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TBSA Fall League–September 21, 2008

EDISON, NJ–On Sunday night, GMC Hoops headed on over to The Basketball Shooting Academy over on Carter Drive in Edison to take in the second week of action at the 2008 TBSA Fall League. The site had just gotten off work, and still managed to get in the two finale games of the huge day at TBSA. The one game featured J.P. Stevens against Plainfield on Court #2 in what could be a preview of the North Jersey Section 2 Group IV State Tournament while the other was another GMCvs. Union County battle as Colonia took on Roselle on Court #3. It was the second week in a row that the web site captured both Stevens and Colonia in action at TBSA.

Plainfield Stuns Stevens With Last Minute Rally, 67-66

This would turn out to be quite a thriller. However, things didn’t start out all that well for Plainfield. As a matter of fact, it appeared as if the Cardinals from the Watchung Conference were going to lose the game. Trailing 63-57 with only 1:08 to play, Plainfield rallied behind Isiah Epps and Anthony Baskerville to come from behind with a 10-3 tear down the stretch capped by a Baskerville trey as time expired for the riveting 67-66 victory. The Cards, which competed in the HawksBasketball Fall-Ball Classic for the past several years, and lost to Cardinal McCarrick in their opener, evened their record at 1-1 on the fall while Stevens dropped to 0-2 after losing to Weequahic during the opening week of action.

GMC Hoops entered the gym after work to see Plainfield out in front 5-4 with 16:20 left in the first half. Epps followed up with a three pointer just 12 seconds later for an 8-4 lead at the 16:08 mark. The Cards then added another point on a free throw for a 9-6 lead at the 15:45 mark before Stevens got a field goal to close within three at 9-6. Plainfield, which is now coached by former SPHS head coach, Jeff Lubreski, then reeled off the next three points in a row to take a 13-6 advantage at the 13:14 mark. Forty-five seconds later, the Cards were on the board again with another basket for a 15-6 lead at the 12:29 mark. The Hawks finally started to get going when Kenny Bland drew a foul on a Plainfield player that blocked the JPS senior forward’s shot. The result was a pair of free throws for a 15-8 lead at the 12:06 mark.

Fired up now, Bland went to work again over a minute later when he knifed into the key from the right wing for a scoop shot that went in as he was fouled for a traditional three point play that closed the gap to four at 15-11 with 10:57 to go before the intermission. Nearly a minute after that, Bland was at it again with an offensive rebound and follow off his own miss that drew another foul that produced two free throws for a 15-13 Plainfield lead at the 10:04 mark. The Hawks had a chance to tie the game up with a score, but after senior point guard, Tahir Swinton swiped a steal, he turned it over by trying to be too fancy with a behind the back pass at the 9:28 mark. On the next Cardinal possession, Plainfield, which recently competed in the Summer Prime Time Shootout at Allentown High School, picked up one of two free throws at the line for a 16-13 lead with 8:59 to go before the intermission.

Stevens came back down right away on its next possession as senior forward, Myles Reuben scored on a tip in off the follow for a 16-15 Plainfield lead at the 8:32 mark. Plainfield responded with an offensive rebound and follow of its own for an 18-15 advantage with 8:15 to go before the half. The web site took a break from the action to take in some of the Colonia and Roselle matchup, but would return with 2:35 remaining, and Stevens now in front, 26-23 thanks to an 11-5 spurt. From the time that the Hawks trailed, 15-6, JPS had outscored Plainfield 20-8 in a span of 9:54 to take the three point lead. Stevens pressure then coerced the Cards to call a timeout at the 2:22 mark. Following the stoppage, Plainfield pulled within one as Epps grabbed an offensive board off his own miss, and dished out an assist for a layup that made the score, 26-25 at the 1:42 mark.

Reuben would get one of two at the foul line to make it a two point Hawk lead at 27-25 with a minute to go, but the Cards then got four straight points to go up by two including another offensive rebound off his own miss by Epps that he put back in this time for a 29-27 lead. However, the Hawks ended the first half with four unanswered points including a pair of free throws by Nick Pol after he was fouled on a drive at the 6 second mark, and then a steal for a layup as time expired for the 31-29 advantage at the half. In the second half, Stevens remained in control for the most part until the very end. Both teams combined for 73 points in the second half with Plainfield gaining the slight 38-35 edge for the win. The three point differential in the second half was thanks to Baskerville’s late game heroics. GMC Hoops was paying attention more to the action taking place between Colonia and Roselle, but kept up with what was happening between the Cardinals and the Hawks.

