TBSA Summer League–July 10, 2008

EDISON, NJ–On Thursday, July 10th, GMC Hoops traveled over to the TBSA Summer League for the first time to take in action there. The site managed to get over to the facility for the start of the nightcap round of games including J.P. Stevens versus South Brunswick on Court #2, and Dunellen versus Edison on Court #5. Both games were quite competitive, but the contest between the Eagles and the Destroyers was the barnburner of the evening. With 2:03 remaining in the second half, Steve Migliore netted a three pointer from the right wing for a 46-43 lead only to have Dunellen make one of two at the line with 1:41 left, net two free throws by Reggie Thorpe with 16 seconds left, and then score on a steal and a drive the length of the floor for a layup as time expired by Eric Orellana, to cap a dramatic 48-46 victory.

Dunellen Last Minute Rally Tops Edison, 48-46

After watching much of the first half of the game between J.P. Stevens and South Brunswick, GMC Hoops came over to the other court where the Destroyers and Eagles were renewing acquaintances they usually make during the pre-season in scrimmages. The web site picked up the action with 13 minutes to go in the first half, and Dunellen leading 13-11. Edison tied the game up a short time later at 13-13 with 12:30 remaining before the intermission, but the Destroyers went back up by two, 15-13 at the 11:56 mark. Over a minute and a half later, the Eagles went to the line, and made one of two for a 15-14 Dunellen lead, but the Destroyers then came up with a steal that was converted into a layup for a 17-14 lead with 9:47 to go in the first half.

On a subsequent Edison possession, Migliore then came up with a jumper from the left wing to close the gap to 17-16 at the 9:08 mark. Edison then took the lead on a layup attempt that drew a foul, and resulted in two free throws at the 7:56 mark for an 18-17 score. The foul shots sparked what would become a 9-3 spurt for a 25-20 lead when the site returned to action with 1:25 left in the half after watching more of the Hawks and Vikings for a while. The Destroyers put in a score to close the gap to three again at 25-22 with 45 seconds to go in the half, but the Eagles got the last word in before halftime thanks to an offensive rebound and putback that resulted in a three point play at the 13 second mark, and then a steal for a layup to close out the half with the score, 30-22 at the break. EHS had ended the first half with a 14-4 showing over the final 8:03 to gain the halftime advantage.

In the second half though, Dunellen roared back for the win thanks to a 26-16 showing. By the time GMC Hoops returned to action with 7:18 to go in the contest, the Destroyers had already climbed back into the game with 17-9 showing over the first 12:42 to tie the game at 39-39. The two teams then went back and forth over the next 3:59 by exchanging baskets for a 43-43 tie at the 3:19 mark. Neither team then scored over the next 1:16 before Migliore netted his three for Edison’s final points of the game, and a three point lead with a little more than two minutes left to play in regulation. Dunellen then got one of two from the charity stripe on its next possession to close the gap to two at 46-44. Edison then had a chance to go up again by four points when it got a steal, but failed to make the layup attempt at the 1:24 mark.

Giving Dunellen some more life, Edison turned the ball over with 26 seconds left, and Thorpe cashed in with his two foul shots at the 16 second mark to tie the score at 46-46. With an opportunity to close the game with the final shot, the Edison coughed up the ball again thanks to some tenacious pressure underneath by Dunellen, the ball got into the hands of Orellana with five seconds left, and he went the length of the floor for a layup as the buzzer sounded to give the Destroyers a come from behind thriller of a win, 48-46.

Team 1 2 Total
Dunellen 22 26 48
Edison 30 16 46

Stevens Fast Start Propels It Past South Brunswick, 55-47

Although the game between Edison and Dunellen ended up being the most dramatic of the two seen by GMC Hoops on this night, the site focused much of its attention on the battle between the Hawks and the Vikings, especially in the first half. During the halftime and much of the second half, Greg Machos had a chance to sit down and chat with Mike Allocco, who had recently been released from the hospital after complications related to hip surgery. Allocco is doing much better, and has been deliberating on the idea of returning to coaching on the staff at Plainfield, where his protege, Jeff Lubreski was recently hired. GMC Hoops had received word about the hiring prior to the start of the game between Stevens and SBHS when former SPHS Athletic Director and SPHS freshman hoops coach, Al Czech spoke with Machos.

