GMC Has Huge Day Versus Non-Conference Foes

League’s Teams Go 9-0 Against Non-Conference Opponents on Saturday

SOUTH PLAINFIELD, NJ–Saturday was a big day for teams in the Greater Middlesex Conference with its best day against non-conference teams in several years. Teams in the GMC went an undefeated 9-0 against foes outside the conference.

Coming into the day, the GMC was 42-58 overall against non-conference opponents. The conference went 3-0 versus the Shore Conference, 2-0 versus the Colonial Valley Conference, 2-0 against the Skyland Conference, 1-0 against the Hudson County Interscholastic Athletic Association, and 1-0 versus Independent schools.

Following play yesterday, the GMC’s non-conference record improved to 51-58 with the Red Division going 16-11, White Division being 18-15, Blue Division below .500 at 10-15, and the Gold Division struggling at 7-17. The GMC Red and White Divisions were both 4-0 versus non-conference foes on Saturday.

Some the more notable wins by the GMC on Saturday included: St. Joseph’s defeating Neptune in overtime (47-46), East Brunswick defeating Hillsborough (46-42), and Piscataway defeating Franklin (74-69). The latter two victories are perhaps the most significant since the GMC has struggled versus the Skyland Conference in each of the past two seasons.

The Greater Middlesex Conference started the season with 9 losses in its first 11 games against teams from the Skyland Conference. Since January 14th though, the conference has turned the tables with 7 wins in the last 12 games to improve to 9-14 on the season. Here is how the GMC is doing against other conferences in the Central Jersey area:

GMC Record Against Other Central Jersey Conferences

  • Colonial Valley Conference (6-4)
  • Shore Conference (12-12)
  • Skyland Conference (9-14)
  • Union County Conference (5-14)

Here are some non-conference teams that are doing well against the GMC this season: Scotch Plains-Fanwood (6-0), Bound Brook (4-0), and Morristown-Beard (2-0). GMC teams that have done well against non-conference foes this year include: St. Joseph’s (6-0), South Brunswick (3-0), Metuchen (4-1), Carteret (3-1), North Brunswick (3-1), Piscataway (3-1), Timothy Christian (2-0), Sayreville (5-3), and Woodbridge (3-2).

A year ago, the GMC was 89-112 as a conference for a winning percentage of just .443. The conference really struggled against the Skyland Conference (12-32) and Union County Conference (7-17) while having difficulties against the Super Essex Conference (5-7), Hudson County Interscholastic Athletic Association (2-4), and Shore Conference (21-22).

Non-conference play is a very key aspect to a high school basketball team’s schedule. Playing well against schools from different conferences and parts of the state is a key ingredient to having success against different styles of play during the state tournament.