With 12:09 to play in regulation, both teams had scored ten points each as Stevens clinged to a two point, 41-39 lead. Forty seconds later, the game was tied on a Plainfield field goal at the 11:29 mark. Forty-four seconds after that, Epps dribble penetrated and kicked to Baskerville for a three pointer from the left side for a 44-41 lead at the 10:45 mark. Over the next two and a half minutes, the Hawks scored four straight points including two free throws at the 8:15 mark for a 45-44 lead. JPS then went up by three as Bland kicked out to Pol in the left corner for a jumper, and a 47-44 score with 7:39 to play in regulation. Then, the next 4:24 saw the Hawks increase their lead by another two with a 9-7 run for a 56-51 lead at the 3:15 mark. Bland then added one of two at the line with 3:06 remaining for a six points, 57-51 lead. Nearly a minute went by before another score as the Cardinals got a field goal to pull within four, and called for time with 2:09 to play.

Both teams then exchanged scores over the next 30 seconds for a 59-55 JPS lead with 1:39 left. Seven seconds later, the Hawks went up by six with a field goal at the 1:32 mark that made it 61-55. Plainfield wouldn’t go away though as Baskerville made a nice dish for a layup, and a 61-57 Stevens lead with 1:13 to go. Bland then made two free throws for a 63-57 lead with 1:08 remaining in regulation. Epps then promptly responded with a three pointer for a 63-60 score at the 52 second mark. Stevens then was flagged with a backcourt violation that turned the ball back over to the Cardinals with 38 seconds to play. Plainfield then scored a layup as it was fouled, but missed the bonus free throw, and the ball went off a Stevens player out of bounds with the score 63-62 at the 29 second mark.

The Cards then made it a 7-0 run when Epps spun, pivoted, and layed it up and in for a 64-63 lead with 21 seconds to go. On the very next Hawks possession though, Swinton was fouled, made one of two at the line, got a break thanks to a Cardinal lane violation, missed the extra free throw, but Bland was there to save the day with an offensive rebound and putback for the 66-64 lead. The lead would not be enough though as Baskerville came down the floor for a three pointer from the top of the key that gave the Cards a thrilling buzzer beating win over the Hawks, 67-66. See more details on this game and others played to date in the GMC Hoops TBSA Fall League Notes.

Colonia Rallies In Second Half To Defeat Roselle, 43-37

In the other 8:00 PM game that was taking place on this Sunday night, Colonia led by senior forward Nnamdi Usuwa, overcame a six point halftime deficit with a 28-16 showing in the second half for a 43-37 win over Roselle of Union County and the Mountain Valley Conference. After watching the first half of what would be a spellbinding game between J.P. Stevens and Plainfield, GMC Hoops came over to Court #3 to watch a bit of the end of the first period between the Patriots and Roselle. With 3:02 remaining before the intermission, the site sat down to see the Rams in front by four, 16-12. Not having the services of senior guard, J.J. D’Amico did appear on the surface to have a bit of an effect on the Pats from an offensive standpoint, but that would soon change.

Moments after arriving though, things went from bad to worse as the Rams came up with a three point play of the conventional variety at the 2:54 mark for a 19-12 edge. A little bit more than a minute later, Usuwa got his team going again with a drive to the basket that drew contact, and resulted in a foul that produced one of two free throws at the foul line for a 19-13 Roselle lead with 1:50 to go before the half. A minute and ten seconds would go by before the next score as Usuwa got a field goal thanks to a two handed layup on the right low block that closed the gap to 19-15 at the 40 second mark. On the very next Roselle possession, the Rams would score on a jumper from the left side to close out the first half scoring, and make it 21-15 at the intermission.

In the second half, both teams would combine to score more points, but Colonia would get the lion’s share in their 12 point edge for the victory. The Rams started out fine though with three of the first five points for a 24-17 lead at the 17:19 mark. Nearly a minute went by before the next score, but it would be the Pats getting on the scoreboard as sophomore Dave Cole found Usuwa on the right wing, and then the senior forward powered in for a layup that pulled CHS within five again at 24-19 with 16:23 to go. A little bit over a minute later, Roselle got on the board via the charity stripe by making one of two for a 25-19 edge at the 15:06 mark. On the next Patriot possession, Colonia knocked down a pull-up jumper in the key to close to within four at 25-21 with 14:33 left.

