GMC Hoops Blogosphere

Hoop Group Elite Team Camp–July 9, 2009

READING, PA–On Thursday, GMC Hoops made its second trip to Pennsylvania within the past eight months as it visited Albright College to take in some of the action from the first day of the 2009 Hoop Group Elite Team Camp. This team camp had a total of 64 teams competing in two separate brackets: National and American. Two of the teams playing were from the Greater Middlesex Conference: Monroe and St. Joseph’s. The St. Joe’s Falcons won their opening round game against a team from Turkey while Monroe defeated Holy Redeemer. Both schools were playing in the American Division team tournament. See the results from both tournaments. In the Round of 16, St. Joseph’s was taking on Bishop Ireton of Alexandria, Virginia while Monroe was facing off against Bowie of Mississippi.

Morgan Leads The Way As Falcons Pull Away In Second Half To Defeat Bishop Ireton, 55-36

In the first of the two games GMC Hoops saw at this year’s Hoop Group Elite Team Camp, which was previously known as the Eastern Invitational Team Camp, St. Joe’s took on the Cardinals of Bishop Ireton located in Alexandria, Virginia. This past season, Bishop Ireton went 5-23 overall and 1-16 in the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference, which includes the likes of national powerhouses such as DeMatha and Gonzaga, which competed in the National Division bracket this year. Over the past four years, the Cardinals have struggled in the rugged WCAC with a 27-92 overall record, and a 6-67 mark in conference play.

Meanwhile, St. Joseph’s is competing at this camp for the fourth straight year, and the Falcons were looking to go farther than just the first round. Coming to this camp with St. Joe’s was Steve Rennard, Robbie Ashamole, Nick Contino, Eric Peterson, Andrew Morgan, Kevin Mayce, Nick Straughn, and Slay Sudah. In the contest, both teams played a competitive first half with the Falcons taking a 22-12 lead before the Cardinals rallied with an 8-2 run over the final 4:45 to pull within four at 24-20 going into halftime. In the second half though, the Falcons pulled away even with Rennard on the sidelines nursing a minor injury to his chin. Led by Morgan (13 points on 5 of 9 FG including 3 of 4 3PTR, 3 rebounds and 3 steals) St. Joseph’s outscored Bishop Ireton by a 31-16 margin in the game’s final 20 minutes. For the game, the Falcons shot 23 of 46 from the floor overall for 50 percent including a solid 4 of 12 effort from beyond the arc for 33 percent. At the line, St. Joe’s was just 5 of 10 from the floor, but collected 25 boards including 10 on the offensive glass, 14 assists, 12 steals, 3 blocks, and a charge. St. Joseph’s committed 14 turnovers in 32 minutes of play.

Chipping in for the Falcons was Ashamole, who made 5 of 6 shots and 1 of 2 from the line for 11 points while pulling down 6 boards, blocking 2 shots, and handing out an assist. Before leaving the game at the 13:14 mark of the second half, Rennard had 7 points, 3 assists, a rebound, steal, and blocked shot. Soon to be junior, Nick Straughn also contributed with a 2 of 4 effort from the floor as well as a 1 of 1 showing at the line for 5 points, 2 assists, an offensive rebound, and a steal. St. Joe’s took a 1-0 lead early as Nick Contino drew a foul, and made one of two from the line at the 15:39 mark. Bishop Ireton then responded with two free throws at the 14:05 mark for a 2-1 lead. After stopping the Falcons at the other end, the Cardinals quickly came back down, and got two points when Rennard hit the net for a 4-1 lead with 13:46 to go in the half. Peterson (4 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals) got the Falcons back to within one at 4-3 by making both of his free throw attempts with 13:35 remaining in the half.

