SOUTH RIVER, NJ–On Saturday morning, GMC Hoops kicked off its Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament Preliminary Round Tripleheader coverage with a visit to South River High School to see the 21st seeded Rams in action against 28th seeded South Amboy.
Led by Derrick Whitaker, who scored 29 points, and Joey Nigro, who chipped in with 17 points, South River knocked down 14 three pointers, and outscored South Amboy by a margin of 42-21 from long distance. The Rams jumped out to a 30-16 first quarter lead, and led 53-38 at halftime en route to a 92-54 victory.
Kyle Gasiewski led South Amboy in a losing cause with 19 points while Alan Kazar chipped in with 12. Steven Pena added 8 for the Guvs while Mike DeSantis added 13 for the Rams. Eleven different players scored in the game for South River while seven different players scored for South Amboy.
Below are game notes from the action:
First Quarter
7:45–South River takes a 3-0 lead on a three pointer by Davine Mayes.
7:30–South Amboy responds with a three from Kyle Gasiewski to tie the game at 3-3.
7:15–South River goes up 5-3 on a score in the paint by Derrick Whitaker.
5:30 left in first qtr and South River takes a 10-5 lead as Davine Mayes splashes his 2nd three of the game on a shot from the left wing.
5:04 left in 1st qtr and South Amboy calls time trailing 14-5 after two more scores by South River.
0:00–End of first qtr and South River caps a 30-16 start with this Joey Nigro layup. Nigro also had an earlier three as well as Whitaker. Rams end first on a 16-11 run. South River had 5 threes in the first period including three by Davine Mayes. Four different players scored in the period for the Rams. Whitaker had 11 points, Nigro and Mayes had 9, and Jaryn Bullock chipped in with a point.
Second Quarter
7:08 left in 1st qtr & South Amboy calls time after three from the right wing by SR’s Derrick Whitaker gives Rams a 36-18 lead. Whitaker had a three from almost the exact same spot earlier to open the period. Rams on a 6-2 run to start 2nd.
5:49 left in 1st half and official timeout with South River leading 40-21. Whitaker sank a three from the top of the key earlier.
0:00–End of the first half and South River leads South Amboy 53-38 thanks in part to a Mike DeSantis trey from the left corner. South River had 12 first half threes. Both teams combined for 17 first half threes with the Rams outscoring the Guvs by a margin of 36-15 from long distance. South River’s first half scoring. Derrick Whitaker leads the Rams with 20 pts while Joey Nigro has 12. South Amboy’s first half scoring. Kyle Gasiewski leads the Guvs with 14 pts while Alan Kazar has 8. Derrick Whitaker has 4 threes for South River while Kyle Gasiewski has 3 treys for South Amboy.
Third Quarter
7:53–South River opens the 2nd half with its 13th three of the game on a jumper from the left wing by Joey Nigro off a pass back from Jayvon Taylor for a 56-38 lead.
5:41 left in 3rd and South River calls time after this and one by Jayvon Taylor gives Rams a 65-43 lead. Rams open the third quarter on a 12-5 tear.
4:44 left in the 3rd, and South River leads South Amboy 68-45 after a three point play by Derrick Whitaker.
3:09 left in 3rd and South Amboy calls time after this Steven Pena weaves his way through traffic for a coast to coast layup from the left side that closes the gap to 68-47.
2:12 left in 3rd and South Amboy trails 70-49 after a short jumper from the right baseline by Alan Kazar.
0:00–End of 3rd and South River leads 72-49 after a follow by Jayvon Taylor at the 2:02 mark.
Fourth Quarter
5:32 left in 4th and South River leads 77-49 on a three by Mike DeSantis and a baseline jumper from the right side for a score by Derrick Whitaker. Rams on an 24-11 surge to start the 2nd half including the last 8 unanswered points.
3:05 left in 4th and South River leads South Amboy 83-51 thanks to transition layup from the left side by Derrick Whitaker off a steal and assist by Mike DeSantis. Rams have scored 6 of the last 8 points.
1:02 left in 4th and South River leads 88-54 after a Kyle Gasiewski trey from the right wing for the Guvs. Ends a 5-0 run by the Rams. South River on a 30-16 surge.
0:00–Game just ended with South River defeating South Amboy, 92-54 after a last second score by Lex Nunez on a baseline jumper from the left side off a pass up court by Silvio Cruz. South River’s scoring for the game: Derrick Whitaker led the Rams with 29 while Joey Nigro chipped in with 17, and Mike DeSantis added 13. South Amboy’s scoring for the game: Kyle Gasiewski led the Guvs with 19 while Alan Kazar chipped in with 12, and Steven Pena added 8. South River (14 threes) and South Amboy (7 threes) combined for 21 threes in the game with the Rams outscoring the Guvs 42-21 from long distance. Eleven different players scored for South River while seven different players scored for South Amboy.