Neither team would score for 2:47 before the Pats pulled within one as Usuwa kicked out to St. Joseph’s transfer and sophomore guard, Matt Wagner, who knocked in a three pointer from the left corner for a 25-24 score at the 11:46 mark. Thirty-six seconds later, Roselle made another one of two at the foul line for a 26-24 lead with 11:10 to go. But, moments later on the next Colonia offensive series, the Patriots tied things up with a layup that made the score 26-26 at the 10:55 mark. The Rams came right back down the floor though, and put in a field goal to go back ahead, 28-26 at the 10:38 mark. Sixty-five seconds later though, the Patriots knotted things up again as Cole made a nice bounce pass to a teammate for a layup, and a 28-28 score with 9:33 remaining in regulation. Roselle would retake the lead with another one of two showing at the line that made it 29-28 with 8:25 left, but Colonia took the lead for good with seven of the next eight points including another Wagner jumper off the dribble following a pass from Usuwa at the 8:00 mark.

The web site would return with inside four minutes to play, and Colonia now leading, 35-30 at the 3:50 mark. Twenty-eight seconds later, the Patriots called for time, and after the timeout, the Rams of Roselle would first get a field goal, and then another one of two at the foul line thanks to a Patriot technical foul at the 2:00 mark. Now, suddenly, the score was 35-33. However, Usuwa came up big with a conventional three point play that consisted of a layin and a foul for a 38-33 lead with 1:42 to go. Roselle would come back on its next series with a field goal to close the gap to three at 38-35, but then Wagner put the final nail in the coffin with a three pointer from the right corner off another kickout by Usuwa for a 41-35 lead at the 1:04 mark. After a Ram score, Wagner closed out the game with two foul shots with 18 seconds left for the 43-37 win. With the victory, Colonia improved to .500 at 1-1 while Roselle fell to 0-2 on the fall. Both teams will be back in action next Sunday afternoon with the Pats facing off against Hunterdon Central on Court #3 at 2:00 PM following Roselle facing Bishop Ahr on the same court at 1:00 PM.

Rebounds Fall League–September 22, 2008

NEPTUNE, NJ–On Monday night, GMC Hoops traveled down the Route 35 South corridor through the Gateway to the Shore in South Amboy, then Sayreville, Old Bridge, and Northern Monmouth County to Rebounds to take in the second night of action in the 2008 Rebounds Fall League. On this night, there were two teams from the Greater Middlesex Conference that were in action including Spotswood and South Brunswick. Both the Chargers and the Vikings competed on opening night the week before, but with different results as the Chargers defeated Asbury Park while South Brunswick lost to West Windsor-Plainsboro South. This night had Spotswood taking on Group IV school, Marlboro from Class A North of the Shore Conference while the Vikings were battling Class A South’s Brick Memorial.

Spotswood Registers Another Impressive Victory, 50-41

Arriving late at the gym, GMC Hoops sat down with 15:31 to go in the first half, and Marlboro leading 5-1. About a minute, and forty seconds later, Ross Gerhart scored on a foul line jumper that closed the gap to 7-5 at the 13:52 mark. Fifty-six seconds later, the Chargers forced the Mustangs to commit a turnover, and then eleven seconds after that, Gerhart registered a layup while being fouled for a traditional three point play that put Spotswood ahead, 8-7 with 12:45 to go in the first half. The Chargers then added four more points over the next 2:42 including two free throws by Tyler Osofsky for a 12-7 lead at the 10:03 mark.

Marlboro would rally back though with a three pointer from the top of the key at the 9:16 mark that made it 12-10, and that a traditional three point play on a layup while being fouled at the 6:37 mark following a Spotswood score that made it 14-13. The Chargers then got a three pointer for a 17-13 lead before the Mustangs netted two foul shots at the 4:26 mark to close the gap to two at 17-15. Forty-three seconds later, Marlboro struck again on a leaner from the right side that rolled in to tie things up at 17-17 with 3:43 to go before halftime. At this point, the Mustangs had put together a 10-5 run to square the game.