One minute later, St. Joseph’s took the lead as Ashamole scored on an offensive rebound and putback off a missed three point attempt by Rennard that made the score, 5-4 at the 12:35 mark. Bishop Ireton made another two foul shots to go back up by one, 6-5 with 11:50 to play in the first half, but then Peterson got his final points of the game on an offensive rebound and putback off his own miss for a 7-6 lead at the 11:22 mark. Up to this point in the contest, there had been five lead changes. However, there would be no more. Over the next 6:37, the Falcons outscored the Cardinals by a margin of 17-6 including a 6-0 burst that was highlighted by two Ashamole field goals off assists by Rennard and Peterson for an 11-6 lead as Bishop Ireton called for time at the 10:13 mark. Following the timeout, the Cardinals drew within four on a one of two showing from the foul line that made the score, 11-7 at the 9:44 mark. The Cardinals had a chance to get closer, but Morgan poked away a steal, and Rennard picked it up and raced downcourt for a layup while being fouled for a 13-7 lead with 8:36 to go in the half.

On its next possession, Bishop Ireton got a layup while being fouled by Rennard for a three point play that closed the gap to 13-10 with 8:08 to play before the intermission. A little over a minute later, the Falcons had a chance to go back up by five, but Rennard misfired on both free throw attempts with 7:02 to go before halftime. The soon to be senior, who has made an early commitment to Pennsylvania redeemed himself though by taking a pass from Mayce on the left wing, and making a three pointer for an 18-10 lead with 6:35 to go in the opening half. Rennard then scored again on a pull-up jumper from the left side for a 20-10 lead before Bishop Ireton, which only had two field goals to this point (one on an interference call), made its eighth free throw in nine attempts to trim the deficit to single digits again at 20-12 with 5:30 to play in the half.

St. Joe’s went back up by ten as Rennard found Mayce for a layup, but then Bishop Ireton connected on a jumper to close the gap again to eight at 22-14 with 4:24 to go before the break. The Cardinals then added another bucket to pull within six before Ashamole kicked out to Morgan for a jumper at the 3:00 mark for a 24-16 lead. Bishop Ireton finished off the half with a 4-0 run to get within four as the two teams went into the brief break with St. Joseph’s in front 24-20. In the opening half, the Falcons were 10 of 22 overall from the floor including just 1 of 7 from downtown, and made 3 of 7 at the line while turning the ball over 7 times. Rennard got all of his points in the half along with 2 assists, a rebound, steal, and blocked shot. Ashamole added 6 points, 4 rebounds, an assist, and a block while Morgan (4 points, 2 rebounds, and 2 steals) and Peterson (4 points, 6 rebounds, and an assist) each had four.

In the second half though, Morgan picked up 9 points on three treys to lead the Falcons to an impressive win. The soon to be senior guard, netted a three pointer from the top of the key to open the scoring in the final period for a 27-20 Falcon lead at the 14:33 mark. Thirty-seconds after that, Rennard made a fine alleyoop pass to Ashamole for a dunk following a Morgan steal to put St. Joe’s up by nine, 29-20 with 13:55 left. Soon afterward, Rennard left with a cut to his chin, but it didn’t affect the Falcons. Following a three pointer by Bishop Ireton to pull within six at 29-23 with 12:40 to play. Contino got his only field goal of the game off a drive for a layup that put the Falcons up by eight, 31-23 with 12:21 left. After a Cardinal timeout, Straughn made a nice drive and dish for a layin at the 10:52 mark, and a 33-23 lead. Bishop Ireton would get a field goal to close to within eight again, but Morgan then drained a three pointer from the left wing at the 9:47 mark for a 36-25 lead.

Following a 30 second timeout with 9:47 to go, St. Joseph’s scored 9 of the next 13 points including Morgan’s final three of the game to take a 45-29 lead, but the Cardinals showed some fight by scoring five straight points to pull within eleven at 45-34 with 4:47 to go. Fortunately for the Falcons, Bishop Ireton was unable to get any closer. Straughn came up with a three point play at the 4:24 mark for a 48-34 lead, and then scored again on a layup off a pass from Contino for a 50-34 lead. The Falcons, which closed the game with a 10-2 spurt, scored five of the last seven points for the 55-36 win. St. Joseph’s advanced with the win, but would lose in the Quarterfinals to Pennington.

