PISCATAWAY, NJ–In the weekend prior to the Fourth of July holiday, GMC Hoops took a trip up to the Rutgers Athletic Center to take in some of the action from the first Rutgers Overnight Team Camp of the summer. Earlier in June, several teams from the Greater Middlesex Conference including: Sayreville, J.P. Stevens, Spotswood, Old Bridge, Woodbridge, Middlesex, Metuchen, and J.F. Kennedy all competed in a week long team camp. However, for this particular camp, there were no teams from the GMC although there were several from the Skyland Conference and Shore Conference. Overall there were a total of 46 teams from both the JV and Varsity levels. Schools participating in this team camp were: Immaculata, Montgomery, North Hunterdon, Southern Regional, Manasquan, Point Pleasant Boro, Union Hill, Tappan Zee, Curtis (Staten Island), Amityville (Long Island), Harborfields, and Clarkstown.
The web site captured action from five different games including: North Hunterdon versus Point Boro, Manasquan (JV) and Harborfields, Montgomery (JV) and Clarkstown, Tappan Zee and Curtis, and Immaculata and Amityville. Two of the games were covered from start to finish while the other three were done in bits and pieces. Here are some brief summaries below on the three games that were partially covered.
Point Boro Hangs On To Defeat North Hunterdon
The first game of the day that was covered had the Lions of North Hunterdon against the Panthers of Point Pleasant Boro. North Hunterdon, which hails from the Delaware West Division of the Skyland Conference is coached by former Piscataway and Middlesex County College head coach, Charles Brown. Last season, the Lions had a difficult year with a 2-17 overall record and 1-9 mark in divisional play. In 2005-06, North Hunterdon, which is a Group IV school, finished at 9-14 overall and 3-7 in division. Meanwhile, Point Pleasant Boro has had much more success despite being a smaller school.
The Panthers, which hail from the Class B South Division of the Shore Conference, won its division title in 2006-07, and for the second straight year, the team reached the South Jersey Group II semifinals, where again, it was defeated by Haddonfield. The Bulldawgs from Haddonfield, which lost big man, Brian Zoubek, to graduation the year before, eventually reached the state final before losing to Chatham.
With 6:43 remaining in the contest, North Hunterdon trailed, 27-19, but after a basket by the Panthers for a ten point, 29-19 lead at the 6:39 mark, the Lions rallied with the next five points including a score at the 3:01 mark, and a three pointer with 2:34 left to close the gap to 29-24. Unfortunately though, North Hunterdon couldn’t get any closer than five as Point Boro got a crucial score at the 1:07 mark, and then both teams went one of two at the line over the final 56 seconds for a 32-25 Point Pleasant Boro victory.
Manasquan Defeats Harborfields While Montgomery Edges Clarkstown In JV Action
Of the five games seen on this Saturday by GMC Hoops, two of them involved JV squads. Manasquan’s JV was taking on Harborfields while Montgomery’s Junior Varsity played Clarkstown. Manasquan was leading late in their game with Harborfields when we arrived, and ultimately held on for a nine point, 45-36 win. Meanwhile, the Junior Cougars, which happened to knock off top seeded Monroe in the playoffs at the 2007 Montgomery JV Summer League near the end of the season, jumped out to an 18-8 lead with 2:53 left in the first half. Clarkstown connected for a three pointer at the 1:53 mark to make it a seven point game at 18-11, but the Junior Cougars from the Delaware East Division of the Skyland Conference, ended the half with four of the last seven points for a 22-14 halftime lead.
In the second half, things got more interesting as Clarkstown got its act together offensively by nearly doubling its first half output with 27 points to outscore Montgomery by five in the frame. With 9:09 to go in the game, Montgomery was only leading by five as Clarkstown outscored the Somerset County squad by an 11-8 margin over the first 10:51. Over the next 2:51, the Junior Cougars edged Clarkstown by an 8-6 margin despite a basket that could have been a three point play for Clarkstown to make it 38-31 at the 6:18 mark.