Points would be at a premium the rest of the half was both teams combined for just nine points. Osofsky got the ball rolling with an offensive rebound and putback off his own miss to answer an earlier Marlboro score to tie the game again at 19-19 with 2:52 to go in the half. The Chargers then had a chance to take the lead, but Marlboro’s defense came up with a huge play as they blocked an Osofsky shot, and the ball went off the Spotswood junior out of bounds with 2:02 to go before the intermission. The Mustangs then took the lead for the first time in 12:37 when they sank a jumper from the left side for a 21-19 lead with 8.3 seconds remaining, but the Marlboro lead didn’t last long as Osofsky came back down the floor for a conventional three point play as time expired for a 22-21 Charger edge at the break.

The second half saw the game continue to be nip and tuck until Spotswood put together a decisive 10-0 tear late in the second half to pull out the victory. The Chargers wound up outscoring the Mustangs by a 28-20 margin in the final period of play. Spotswood began the half with a 4-0 run over the first 1:24 for a 26-21 lead, but Marlboro came back with a 4-0 run of its own over the next 1:34 to pull within one again before Gerhart hit a jumper straight on for a 28-25 lead at the 17:02 mark. Fifty-three seconds later though, Marlboro would tie the matchup with a three pointer from the left wing for a 28-28 score with 16:09 remaining in regulation. On the very next Charger possession, senior forward, Pat Dwyer put his team ahead by draining a three from the left side for a 31-28 adavantage at the 15:54 mark. The Mustangs promptly replied with a three pointer of their own once more for a 31-31 tie at the 15:33 mark.

Three quarters of a minute later, junior point guard, James Pareti put Spotswood back on top when he grabbed an offensive rebound, and put in the follow for a 33-31 lead at the 14:48 mark. The Chargers had a chance to go up even further, but went 1 of 4 at the line while Marlboro had tied the score before the one free throw by Spotswood put it in the lead, 34-33 at the 11:41 mark. Nearly two minutes later, the Chargers got a key bucket when they first grabbed an offensive rebound, and then James Pareti, one of the Pareti twins, kicked out to Cody Pace for a three pointer from the right wing for a 37-33 lead with 9:48 to play. Marlboro then scored four unanswered points to tie things up at 37-37 before Pace, who missed the opener due to commitments to baseball, came up big again with a trey from the left wing for a 40-37 lead with 7:48 remaining.

Marlboro would get a field goal to pull within one at 40-39, but then Osofsky netted two free throws at the line with 4:47 remaining, and then after a Mustang turnover at the 3:53 mark. Gerhart struck with a floated off the glass from the right side for a 44-39 lead. The scores highlighted a crucial 10-0 spurt that was capped by a Dwyer offensive rebound and putback off a Gerhart miss for a 50-39 lead with 1:17 to play as the Chargers went on for the 50-41 victory. Spotswood improved to 2-0 on the season, and will take on the Shore Sharks next week at 9:00 PM.

Brick Memorial Rolls Past South Brunswick, 70-52

While Spotswood was taking on Marlboro on the other side of the Rebounds facility, South Brunswick was squaring off against Brick Memorial on the Nets Court. It would be a very tough night for the Vikings as the Green Dragons jumped out to a 29-18 halftime lead, and then outscored the Vikes by a 41-34 margin in a high scoring, 75 point second half for the convincing 70-52 victory. GMC Hoops joined the action with 18:17 to go in the first half, and Brick Memorial already leading 5-0. BMHS had a chance to go up even further, but missed a layup from the right side at the 18:13 mark. The Green Dragons made up for it though with good hustle on the next South Brunswick possession. A Brick Memorial player blocked a shot off of Jean Paul Isaacs, and then saved the ball off of the Viking forward for a SBHS turnover.

The Vikings continued to be plagued by turnovers in the early going as they committed another miscue at the 16:14 mark, and were still scoreless. South Brunswick didn’t get on the board until about 5:47 into the contest when Isaacs came up with an offensive rebound that led to a floater, which banked in for a 5-2 Brick Memorial lead at the 14:13 mark. However, BMHS responded quickly with a conventional three point pay at the 14:03 mark for an 8-2 lead. The Green Dragons then added another three points for an 11-2 score at the 11:55 mark. Forty-five seconds later, Brick Memorial added a field goal for a 13-2 lead with 11:10 to go before halftime. Finally, South Brunswick got another basket when Isaacs came up with a rebound to set up a jumper from the right corner at the other end for a 13-4 BMHS lead at the 10:47 mark. Brick Memorial would get another score that forced South Brunswick to call for time at the 10:13 mark with the score, 15-4.