Bowie Rolls Past Monroe Thanks To Strong First Half Finish, 68-41

In the final game of the day that GMC Hoops reported on before coming back to New Jersey, Monroe took on Bowie from Mississippi in another game from the American Division Tournament. The Purple Birds advanced by defeating Holy Redeemer while Bowie, which is located 5 miles Northwest of Hattiesburg, Mississippi, defeated the Bishops of Asbury Park. This game appeared to be very competitive at the start with a total of six lead changes and three ties over the first 10:45 while neither team held a lead bigger than four points. However, over the last 9:15 of the half, Bowie turned on the fullcourt pressure, and put together a 28-12 surge for a 39-24 lead at the intermission. From there, Bowie coasted with a a 29-17 showing over the first 17:02 of the second half before the game was halted with 2:58 left, and the Mississippi team leading, 68-41.

It was a difficult game for the Purple Birds. One of the toughest of the summer for a Monroe team that has played exceptionally well since competing in the Rebounds Spring League. For the game, Monroe Township was 16 of 51 from the floor including just 2 of 12 from three point range while making 7 of 14 from the foul line. In other statistical areas, the Falcons picked up only 19 rebounds including 7 on the offensive glass. Monroe did hand out 16 assists, and swipe 13 steals, but turned the ball over 18 times in 32 minutes. There was a bright spot though for the Purple Birds, and that was the play of soon to be senior, Timmy Brix. The Monroe forward picked up 14 points on 5 of 12 shooting from the field, and a perfect 4 of 4 from the line. Brix also collected 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 steals, and 2 charges.

Bowie got on the board first with a layup at the 15:26 mark for the 2-0 lead. Monroe tied the game at 2-2 up a little more than a minute later when Danny Brix inbounded to his older brother for a layup underneath in the left low block. Following a timeout at the 14:12 mark, Bowie got a jumper from the right wing at the 14:05 mark, and then a fast break layup at the 13:06 mark to go ahead, 6-2. The Falcons fought back though as Timmy Brix found Kenny Pace (9 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and a steal), and then after Bowie came up empty on two attempts at the foul line, Pace scored again to tie the game up. However, Bowie raced back down for a fast break layup, and an 8-6 lead with 11:52 to go in the half. Monroe was able to keep pace though as Timmy Brix scored again, and then came up with a stop on the defensive end by drawing a charge at the 11:27 mark with the score tied at 8-8.

Monroe now had a chance to take the lead, but after being fouled, Danny Brix was unable to take advantage as he missed both foul shot attempts at the 11:17 mark, but his brother and Kenny Pace picked him up 16 seconds later when the former found the latter for a layup, and a 10-8 lead with 11:01 to go in the half. The elder Brix then followed that up with his second charge of the game at the 10:44 mark. However, Bowie overcame that to take the lead back on a traditional three point play at the 10:07 mark. Almost a minute later, soon to be junior Alex Vizcaino (2 rebounds, an assist, and a steal) passed to Timmy Brix for a layup, and Monroe’s final lead of the game at 12-11 with 9:15 to go in the first half. Bowie then took over the contest. Its fullcourt pressure began to force turnovers, and the offense started converting them. Over a span of just over three minutes, the game transformed from a closely played affair to a double digit Bowie lead.

Bowie scored 16 of the next 18 points including a short baseline jumper from the left side at the 8:27 mark for a 13-12 lead, a steal for a layup seconds later for a 15-12 lead, and another steal for a layup at the 7:58 mark for a 17-12 lead. When Monroe finally got the ball into the frontcourt, Danny Brix missed a shot that Bowie rebounded and turned into a fast break layup, and a 19-12 lead with 7:38 to go in the half. Bowie would add another bucket for a 10-0 run before the Falcons were able to stem the tide temporarily as Pace found Travis Dufner (9 points on 4 of 6 shooting, 3 rebounds, an assist, and a steal) for a layup as the Monroe forward was fouled for a traditional three point play, and a 21-15 Bowie lead with 7:07 to play before halftime. Bowie quickly picked up right where it left off after that with a 6-0 run in just 56 seconds including one of two free throws to cap the 16-2 run for a 27-15 lead with 6:11 to go in the half.

