup underneath at the 11:47 mark to make the score, 12-9. Over a minute later, Neptune put together a fast break for a layup that pulled the Fliers within one at 12-11 with 10:37 to play before intermission. After Eliazor Landano was fouled on a drive at the 10:18 mark, Snider made a nice inbounds pass to Branten Widgeon for a layup that made the score, 14-11 with 9:56 left in the half. Neptune would eventually overtake McCarrick with the next five points on a layup at the 9:33 mark to make it 14-13, and then a layup and a foul for a three point play to go ahead, 16-14 with 9:07 remaining before halftime. On the very next possession, Cardinal McCarrick tried to retake the lead, but Burwell missed a layup attempt, and then Widgeon, who grabbed the offensive board, was blocked on the follow with 8:50 to go in the period.
The Eagles would eventually find a way to tie things up with a layup at the 8:20 mark for a 16-16 tie. However, Neptune reeled off eleven of the next twelve points in a span of 4:27 to take command, 27-17 with 3:53 left in the half. The Fliers began the game deciding run with an offensive rebound and putback at the 8:02 mark for an 18-16 lead. Widgeon got the only point for McCarrick during this stretch when he was fouled on a layup attempt, and netted one of two at the line for an 18-17 Flier lead with 7:43 remaining before intermission. Neptune then went back to work with a layup at the 6:06 mark to make the score, 20-17, a tap in fifteen seconds later to make it 22-17, a fast break layup off a missed shot by Burwell that followed an earlier free throw for a 25-17 lead at the 4:35 mark, and a layup to cap the run, and make the score, 27-17 with 3:53 to go in the half. Trying to rebound, and get back into the contest, the Eagles ran off four straight points thanks to Burwell, who made a one handed bank shot at the 3:40 mark for a 27-19 Neptune lead, and another layup off a lob pass on the inbounds by Snider to make the score, 27-21 at the three minute mark.
Neptune would close the half with the final five points including a layup while being fouled for a three point play at the 47.1 mark, and another layup off a rebound and outlet pass at the 24 second mark for a 32-21 halftime lead. The Fliers could have made it an even bigger lead, but Burwell came up with a nice blocked shot at the buzzer to keep the Neptune lead at just eleven going into the brief break. In the half, Rosario scored 9 points on his three treys, Burwell had nine as well, but on three field goals, and a trifecta, and Widgeon added a field goal, and one of two from the line for three points. Over the final 14:31 before the break, McCarrick just managed to score its nine points on four field goals and a free throw while being held scoreless for spans of 4:36, 1:36, 3:50, and 3:00 for a total of 13:02. In the second half, things didn’t improve for McCarrick as Neptune scored 10 of the first 13 points over the opening 6:22 to expand its lead to eighteen. Highlighting the spurt were a pair of free throws at the 18:43 mark, a three pointer at the 17:10 mark, an offensive rebound and follow off a missed three at the 16:05 mark, and a score in the paint to cap the run at the 13:38 mark. The only points the Eagles had during the stretch was a three pointer from well beyond the arc by Burwell to make the score, 34-24 at the 17:49 mark.
After taking a 42-24 lead, Neptune was never really threatened after that. For the balance of the game, the Fliers outscored the Eagles by a 27-25 margin for the 66-49 victory. Some positive highlights from McCarrick over the remainder of the game included two free throws from Snider at the 13:11 mark to make the score, 42-26, a baseline drive on the left side for a layup by Rosario at the 8:57 mark for a 44-28 score, a three point play by Burwell at the 4:20 mark that made the score, 49-35, and another at the 45.4 mark that made it 60-43, and a three pointer by Rosario at the buzzer to round out the final, 66-49 score. Unfortunately, the first half surge, and early second half spurt by Neptune, McCarrick lost its usual fight the rest of the way. As a result of the loss, McCarrick not only dropped to 6-2, but into a second place tie with Red Bank Catholic in Division A, which won its Showcase Game with Monsignor Donovan, and the Caseys earned the second place finish by virtue of a head to head tiebreaker.
| Team | 1 | 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neptune (8-0) | 32 | 34 | 66 |
| Cardinal McCarrick (6-2) | 21 | 28 | 49 |
Stolzenberg Leads East Brunswick Past Manasquan, 54-51
Like their Brunswick and Red Division brethren to the South, the Bears of East Brunswick finished off the fall on a good note with a win over a Shore Conference opponent to finish at .500 on the fall. EB, which opened the season with a loss to South Amboy (41-34), and then dropped two tough games to Class A North Division Shore Conference teams, Howell (34-29) and Marlboro (42-41), closed out the fall with three wins in their last five games. In a back and forth game, where momentum swung back and forth like a pendulum, the Bears fell behind early as the Warriors from Manasquan netted two free throws at the 19:21 mark, and then scored at the 18:00 mark for a 4-0 lead. However, over the next 6:25, East Brunswick rallied to the tune of a 13-5 tear for a four point, 13-9 lead with 11:25 remaining before halftime.