Brick Memorial and South Brunswick would exchange scores for the next several minutes. At the 9:21 mark, BMHS got a layup from the left side for a 17-6 lead. Then, moments later the Green Dragons swiped a steal for a layin that put them up 19-6 at the 9:08 mark. South Brunswick would get on the board with a field goal before time was called at the 7:24 mark with the score standing at 19-8. Brick Memorial then got another score to go up by 13 once more at 21-8 before Cody McHugh made a nice pump fake and drive to the basket from the right side that went for naught as his floater hit off the back iron with 6:28 to go in the half. BMHS then got another score for a 15 point, 23-8 lead before Kory Sanders made a traditional three point play that made it 23-11 at the 4:30 mark. Brick Memorial then scored 6 of the next 9 points while South Brunswick misfired twice at the line with 1:46 left for a 29-14 score.

Although the Vikings would tally the final four points of the first half, they hurt themselves with poor perimeter shooting down the stretch including three air balls in the final minute as the two teams went into the break with Brick Memorial leading, 29-18. In the second half, the Green Dragons took over in a very fast paced period. Both teams got going early as BMHS struck first with a short jumper over Isaacs at the 19:32 mark for a 31-18 lead. Thirty-five seconds later, the Vikes replied with a score of their own as Sanders, a senior, registered two points with a layup that made the score, 31-20 at the 18:57 mark. A minute and a half later, BMHS went back up by 13 with a field goal, and then the Vikings turned it over on their very next possession at the 17:06 mark. Twenty-four seconds after that, Brick Memorial hit a jumper from the left side for a 35-20 lead with 16:42 to play.

Over the next 6:01, both teams went back and forth in an evenly, but high scoring span that saw 37 points scored. Brick Memorial earned a 19-18 edge despite a steal by Isaacs that eventually set up his own layup for a 54-38 lead at the 10:41 mark. Ten seconds later, the Green Dragons got a field goal that not only forced SBHS to call for time with the score, 56-38, but it also began a 7-0 run that ultimately finished off the 70-52 win. With the victory, Brick Memorial improved to .500 at 1-1 on the fall while South Brunswick fell to 0-2. The Vikings will face Southern Regional next Monday night.

GMC Hoops plans to be back out at Rebounds on next Monday night to catch Spotswood in action against the Shore Sharks another AAU team.

Rebounds Fall League–October 27, 2008

NEPTUNE, NJ–On Monday night, GMC Hoops took the weekly trip down to Rebounds to take in the seventh week of action from the 2008 Rebounds Fall League. There was one GMC team in action during the 9:00 PM hour on this night, and it was Spotswood, which was facing off against the usually high octane offense of Academy Charter from South Belmar. The Panthers program has come a long way. The school, which began competing against several teams from the GMC back during the 2001-02 season, has now become a perennial contender in Central Jersey Group I.

In 2007-08, the Panthers won the sectional championship by downing Asbury Park, another team playing at Rebounds, by the score of 62-55. Shawn Heeter, a former league director at Rebounds, is the head coach, led the Panthers to victory over a Bishops team that knocked them off in the semifinals in 2006-07. This fall though, Academy Charter, despite their athleticism, speed, and quickness, have struggled somewhat by entering the game with a 1-5 mark overall.

Spotswood Cruises To Victory Behind Strong Second Half Start, 63-54

This game was the second highest scoring game that Spotswood was involved with this fall. The highest scoring game this season was in week three on September 29th against the AAU Squad, the Shore Sharks (lost 62-59). The first half was the highest scoring first half the Chargers participated in this fall with 69 points. Spotswood got the majority of those points with a 39-30 showing in the opening half. The GMC Blue squad played smart basketball, great defense, and weren’t fazed by the athletic ability and talent of their opponent. The Chargers used their perimeter shooting to their advantage.

In the first half, Spotswood connected on seven three pointers in the first half including three by junior Tyler Osofsky, who has been lighting things up this fall. Academy Charter knocked down some trifectas as well with five as both teams combined for 12 three pointers in a 69 point first half that saw the Chargers take a 39-30 edge into the brief intermission. The Panthers kicked things off with a tip in on the follow during its opening possession for a 2-0 lead at the 19:35 mark. Pat Dwyer put the Chargers on the board with a three pointer from the left wing for a 3-2 lead at the 18:47 mark. Academy Charter scored a trey to go back on top by a 5-3 margin before Ross Gerhart promptly replied with a three of his own from the left wing for a 6-5 advantage with 18:08 left in the first half.