Montgomery would go into a scoring drought though as it didn’t score for 4:34 while Clarkstown reeled off seven straight points to tie things up at 38-38. However, the Junior Cougars would take the lead on a score down low at the 1:44 mark, and then padded its slim advantage with a steal for a layup at the 38 second mark for a 42-38 edge. Montgomery essentially put the game away with a layup at the 14 second mark for a 44-38 lead before Clarkstown closed out the contest with a three point play for the 44-41 final.
| Team | 1 | 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Montgomery (JV) | 22 | 22 | 44 |
| Clarkstown (JV) | 14 | 27 | 41 |
Curtis Too Much For Tappan Zee, 47-36
Another team from New York that made the trip down to Rutgers again this summer was Curtis of Staten Island. Curtis has competed against GMC teams in the past including the Elizabeth Summer League, and the Roselle Catholic Tournament. Tappan Zee is also competing again this year at Rutgers, and the two teams squared off on this Saturday morning. Curtis, which was 18-8 in 2006-07, finished second to a Port Richmond team that lost to South Brunswick in the 2006 Joe Silver Tournament. In 2005-06, the Warriors went 19-6 and finished first in the PSAL Staten Island A League with an 11-1 division mark.
While the game was a much closer one than the contest between Immaculata and Amityville played a short time later, Curtis was in control throughout much of the game with a 22-17 halftime lead, and then a 25-19 showing in the second half to pull away for the 47-36 victory. Tappan Zee opened the game with a layup to take a 2-0 lead, but Curtis then scored five of the next seven points including a three pointer from the right side to take a 5-4 lead with about 16:30 remaining in the first half. Over the next 1:30, Tappan Zee reeled off five straight points including a three pointer from the right wing for a 9-5 lead. Up to this point in the contest, there had already been four lead changes. Following a Curtis timeout at the 15:00 mark, the Warriors misfired on a shot, which Tappan Zee rebounded, and later converted into a score of its own for an 11-5 lead with 14:15 to go in the opening half. The school from Staten Island then responded with six consecutive points including a jumper from the corner, and a layup off of a steal to tie the contest up at 11-11 as Tappan Zee called for time at about the ten minute mark.
Following the timeout, Tappan Zee retook the lead on a pair of free throws with 9:20 left before intermission to make the score, 13-11. On the very next possession, the Warriors tie the game up again at 13-13 on a nice drive through the middle for a lefty layup at the 9:05 mark. Curtis then took its first lead since the opening minutes of the game as it got a bucket for a 15-13 lead at the 8:30 mark. Tappan Zee had a chance to tie, but missed the front end of a one and one, and then Curtis went ahead by three as a Warrior player was fouled on a field goal attempt that resulted in one of two at the foul line for a 16-13 score at the 7:37 mark. Curtis, which had plenty of size and athleticism, scored again a little while later on an offensive rebound and putback for an 18-13 lead with 6:49 to go in the half. The Warriors then put a cap on a 15-0 tear that spanned some eight minutes with a rebound that was passed upcourt on an outlet that led to a layup at the other end for a 20-13 advantage at the 6:15 mark. Tappan Zee finally got going again with a layup off a drive down through the middle of the key to spark a 4-2 mini-run that ended the first half scoring with Curtis on top 22-17 at the break.
At the start of the second half, Tappan Zee took the ball on the side out, and got a score on a drive to the left side and baseline for a layup attempt and foul, which resulted in a pair of foul shots for a 22-19 Curtis lead. Tappan Zee then followed that up with a jumper to trim the deficit to one at 22-21 with about 18:30 to go in regulation. Curtis then got its first points of the second half on an offensive rebound and putback that not only made the score, 24-21, but it also coerced the Tappan Zee coach to call timeout. Following the stoppage, Tappan Zee set up a nice play for a score as a good entry pass led to a spin move and lefty hook shot that made the score, 24-23 with sixteen minutes to play. Curtis then got the ball, and scored on a jumper from the foul line extended to make the score, 26-23 at the 15:26 mark. Tappan Zee stayed within striking distance by scoring again to make it a one point game once more at 26-25 with 14:48 to go. Curtis prevented Tappan Zee from taking its first lead since the middle of the opening half as the Warriors intercepted a pass, and cruised in for an easy layup that pushed their advantage back to three at 28-25. Tappan Zee would close again within one as it rebounded a poor shot by a Warrior player, and gave a nice outlet pass upcourt for a layup that made the score, 28-27 at the 13:00 mark.