The next 3:54 saw Monroe compete more, but still Bowie outscored the Falcons by a 10-7 margin despite a three pointer by Pace, and a bucket by Dufner. As the Purple Birds called for time, Bowie was now leading 37-22 with 2:17 to go in the half. Both teams then scored two points each over the final two plus minutes for a 39-24 Bowie lead at the intermission. In the second half, the Mississippi team picked up where it left off in the first half with a 10-4 start over the first 6:53 of the second half to take a commanding, 49-28 lead. Bowie scored eight of the next 12 points after that to go ahead by twenty-five at 57-32 with 10:09 to go. From there, Bowie wasn’t threatened as the game ended with just under three minutes to play, and the Mississippi school leading, 68-41. Bowie went on to win the National Division bracket by beating Pennington, a team that defeated St. Joseph’s in the Quarterfinals. So both Monroe and St. Joe’s have nothing to be ashamed of, and can hang their heads high.

2009 Hoop Group Elite Team Camp–Final Results

READING, PA–On Thursday morning, GMC Hoops checked out the final brackets from the recent Hoop Group Elite Team Camp at Albright College last week. The site was there to cover a couple games from the first day of action that involved Monroe and St. Joseph’s of Metuchen. The Falcons advanced to the Quarterfinals by defeating Bishop Ireton while Monroe won its first round game over Holy Redeemer, but then lost to Bowie of Mississippi in the Round of 16. Speaking of Bowie, then went on to win the American Division tournament by defeating Pennington in the Championship. Pennington was the team that defeated St. Joe’s in the Quarterfinals. In the National Tournament, Gonzaga of Virginia won over Penn Wood as St. Patrick’s was defeated by Schenectady in the opening round.

2009 Hoop Group Elite Team Camp–Brackets

READING, PA–On Thursday, GMC Hoops received information on the 2009 Hoop Group Elite Team Camp including the teams and brackets. As always, there are two divisions in this team camp with 32 teams each. Two of the teams competing are from the Greater Middlesex Conference including Monroe and St. Joseph’s. Here are the brackets from the American and National Divisions. The site has already posted some of the results, and will have summaries on more information soon.

2009 Hoop Group Elite Team Camp–Some Results–Day One

READING, PA–On Thursday, GMC Hoops traveled over to Albright College in Reading, Pennsylvania to take in action from several games in the 2009 Hoop Group Elite Team Camp including matchups involving Monroe and St. Joseph’s. Here are the results from the games listed below.

2009 Hoop Group Elite Team Camp–Results–July 9, 2009

• St. Joseph’s over Turkey–Opening Round
• Monroe over Holy Redeemer–Opening Round
• St. Joseph’s 55–Bishop Ireton 36–Round of 16
• Bowie (MD) 68–Monroe 41–Round of 16

GMC Hoops enjoyed its long trip to Reading, and will have summaries on the action soon.

Teams In The 2009 Hoop Group Elite Team Camp

READING, PA–On Thursday, GMC Hoops received information from the Hoop Group on the HG Elite Team Camp that is being held at Albright College. The camp, which was formerly known as the Eastern Invitational Team Camp, used to be held at the College of New Jersey. There is a total of 20 schools spread across two divisions in this camp including two from the GMC: Monroe and St. Joseph’s. Below is a list of all the schools in the American and National Divisions:

