PISCATAWAY, NJ–On Friday, the first day of action took place at the first Rutgers Overnight Team Camp of the summer at the Rutgers Athletic Center and the Livingston Campus Recreation Center. Both Piscataway and Piscataway Tech were in action, and the site had a good opportunity to see the Raiders play, which is rare during the summer. P-Way Tech pulled away from a six point lead with a late second half tear to defeat Holy Cross of Delran, and then battled Ridgewood of Bergen County.
Raiders Surge To Victory Over Holy Cross, 48-27
It’s a rare occasion when you see Piscataway Tech playing hoops during the summer. So, when GMC Hoops saw the Raiders were on the schedule with games at 6:30 and 7:30 PM, he began to wonder if the rapture was going to take place this weekend, or perhaps he should go skywatching for possible UFOs. Seriously speaking though, with the talent the Raiders have assembled this past season, it was a good thing that head coach, Karl Towns had them put in some summer work.
P-Way Tech led 14-13 with three minutes to go in the first half before the Raiders went on a 6-2 run including a layup at the 1:51 mark, and two free throws by Turell McClendon at the 1:20 for a 20-15 lead. Â Galen Smith then spread out the floor for the Raiders, and dished to Tafari Kerr for a layin and a 8-2 run to take a 22-15 lead with 0:43 to go in the first half. Â P-Way Tech took a 22-17 lead into the intermission
Neither team scored for nearly two minutes before Piscataway Tech called for a timeout with 18:07 to go in the contest. Â Following the stoppage, Holy Cross had the most significant scoring opportunity of the early second half when the Lancers crashed the boards for several offensive rebounds that led to a foul, and two free throws at the 17 minute mark.
The Raiders didn’t get on the board until they drew a foul, and made one of two from the line for a 23-19 lead at the 15:01 mark. Â P-Way Tech would get on the board again by spreading the floor out, and letting McClendon and Smith handle the ball for a bit.. Â McClendon then kicked out to Smith for a long three from well beyond the top of the key for a 26-19 lead at the 13:14 mark.
Holy Cross, which is from Delran in Burlington County, and plays in the Burlington County Scholastic League, got a point back by drawing a foul, and making one of two from the line.  The Lancers had a chance to get closer, but the Raiders blocked a shot that fell into the hands of Kerr, who passed upcourt to a teammate that was fouled, and made one of two from the line with 10:30 left for a 27-20 lead.
P-Way Tech was able to pad its lead some more with two free throws at the nine minute mark. Â The Raiders then added a three pointer off a carom from a missed dunk to take a 32-20 advantage with 8:21 remaining. Â The Lancers, which advanced to the quarterfinal round of the Non-Public B South tournament before losing to Cardinal McCarrick this past season, reeled off the next six points including a three pointer at the 7:53 mark, a putback off a missed layup at the 6:53 mark, and one of two from the line at the 6:35 mark to cut the deficit in half at 32-26.
However, Holy Cross couldn’t get closer. Â Piscataway Tech responded with a three pointer, and then a traditional three point play with exactly four minutes left to go back up by a dozen at 38-26. Â After the Raiders got a stop on defense, Smith then took a baseball outlet pass from McClendon in the Lancer frontcourt, and cruised in for an easy layup, and a 40-26 lead with 3:37 to go. Â Khairi Mosely added two free throws at the 2:55 mark for a 42-26 advantage.
The Raiders then wrapped things up with three of four from the line by Kerr with just over two minutes to play, and then McClendon helped wrap the game up with a breakaway one handed flush at the 1:47 mark for a 47-26 lead. Â Piscataway Tech went on to win by the final score of 48-27. P-Way Tech outscored Holy Cross by a margin of 34-14 over the final 23 minutes of the contest including a 16-1 tear to close the game. McClendon and Smith scored 6 points during that span while Kerr added 5 points and Mosely chipped in with two.
Raiders Tangle With Group IV Ridgewood
In the final game of the night, GMC Hoops saw Piscataway Tech play again in a 7:30 PM game against Ridgewood. The Raiders had an 11-9 lead when we joined the action after a walk across campus. Â P-Way Tech then added a score at the 8:00 mark for a 13-9 lead, and then the Raiders scored again at the 7:39 mark when Turell McClendon dished to Tafari Kerr for a layup, and a 15-9 lead. Â
Ridgewood answered with a three pointer, and had another chance to score when McClendon drew a charge. Â The Bergen County school then scored on a putback at the 6:15 mark, and went ahead at 16-15 on another follow with 4:30 to go in the half. Â Both teams exchanged scores for a Ridgewood 18-17 lead when P-Way Tech threw the ball away.
Following a 30 second timeout by Ridgewood at the 3:32 mark, Piscataway Tech forced a turnover on a Ridgewood inbounds play, but couldn’t take advantage as Kerr missed a layup underneath at the 3:00 mark. Â The Raiders got another stop on defense, but failed to score at the other end as Galen Smith was called for traveling with 2:45 to go in the half. Â
P-Way Tech continued to persist on defense, and forced another turnover. Â This time, it produced results at the other end as Khairi Mosely drew a foul, and made one of two from the line to tie the score at 18-18. Â Ridgewood went back out in front on a layin at the other end, and P-Way Tech was unable to convert free throws at the other end with 1:39 to go in the half.
The Raiders continued to victimize themselves at the other end by not keeping Ridgewood off the boards, especially on long caroms off three point attempts. Â P-Way Tech did manage to tie the game at 20-20 when it got a rejection at the defensive end that turned into a transition opportunity cashed in on a tip-in by McClendon at the 25 second mark.
After Piscataway Tech took the lead by two, Ridgewood gave the Raiders a chance to take an even bigger lead going into the intermission when it threw an inbounds pass out of bounds at the other end with three seconds to go in the first half. Â Following a timeout, Piscataway Tech tried a lob pass on the inbounds, but Ridgewood defended it well, and knocked the pass away as time expired for a 22-20 PVT at the break.
GMC Hoops was only able to see the first half of action in this game since he needed to head over to South Amboy for some rare Friday night action from the Raritan Bay Summer League. The site plans to be back out at the RAC on Saturday night.