About a minute and twenty-two seconds later, Spotswood netted another three pointer to go up by four at 9-5, but the Panthers canned a trey of their own with a three from the left wing for a 9-8 Charger lead at 16:09 mark. Then, Academy Charter came up with a big defensive play on the other end when Gerhart made a nice no look pass to Dwyer for a shot that was blocked by the Panthers at the 14:55 mark. But, the senior forward redeemed himself with a putback for a 11-8 with 14:19 mark. The Panthers kept within one thanks to another tap in on the follow for an 11-10 score at the 13:18 mark. Then, came the key run of the first half.

Over the next 1:23, the Chargers went on a 7-0 spurt including an Osofsky three from the right corner off an assist by Gerhart at the 12:39 mark, a jumper by Pace from the left wing off a pass by Osofsky at the 12:21 mark, and a Cody Pace drive for a layup from the left side that not only gave Spotswood an 18-10 lead at the 11:55 mark, but also coerced the Panthers to call for time at the 11:52 mark. Following the timeout, Academy Charter got on the board with some penetration, and a kickout to the right corner for a three pointer at the 11:30 mark that made the score, 18-13. However, on the very next Spotswood possession, the Chargers promptly went back up by eight thanks to another trey by Osofsky from the top of the key for a 21-13 score.

A short time later, Spotswood had a chance to score again, but a Pace errant pass was intercepted by Academy Charter for a layup that made the score, 21-15 at the 10:34 mark. The Chargers got a bucket to put them go back up by eight, but then the Panthers scored five straight points to close the gap to 23-20 with 9:25 to go before halftime. The Pareti twins then came together for a Tom Pareti three pointer from the left corner for a 26-20 lead at the 8:55 mark. Nearly two minutes later, Osofsky followed that up with a layup off a pass from Pace for a 28-20 lead with 7:03 remaining in the half. However, the Panthers promptly replied with back to back three pointers at the 6:31 and 6:07 marks for a 28-26 Charger lead. Spotswood had a chance to go up by four, but Osofsky misfired on two free throws at the 5:28 mark.

Forty seconds later though, the Chargers redeemed themselves thanks to a Pace offensive rebound and putback of a James Pareti miss that put the team up by four, 30-26 with 4:48 to go in the half. The basket sparked a 6-2 run that included two free throws by Dwyer, who was fouled on an offensive rebound and putback attempt at the 3:46 mark for a 34-28 lead. Academy Charter got two of those points back with an acrobatic move that picked up a foul, and produced two free throws for a 34-30 score at the 2:56 mark. A little more than a minute later, Osofsky struck again with another trey from the top of the key for a 37-30 score with 1:49 to go before the intermission.

The Chargers then got the final points of the half for the nine point lead. After Academy Charter threw the ball away on the inbounds, Pace scored on an offensive rebound and follow off an Osofsky miss for the 39-30 score at the intermission. In the second half, the Chargers scored 11 of the first 15 points in the opening 8:06 for a 50-34 lead. However, the Panthers fought back with a 9-4 run to pull within 11 again at 54-43 at the 6:14 mark. The Chargers would score five straight points to go back up by 16 again with just under six minutes to go, but Academy Charter closed the contest with an 11-4 showing to finish the game with a 20-13 run for the 63-54 final score.

At the start of the second half, neither team could put the ball in the basket. Academy Charter didn’t get on the board for nearly the first four minutes, and Spotswood didn’t score until a little while later. The Panthers drew first blood in half number two with a steal off a Pareti pass for a layup that made the score, 39-32 with 16:05 left in the contest. Fifteen seconds later, Spotswood netted a three pointer for a 42-32 lead at the 15:50 mark. Nearly two minutes afterward, Gerhart put the Chargers up by a dozen with a left handed scoop shot with 14:05 to go. Fifty seconds after that, James Pareti came up with a hard nosed defensive play typical of his character by drawing a charge at the 13:15 mark. On the very next possession, Pace netted two free throws for a 46-32 lead with 12:52 to play.