2009 Hoop Group Elite Team Camp–American Division

• Monroe
• St. Joseph’s
• Turkey
• Holy Redeemer
• York
• Trinidad
• Chestnut Hill
• Lakewood
• Bishop McDevitt
• St. Albans
• Bayard Rustin
• Ridge
• Asbury Park
• Bowie
• Sussex Tech
• Pleasantville
• Frederick Douglas
• Hershey
• Pennington
• Ephrata
• Notre Dame
• Scranton
• Central Dauphin
• Bishop Ireton
• Bishop Kearney
• Poly Prep
• Philly Electric Tech
• Bullis
• Hill Regional Career
• Tappan Zee
• Elmira Southside
• Penn Hills

2009 Hoop Group Elite Team Camp–National Division

• Imhotep Charter
• Flint Hill
• Riverdale Baptist
• Westtown
• Bishop McNamara
• Pocono Mt. East
• Reading
• Peddie
• Neumann-Goretti
• Paul VI
• New Rochelle
• Hill
• Prep Charter
• Xaverian
• Poughkeepsie
• Gonzaga
• Jamesville DeWitt
• East Roosevelt
• Hun
• Good Counsel
• Susquehanna Twp.
• St. Raymond’s
• Roman
• St. Patrick’s
• Schenectady
• Carroll
• St. Paul’s
• South Philly
• Milford Mill
• North Catholic
• Boys & Girls

Note: –GMC Hoops took the long trip down to Reading, Pennsylvania, and saw St. Joseph’s and Monroe in action. Results and summaries will be forthcoming.

Eastern Team Camp–July 10, 2008

EWING, NJ–On Thursday, July 10th, GMC Hoops took a nice long trip out to The College of New Jersey to take in several games from the 2008 Eastern Invitational Basketball Team Camp. Several teams from the Greater Middlesex Conference were taking part in this 71 team field spread across three divisions. The teams included: Cardinal McCarrick, Monroe, and St. Joseph’s. The web site got to see three of those teams in action along with another in the form of Edison Academy coached by CJEOTO’s Ian Turnbull.

Notre Dame Pulls Away From McCarrick In 2nd Half, 66-60

Without head coach, Joe Lewis there to guide them, the Eagles had to do without either Julio Rosario, or Branten Widgeon in there games on Thursday. For this particular matchup against Notre Dame of Connecticut in the Consolation Round of the American Division Tournament, Widgeon was the coach while Rosario played. GMC Hoops took the trip to The College of New Jersey via the backroads of Middlesex and Somerset County, and arrived at TCNJ when the Eagles were at the half against Notre Dame. Cardy Mac trailed at the brief intermission by a score of 36-35. In the second half, the Connecticut based school took a double digit lead in the second half, and held on for the 66-60 victory.

In the second half, Notre Dame started out fast with four straight points to take a 40-35 lead with 18:30 left to play. The Eagles then scored their first points of the new half on a field goal with about 18 minutes left for a 40-37 ND lead. Over the next minute, Notre Dame added a one of two showing from the foul line to go up by four only to have Cardy Mac pull within two on a drive from the left wing by Rosario for a reverse layup, and a 41-39 ND lead with around 16 minutes to go. On the Irish’s next possession, Notre Dame went back up by four with a layup, and then rebounded a Rosario miss at the other end to set up a fast break opportunity that was converted on a feed for a layup, and a 45-39 advantage with around 14:30 to play. On McCarrick’s next possession, Dominic Appiah scored on an offensive rebound and putback off a Rosario miss for a 45-41 ND lead at about the 14 minute mark.

Notre Dame then added three more points all via the foul line with two foul shots at the 11:30 mark, and one of two from the charity stripe at about the midway point of the second half for a 49-41 advantage. Thirty-five seconds or so later, McCarrick got on the board again when Rosario hit a jumper from straight on for a 48-43 advantage. The soon to be senior, who looks to be the featured player on this year’s edition of the Cardinal McCarrick Eagles, then followed that up with a putback that closed the gap to three at 48-45 with 8:45 to go. After neither team scored for nearly two minutes, Notre Dame went back up by five, 50-45, on a jumper from the left corner. On McCarrick’s next possession, the Eagles came right back with a field goal at the 8:25 mark for a 50-47 score. Then, after getting a stop, Cardy Mac pulled to within one at 50-49 only to have Notre Dame score the next four points to go back up by five.

