ELIZABETH, NJ–On Wednesday, GMC Hoops made its fourth trip of the summer to the 2011 Elizabeth Summer League. It was the second time the site saw the Sayreville Bombers in action, and the GMC squad did a much better job this time around. Without soon to be sophomore point guard, Corey Taite, and again at a height disadvantage, the Bombers showed determination in overcoming a 25-17 first half deficit to win 55-45.
Saitta And Johnson Spark Sayreville Past Oratory Prep, 55-45
Sayreville had jumped out to a 17-10 lead with 1:30 to play in the first quarter when the Rams went on a 15-0 tear over a span of 7:26 to take an eight point lead with a little more than four minutes to go in the first half. The Bombers seemed to give way to a couple of things that had plagued them in last Wednesday’s loss to Moore Catholic of Staten Island as Oratory scored on putbacks and off turnovers. However, Sayreville closed the first half wit a 10-5 spurt to trail by only three at 30-27 going into the intermission.
The Bombers then began the second half with a 14-2 tear over the first 8:18 of the third for a 41-32 lead and withstood a late third into early fourth quarter rally by the Rams for the victory. Soon to be junior, Joe Saitta led the way for Sayreville with 20 points while Trey Johnson chipped in with 14 points. Cody Van Note also contributed with six points including four during the third quarter tear that essentially helped Sayreville get the win. For the game, Sayreville connected on 20 field goals, 5 threes, and 8 of 13 from the foul line.
Oratory Prep compiled 45 points on 17 field goals, 4 threes, and a perfect 7 of 7 from the line. Sayreville had more points from both beyond the arc (15-12) and the charity stripe (8-7), and also had more two point field goals (15-13). The Bombers had 10 points off turnovers while Oratory Prep scored 11 points off miscues. However, the school from Summit didn’t score any points off turnovers in the second half. The Rams only had six second chance points as Sayreville did a much better job of keeping their Union County foes off the boards, and minimizing turnovers.
The Bombers, which outscored the Rams by a 28-15 margin in the second half, enjoyed a 38-20 surge over the last 24:04 of the contest. Neither team had a lead bigger than 10 points as Oratory led by eight in the first half when Sayreville ended the game with the largest margin. There were three lead changes and three ties. Sayreville led the game for 29:48 while the score was tied for 1:03. Oratory only led for 9:09. The key stint for Sayreville began at the 1:58 mark, and continued for 10:16 as the Bombers outscored the Rams by a margin of 24-7 to take a 41-32 lead with 1:42 to play in the third.
Saitta and Johnson each had 9 points during the run as Saitta had four field goals including a trey while Johnson had three field goals including a three along with two free throws. Van Note capped the tear with a drive from the left side for a floater. This was a nice win for Sayreville. This past season, Oratory Prep reached the semifinals of the Non-Public B North State Tournament before losing to eventual champion, and Tournament of Champions winner, St. Anthony’s. The Bombers will wrap up the regular season next week with a game against Scotch Plains on Monday, July 25th at 6:00 PM.
Playoffs start at the Elizabeth Summer League on July 27th. They continue on July 28th, and conclude on Monday, August 1st with the championship.