After a free throw by the Chargers gave them their biggest lead in the game at 47-32, the Panthers came up with great hustle and save that led to a basket for a 47-34 score with 12:07 to go. However, Spotswood took its biggest lead on another three pointer by Osofsky that made the score, 50-34 at the 11:54 mark. The next four minutes saw Academy Charter close the gap somewhat with a 7-4 run to make it a 54-41 score at the 7:22 mark. A little more than a minute later, the Panthers scored again for a 9-4 run, and a 54-43 Spotswood lead with 6:14 to play. On the next Charger possession though, Gerhart scored a layup, and drew a foul. Upon missing the bonus free throw, Gerhart got a boost from his teammates in the form of an offensive rebound that led to the senior guard’s three pointer that got a kind roll for a 59-43 lead.

Academy Charter closed the game with an 8-4 run that made it 63-51 at the 1:30 mark, and then sank a three pointer down the stretch for the final 63-54 score. In the game, the Chargers made at least 10 three pointers while the Panthers made at least 7. Quite a bit of three point shooting for one night, but that is typical of the type of games Academy Charter gets involved in. With the victory, the Chargers have won three straight, and are now 5-2 overall on the fall while the Panthers dropped to 1-6. Next Monday night, Spotswood ends its fall season with a Showcase Game matchup against West Windsor-Plainsboro South in what should be a very good test.

TBSA Fall League–Updated And Corrected Standings–October 30, 2008

EDISON, NJ–GMC Hoops has been able to go through the standings of the fall league being run at the The Basketball Shooting Academy on Carter Drive in Edison. Eleven teams now have updated and corrected records based upon the results obtained from TBSA recently. The site went through each of the 32 teams games played. Below are the updated and corrected standings as of October 26th. There are still six teams that need to have their records updated. GMC Hoops will have those updated as well soon.

TBSA Fall League–Week #7 Standings (Corrected)

• Watchung Hills (7-0)
• St. Joseph’s (6-0)
• Monroe (6-1)
• Piscataway (6-1)
• NJ Extreme (4-1)
• St. Joseph’s #2 (5-2)
• Cardinal McCarrick (5-2)
• West Windsor Plainsboro-North (5-2)
• Metuchen (4-2)
• Montgomery (4-2)
• Woodbridge (4-3)
• Columbia #1 (4-3)
• Middlesex (4-3)
• Hillsborough (4-3)
• Columbia #2 (4-3)
• Bridgewater (3-3)
• Plainfield (3-4)
• Trenton (3-4)
• Timothy Christian (3-4)
• J.P. Stevens (2-4)
• Princeton (2-4)
• Edison (2-4)
• Colonia (2-4)
• Roselle Catholic (1-4)
• Roselle (2-5)
• Bishop Ahr (2-5)
• Weequahic (2-5)
• Hackettstown (2-5)
• Hopewell Valley (1-6)
• Manville (1-6)
• Cranford (0-6)
• Hunterdon Central (0-7)

GMC Hoops plans to use his lunch break from work to catch some of the action from the fall league’s season finale on Sunday, November 2nd.

TBSA Fall League–October 26, 2008–Results

EDISON, NJ–On Sunday, October 26th, the seventh week of action took place at The Basketball Shooting Academy. GMC Hoops was able to get summaries from action between Monroe and Hunterdon Central as well as Manville versus Hackettstown. The site was able to stop down at TBSA during its lunch break to see some of the action. Below are the results from 10 of the 16 games played. Special thanks to former Colonia head coach, Ken Pace for supplying the site with this information.

TBSA Fall League Results–Week #7 (Incomplete)

• Cardinal McCarrick over Hillsborough by 24
• Watchung Hills over Piscataway by 6
• Bishop Ahr over Plainfield by 5
• West Windsor-Plainsboro North over Woodbridge by 5 in OT
• Roselle over Weequahic by 4
• St. Joseph’s #2 over Hopewell Valley
• Columbia over Trenton by 7
• Middlesex over Timothy Christian by 15
• Monroe 55–Hunterdon Central 46
• Hackettstown 38–Manville 37

GMC Hoops plans to spend his lunch break at TBSA this coming Sunday, November 2nd to take in some of the action from the final day of the season.

TBSA Fall League–October 19, 2008–Results

EDISON, NJ–On Sunday, October 19th, the sixth week of action took place at The Basketball Shooting Academy. While GMC Hoops was unable to attend the action due to a scheduling conflict with work, the site was still able to get the results from all the contests played. Below are the results from all 16 games. Special thanks to former Colonia head coach, Ken Pace for supplying the site with this information.