Mike Costello then got the Eagles to within three again with a putback of a Rosario miss for a 54-51 score at about the 7:30 mark. Then, after a score by Notre Dame, Rosario fed Appiah in the paint for a short right handed hook shot that made it a three point game again at 56-53. However, the Connecticut school put some distance between themselves at McCarrick again with five unanswered points for a 61-53 edge before Rosario knocked down a jumper from the left for a 61-55 score at the 5:15 mark. Appiah then scored on another offensive rebound and putback of a Rosario miss for a 61-57 score, and then after a Notre Dame basket, Craig Thomas dished to Jack Giordano on the right side for a layup that closed the gap to four again at 63-59. However, the Eagles could not get any closer as Notre Dame outscored them 3-1 over the final several minutes for the 66-60 victory.

Monroe Falls To Glasgow of Delaware, 54-33

After watching Cardinal McCarrick take on Notre Dame of Connecticut, and watching some of the first half action between Edison Academy and Watertown of Massachusetts, GMC Hoops headed back over to the outdoor courts to see Monroe take on Glasgow of Delaware. Arriving with about 9:00 left in the first half, Glasgow had a 13-9 edge. About a minute later, the Delaware team got on the board again with a three point play for a 16-9 advantage. Danny Brix, an incoming freshman at Monroe, got the Falcons going with a layup that closed the gap again to five at 16-11 with 7:40 to play in the half. On Glasgow’s next possession, it got three more points from the untraditional variety as a player connected for a three pointer for a 19-11 lead at the 7:20 mark.

A little less than a minute and a half later, Blake Bascom lost the ball for Monroe, and Glasgow turned it into a fast break opportunity with a pass upcourt for a layup, and a 21-11 lead with six minutes to play in the first half. Within the next minute, Monroe was on the board again with an offensive rebound and putback for a 23-11 lead. The Falcons finished the first half strong with five of the last seven points including a one of two showing at the line by soon to be junior, Travis Dufner at the two minute mark, an offensive rebound off a missed jumper by Blish for a spin and bank shot by Dufner at the 1:30 mark, and then after a Glasgow jumper from the left wing at the 15 second mark, a field goal in the waning moments of the half for a 25-16 Glasgow lead at the intermission.

After another stop inside to watch Edison Academy, GMC Hoops returned with 10 minutes remaining in the second half, and Glasgow up by a dozen, 35-23. The Delaware school went up by 14 again thanks to a two handed jam at about the 9 minute mark for a 37-23 lead. Then, after Bascom missed both his free throw attempts at the 8:30 mark, Glasgow drew a foul on a jumper in the key, and made one of two at the charity stripe for a 38-23 lead. The Delaware team then added a field goal for a 40-23 advantage before Danny Brix scored again with a jumper from about the free throw line to make the score, 40-25 with about 6:30 remaining. Glasgow then added another bucket on a nice fake down low for a score, and a 42-25 lead. The game finished with Glasgow outscoring Monroe 12-8 over the final 5:30. The Falcons got two layups from Dufner, and a jumper by Danny Brix during the closing stretch as Glasgow ended up with the 54-33 win.

Edison Academy Advances To American Division Championship

Another area team that was in action on Thursday morning and afternoon was Edison Academy, which was guided by assistant coach Ian Turnbull. Edison Academy is a prep school out of the Edison Job Corps. The school plays a national schedule including the likes of St. Anthony’s, St. Patrick’s, St. Thomas More Prep of Connecticut, South Kent of Connecticut, and Winchendon of Massachusetts. The team had already advanced to the semifinals of the American Division Championship Tournament with wins over Cedar Cliff of Pennsylvania in the first round, and Chestnut Hill of Pennsyvlania in the second round. Edison Academy was taking on Watertown of Massachusetts, a team that had quite a knack for hitting the perimeter shot. Edison Academy jumped out to a 10-3 lead only to have Watertown rally with three straight treys to close the gap to two at 14-12. However, Turnbull’s team closed out the first half with a 22-14 showing for a ten point halftime lead, and eventually prevailed in the end.