A little while later, Curtis struck for a three pointer that made it a two possession game at 31-27 with 12:23 to go in the contest. The trifecta ignited a 7-0 spurt by the Warriors to take a 35-27 advantage before Tappan Zee, made a nice stop and pivot in the key for a turnaround jumper to close the gap to six at 35-29 with about 9:32 remaining. Neither team would score for over a minute and a half before Curtis got an offensive rebound off a missed free throw, and put it back in for a 37-29 lead with just under eight minutes to play. A short time later, Tappan Zee made a great steal, but couldn’t convert the turnover into points thanks to a great block by a Warrior player with 6:45 remaining. Tappan Zee would eventually cut the deficit to six on a pair of free throws at the five minute mark, 37-31. The Warriors then ran off the next four points for a double digit lead at 41-31, but Tappan Zee got those four points back on two pairs of free throws that made it a 41-35 game with 3:22 remaining. However, that would be as close as Tappan Zee would get as Curtis closed out the game with a 6-1 burst including an offensive rebound and putback to make the score, 45-36 with a minute to go, and then a dunk with less than 30 seconds remaining for the 47-36 victory.
| Team | 1 | 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Curtis (S.I.) | 22 | 25 | 47 |
| Tappan Zee | 17 | 19 | 36 |
Immaculata Surges In Second Half To Rout Amityville, 49-18
One of the teams from the Central Jersey area that participated in this year’s overnight camp at Rutgers was Immaculata of Somerville. The Spartans, which finished 20-7 overall and 7-4 for a second place finish behind Bridgewater in the Delaware East Division after going 25-4 overall and 10-1 in league in 2005-06. The Spartans were eliminated by Marist of Bayonne in the opening round of the 2007 Non-Public A North State Tournament after reaching the Championship game the year before and losing to perennial powerhouse, Seton Hall Prep. Each of the past two years, Immaculata has reached the final of the Somerset County Tournament only to lose to Bridgewater, which has won the title each of the last three seasons.
The Spartans, which played St. Joseph’s of Montvale a week earlier at the HBC, jumped out to a 28-15 lead at halftime, but then really put the screws on defensively in the second half only allowing three points as they surged to a 21-3 showing for a 49-18 romp over Amityville of New York. Although Immaculata lost soon to be sophomore, Ryan Lubreski, son of former South Plainfield Head Coach, Jeff Lubreski, who transferred to Blair Academy over the summer, it has several key players returning including Jeff Cullinan, Theo Riddick, and talented guard, Gamal Mohammed, who previously played at Kearny Christian Academy before transferring to the Somerville school last year. After neither team scored for over three minutes, Immaculata got on the board at the 16:45 mark as the Spartans stepped to the line for a pair of foul shots and a 2-0 lead.
Amityville, which played Franklin last summer at the same overnight camp in a game that was much closer, tied things up at 2-2 with two from the charity stripe as well at the 15:28 mark. The Spartans then took a 5-2 lead on a three pointer at the 15:14 mark, and then increased their edge to six on another three pointer from the left wing for an 8-2 lead at the 14:20 mark. Following an Amityville timeout with 12:58 to go in the half, Immaculata went back to work with three more points including two more free throws at the 12:30 mark for an 11-2 lead. The New York team finally put an end to the 9-0 run over a 5:59 span with a hard drive to the basket for its first field goal of the game that made the score, 11-4 in favor of the Spartans with 9:29 to go before intermission.
Over the next three minutes or so, Immaculata scored four of the next six points for a 15-6 advantage at the 6:30 mark. Nearly a minute later, Cullinan netted a three pointer to highlight another 11-4 run for a 26-10 lead with 2:55 to go in the half. Cullinan also contributed on another score by getting a steal that lead to a basket at the 4:54 mark to make it 22-8. Amityville would close the half with five of the last seven points, but things went down the drain in half number two for the team from New York as Immaculata, which later won the Bound Brook Summer League Championship over Piscataway, rolled to victory by scoring 87.5 percent of all the points in the period for the convincing win. Cullinan sparked the second half avalanche with an offensive rebound, spin move, and score for a 30-15 lead at the 19:42 mark. In the next 6:33, Immaculata scored seven of the next ten points including a nice drive to the basket for a finger roll layin to make it a 37-18 lead at the 13:09 mark. From there, the Spartans coasted as Amityville didn’t score for the rest of the second half in a 49-18 drubbing.
| Team | 1 | 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Immaculata | 28 | 21 | 49 |
| Amityville | 15 | 3 | 18 |