TBSA Fall League Results–Week #6

• Cardinal McCarrick over Weequahic by 6
• Watchung Hills over Roselle Catholic by 21
• Hillsborough over Bishop Ahr by 40
• Manville over Cranford by 14
• Hackettstown over Edison by 2
• West Winsor-Plainsboro North over Hunterdon Central by 3
• NJ Extreme over Hopewell Valley by 10
• Plainfield over Colonia by 5
• Monroe over Columbia #1 by 6
• Metuchen over Princeton by 1
• St. Joseph’s over Middlesex by 30
• Montgomery over Woodbridge by 6
• Bridgewater over St. Joseph’s #2 by 11
• Piscataway over Roselle by 8
• Columbia #2 over Timothy Christian by 10
• Trenton over J.P. Stevens by 10

GMC Hoops plans to spend his lunch break at TBSA this coming Sunday, November 2nd to take in some of the action from the final day of the season.

TBSA Fall League–October 12, 2008–Results

EDISON, NJ–On Sunday, October 12th, the fifth week of action took place at The Basketball Shooting Academy. While GMC Hoops was unable to attend the action due to a scheduling conflict with work, the site was still able to get the results from all the contests played. Below are the results from all 16 games. Special thanks to former Colonia head coach, Ken Pace for supplying the site with this information.

TBSA Fall League Results–Week #5

• Cardinal McCarrick over Trenton
• NJ Extreme over Hackettstown
• Woodbridge over Hopewell Valley
• Bridgewater over Princeton
• Montgomery over Timothy Christian
• Metuchen over Hunterdon Central
• Watchung Hills over Bishop Ahr
• West Windsor-Plainsboro North over Edison
• Monroe over Middlesex
• Piscataway over Columbia #1
• St. Joseph’s over Plainfield
• Hillsborough over Roselle Catholic
• Columbia #2 over Cranford
• Weequahic over Colonia
• J.P. Stevens over Roselle
• St. Joseph’s #2 over Manville

GMC Hoops plans to spend his lunch break at TBSA this coming Sunday, November 2nd to take in some of the action from the final day of the season.

TBSA Fall League–October 5, 2008–Results

EDISON, NJ–On Sunday afternoon, October 5th, GMC Hoops was down at The Basketball Shooting Academy to catch games between Middlesex and Piscataway as well as Metuchen versus Watchung Hills. However, in addition to those two games, which took place in the final hour of the day’s action, there were 14 other games that were played for a total of 16 contests. Below are the results from all 16 games. Special thanks to former Colonia head coach, Ken Pace for supplying the site with this information.

TBSA Fall League Results–Week #4

• Woodbridge over Hackettstown
• Timothy Christian over Hopewell Valley
• Montgomery over Manville
• West Windsor-Plainsboro North over Roselle Catholic
• NJ Extreme over Cranford
• Princeton over Hunterdon Central
• St. Joseph’s #2 over Hillsborough
• Bridgewater over Bishop Ahr
• Piscataway 43–Middlesex 37
• Watchung Hills 58–Metuchen 49
• Trenton over Colonia
• Columbia #2 over Edison
• Plainfield over Monroe
• Columbia #1 over J.P. Stevens
• St. Joseph’s over Weequahic
• Roselle over Cardinal McCarrick

GMC Hoops plans to spend his lunch break at TBSA this coming Sunday, November 2nd to take in some of the action from the final day of the season.

GMC Football–Middlesex vs. Highland Park–Game To Be At J.P. Stevens High

MIDDLESEX, NJ–GMC Hoops has learned from our Middlesex Blue Jays Volunteer, who cited a Home News-Tribune report that Friday night’s game between Middlesex and Highland Park is being played at J.P. Stevens High School.

Source: HomeNews Tribune Article On Middlesex and Highland Park Game

TBSA Fall League–September 28, 2008–Rest Of Results

EDISON, NJ–On Sunday night, September 28th, the third week of action took place at The Basketball Shooting Academy in the 2008 TBSA Fall League. GMC Hoops was unable to attend the third week’s action due to a scheduling conflict. Below are the results from the final six games of that evening. Special thanks to former Colonia head coach, Ken Pace for these results.

TBSA Fall League Results–Week #3–The Rest

• St. Joseph’s over Columbia #1
• West Windsor-Plainsboro North over St. Joseph’s #2
• Montgomery over Metuchen
• Woodbridge over Cranford
• J.P. Stevens over Hillsborough
• Edison over Roselle Catholic

GMC Hoops plans to spend some time at TBSA this coming Sunday, November 2nd to catch some of the action from the final week of the season.