GMC Hoops picked up the action in this game with Edison Academy leading by a 10-3 margin with 12:56 left in the first half. Watertown then netted a trey at the 12:16 mark for a 10-6 score. Edison Academy responded on its next possession with a layup in the left low block for a 12-6 score with 11:50 to play in the first half. The prep school had a chance to increase its lead even further, but misfired on a couple free throws at the 11:35 mark. Watertown then struck again with another three pointer to close the gap to three at 12-9 with 11:14 to play before the intermission. Edison Academy then went back up by five on a jumper from the right corner at the 11:00 mark for a 14-9 score, but Watertown quickly replied on its next possession with a three pointer from the left side for a 14-12 score at the 10:40 mark. Both teams then exchanged baskets for the next 1:13 before Watertown committed a backcourt violation at the 9:27 mark with the scoreboard reading 16-14 in favor of Edison Academy.

Edison Academy then made one of two at the line with 8:36 left in the half to spark a 20-12 showing over the final nine minutes to take a 36-26 edge at the break. In the second half, Edison Academy went back to work by making two shots at the foul line with just inside 15 minutes remaining for a 38-26 lead. The prep school then added an offensive rebound and putback for its biggest lead of the game to this point at 40-26 with 14:09 remaining. Watertown then hit a three pointer to pull within eleven again at the 13:59 mark, but were unable to overcome the deficit as Edison Academy not only won the game, but ended up winning the American Division Championship by defeating the Nia School of Newark.

Eastern Team Camp–More News And Notes

EWING, NJ–After GMC Hoops last posts on the recent Eastern Invitational Basketball Team Camp that took places at The College of New Jersey on Wednesday and Thursday, the web site was contacted by Ian Turnbull, the head coach of the CJEOTO Panthers AAU Basketball program, who also happens to be an assistant coach at Edison Academy Prep, the Edison squad that was competing at Eastern.

For those of you who aren’t aware, Edison Academy Prep is the Prep Basketball team of Edison Job Corp. Academy according to Turnbull, who is in his second year as assistant to head coach, Kevin Strong. The team is comprised of mostly rising seniors and post graduates. At the Eastern team camp, Edison Academy went 5-0 and won the American Division by beating the Nia School in overtime. One of the wins the school got along the way was against Watertown of Massachusetts. Despite numerous three pointers by the Massachusetts team, Edison Academy jumped out to a 36-26 halftime lead, and then in the second half it started out with the first four points including two free throws at the 14:59 mark, and an offensive rebound and putback at the 14:09 mark for a 40-26 lead.

From there, Edison Academy was able to hang on for the win. The school plays a national prep schedule that includes St. Benedict’s, St Anthony’s, South Kent Prep of Connecticut (Mike Burwell of Cardinal McCarrick is attending there this fall), The Wichendon School of Massachusetts, St Thomas Moore of Connecticut (Marquis Jones of South Plainfeld) went there , and Progressive Christian.