Scott Stolzenberg, who seemed to come up with big play after big play when GMC Hoops happened to take a gander at the action while taking a break from the game between Neptune and Cardinal McCarrick occurring at the same time on an adjacent court, came up with a nice assist on a layup that made it a 15-5 tear, and gave the Bears a 15-9 at the 11:15 mark. Neither team would score for nearly two minutes and forty seconds before Manasquan got on the board with a nice two handed breakaway jam that not only closed the gap to 15-11, but also drew some ooohs and aaahs from the heavily partisan Neptune crowd that came to see their undefeated Fliers take on McCarrick. The jam helped ignite a 12-6 run over a span of 6:59 that turned the 15-9 deficit to a 21-21 tie with 1:37 to play in the half. And, the Warriors didn’t stop there either. Manasquan then scored six of the final eleven points of the half including a 5-1 run highlighted by a layup at the 47 second mark for a 27-22 edge.
However, East Brunswick would climb back into things with not only the final four points of the first half to make the score, 27-26 at the intermission, but also the first four points of the second half for an 8-0 spurt in a span of just 2:39 to take a 30-27 lead with 18:08 remaining in the game. Manasquan, which has been going through a bit of rebuilding the past couple years after being a dominant team in Group II and Group III, would tie things back up at 30-30 with a three pointer at the 17:05 mark. Stolzenberg got into the scoring column with an offensive rebound and follow off of his own miss after the Warriors had taken the lead on an earlier possession to make the score, 33-32 at the 14:48 mark. Stolzenberg’s bucket sparked a 6-0 mini-run that gave EB a 37-32 advantage before Manasquan drilled another trey to make the score, 37-35 with 11:15 remaining. Over the next 2:58 only one score was made, and that was by the Warriors to square things up again at 37-37 with just 8:17 left in regulation. East Brunswick would then retake a slim and tenuous one point edge by scoring four of the next seven points to make the score, 41-40 at the 6:25 mark. East Brunswick then reeled off five more points including another score by Stolzenberg as the Bear forward got the ball at the foul line, dribbled left, and connected on a jumper for a 46-40 lead at the 4:41 mark. Stolzenberg then followed that up with another nice play on a drive and spin move for a layup that made the score, 48-40 with 3:27 left. Manasquan then got a score to pull within six at 48-42, but Mike Mello made a key contribution with a pair of free throws at the 1:41 mark for a 50-42 advantage. The Warriors made a run to attempt to get back into the game with three straight points, and then Mello missed the front end of a one and one at the 1:25 mark for a 50-45 EB lead. However, Manasquan couldn’t get any closer despite scoring six of the last ten points of the game to round out the final, 54-51 score in favor of the Bears.
With the victory, East Brunswick concluded the 2007 Rebounds Fall League with an even 4-4 record while Manasquan finished up at 3-5. The win by the Bears was one of the rare victories for teams in Division B that were matched up head to head against squads from Division A in the Showcase Games. The only other teams in East Brunswick’s division that won in crossover games were: Middletown South over Asbury Park and G-Force Stallions of Union County over Toms River East.
| Team | 1 | 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| East Brunswick (4-4) | 26 | 28 | 54 |
| Manasquan (3-5) | 27 | 24 | 51 |
Other Showcase Game Results
Other results included Red Bank Catholic over Monsignor Donovan, Middletown South over Asbury Park, St. John Vianney over Keyport, St. Rose over Howell, Freehold Township over Southern Regional, and the G-Force Stallions over Toms River East by three points. Below are the final standings.
Division A Standings
- Neptune (8-0)
- Red Bank Catholic (6-2)
- Cardinal McCarrick (6-2)
- Asbury Park (5-3)
- Lincroft (4-4)
- South Brunswick (4-4)
- St. John Vianney (4-4)
- St. Rose (4-4)
- Point Pleasant (3-5)
- Manasquan (3-5)
- Freehold Township (2-6)
- Toms River East (1-7)
Division B Standings
- Middletown South (8-0)
- Howell (6-2)
- Keyport (6-2)
- Monsignor Donovan (5-3)
- Lacey (4-4)
- South Amboy (4-4)
- East Brunswick (4-4)
- Marlboro (2-5)
- Henry Hudson (2-5)
- G-Force Stallions (2-6)
- Ocean (1-6)
- Southern Regional (1-7)