Eastern Team Camp–July 9, 2008–Results

EWING, NJ–On Wednesday, the 2008 Eastern Invitational Basketball Team Camp got underway at the College of New Jersey with 71 teams playing in three separate divisions. Three teams from the Greater Middlesex Conference were in action including: Cardinal McCarrick, Monroe, and St. Joseph’s. All three GMC teams competed in the American Division with St. Joseph’s reaching the Second Round before losing in heartbreaking fashion to the Nia School. There was also a team from Edison, but GMC Hoops believes that it was an AAU team of some sort. Ian Turnbull of CJEOTO was coaching the team. The site will look into this to confirm whether or not this was indeed an AAU team. Below are the results from the first day of action:

Results

• Penn Hill over Cardinal McCarrick–First Round
• Edison over Cedar Cliff (PA)–First Round
• North Caroline (MD) over Monroe–First Round
• St. Joseph’s over Bladensburg (MD)–First Round
• Nia School over St. Joseph’s–Second Round
• Edison over Chestnut Hill (PA)–Second Round
• Monroe over Delhousie Regional (Canada)–Consolation
• Cedar Cliff (PA) over Cardinal McCarrick–Consolation
• St. Joseph’s over Peddie–Consolation
• Manasquan over Cardinal McCarrick

GMC Hoops was out at the College of New Jersey on Thursday to take in the second, and final day of action. A summary on that will be available later.

Teams In The 2008 Eastern Team Camp

EWING, NJ–On Thursday, GMC Hoops traveled through the backroads of Somerset and Mercer County to get to the College of New Jersey to see a bit of the action from the 2008 Eastern Invitational Basketball Camp. This year, three teams from the GMC plus another area team competed including: Cardinal McCarrick, Monroe, and St. Joseph’s. This year, there were a total of 71 teams from 11 different states, Canada, and Trinidad that made up three different divisions: American, National, and Patriot. Below are the lists of teams that competed in this camp:

American Division

• Laurel (MD)
• Malden (MA)
• Bishop Ireton (MD)
• Bishop McDevitt (PA)
• Trinidad
• Abington (PA)
• Glasgow (DE)
• West Windsor Plainsboro-South
• Friendship Charter (MD)
• Bodine (PA)
• St. Joseph’s-Metuchen
• Bladensburg
• Milford Mill
• Notre Dame (CT)
• Peddie
• Plymouth Whitemarsh (PA)
• Eastern Regional
• St. Albans (DC)
• Watertown (MA)
• Pocono Mountain East (PA)
• Dalhousie Regional (Canada)
• Lower Merion (PA)
• North Caroline (MD)
• Monroe
• Edison
• Cedar Cliff (PA)
• Cardinal McCarrick
• Penn Hills (PA)
• Chestnut Hill (PA)
• Manasquan
• Union
• York

National Division

• St. Patrick’s
• Archbishop Carroll (PA)
• South Philly (PA)
• Hillhouse (CT)
• Roman Catholic (PA)
• Flint Hill (VA)
• Susquehanna Township (PA)
• Eleanor Roosevelt (MD)
• North Mecklenberg (NC)
• Sanford (DE)
• Penn Wood (PA)
• Good Counsel (MD)
• Imhotep Charter (PA)
• St. Augustine’s Prep
• Bishop McNamara (MD)
• Hill School (PA)
• Gonzaga (DC)
• Poughkeepsie (NY)
• North Catholic (PA)
• Boys and Girls (NY)
• Middletown (OH)
• Friends Central (PA)
• Prep Charter (PA)
• Nia School
• Neuman Goretti (PA)
• Bullis (MD)
• Jamesville Dewitt (NY)
• Hun
• Academy New Church (PA)
• CBA
• Cannon School (NC)
• Riverdale Baptist (MD)

Patriot Division

• Caesar Chavez (DC)
• North Plainfield
• Westampton Tech
• Truman (NY)
• Pope John
• Pleasantville (NY)
• Rustin (PA)

Eastern Team Camp Gets Underway At TCNJ Today

EWING, NJ–On Wednesday morning, GMC Hoops learned from a source in the Greater Middlesex Conference that the Hoop Group Eastern Team Camp is getting underway today at the College of New Jersey. There are three different divisions of teams in this camp including: American, Patriot, and National. Four of the teams in this camp are from the GMC including: Cardinal McCarrick, Edison, Monroe, and St. Joseph’s. The web site has added a trip to TCNJ tomorrow on its itinerary to see some of the action from the final day.