Getting back to the contest, the Hawks raced out to an early 4-0 lead, and the edge grew to 9-0 before the Vikings got on the board with 16:08 to go in the first half. JPS continued to pour it on in the early going with a 6-1 burst for a 15-3 advantage at the 13:14 mark. At that point, GMC Hoops headed over to the other court to watch Dunellen and Edison go at it for a bit. Returning at the 5:33 mark, the web site saw that South Brunswick had settled down, and although Stevens had enjoyed an 11-10 advantage during the near eight minute stretch the site was away, the Vikings were not being blown out of the gym with the score reading 26-15. From that point on, the Vikes, which were coached by 2007 graduate, and current Felician standout, Devon Young, managed to stay within striking distance, but couldn’t get any closer than seven points in the second half as the Hawks went on to victory, 55-47.

Over the first 1:38 of the first half, J.P. Stevens jumped out to a 4-0 lead. Tahir Swinton then drove along the left side, and dished to teammate, Kenny Bland for a layup, and a 6-0 lead with 18:04 left in the half. A little more than a half minute later, Nick Pol got into the act with a three pointer for a 9-0 lead at about the 17:30 mark. Almost four full minutes would go by before South Brunswick would get on the board, and it would come in the form of an offensive rebound and putback at the 16:08 mark for the first field goal and points of the game for the Vikes. With the score now reading 9-2, Stevens went back to work as Bland made one of two at the line with 15:25 left before halftime to make the score, 10-2. Myles Reuben then got into the act with an offensive rebound and follow for a 12-2 lead at the 14:30 mark SBHS would finally get on the board again with a one of two showing at the foul line for a 12-3 Hawks lead, but JPS would close out its initial tear with a three point at the 13:14 mark for a 15-3 advantage.

South Brunswick then scored right away on its very next possession to close the gap to ten again at 15-5 before the Hawks outscored their Red Division foe by an 11-10 margin over the next 7:27 for a 26-15 lead. Upon returning to the action GMC Hoops saw South Brunswick trim the deficit to nine with a steal and drive down the length of the floor for a layup, and a 26-17 score at the 4:13 mark. J.P. Stevens then gave the Vikings more momentum by turning the ball over on a subsequent possession, and SBHS took advantage by converting the miscue into a score on a three pointer from the right wing for a 26-20 Hawks lead at the 3:17 mark. The Vikes then added one of two at the line with 2:37 to play in the half for a 26-21 lead. On its next possession, the Hawks went back up by seven as Pol grabbed an offensive rebound off a missed jumper by Bland, and followed with a floater for a 28-21 score at the 1:57 mark.

Neither team scored for the next 1:11 before Pol took a feed on the inside, and drew a foul that resulted in a perfect 2 of 2 at the line for a 30-21 lead with 46 seconds left in the first half. South Brunswick then responded with a jumper on its next possession to close within seven again at 30-23, but Bland scored a layup at the 17 second mark, and Swinton made one of two at the line for a ten point, 33-23 advantage going into the brief intermission. In the second half, South Brunswick was able to chip into the lead slightly, but when GMC Hoops returned to the action with 1:10 to play, Stevens appeared well on its way to victory with a 49-40 lead. Seven seconds later though, South Brunswick closed to within seven on a field goal at the 1:03 mark for a 49-42 Hawk edge. JPS answered though with a score for a nine point lead again at 51-42. The Vikings kept their very faint hopes alive with a steal off an inbounds pass by Bland, which led to a reverse layup, and a 51-44 score at the 31 second mark.

Despite the miscue, the Hawks continued to keep South Brunswick at bay, and closed out the victory with two scores in the final twenty seconds of action. Following a basket at the 20 second mark, Stevens finished off the win with a Swinton lob to Rebuen for a tip in to round out the 55-47 victory. The win helped Stevens stay in contention with Piscataway and Bishop Ahr for the top seed in the upcoming playoff round at TBSA. GMC Hoops plans to be back out at this league more in the coming weeks.

Team 1 2 Total
J.P. Stevens 33 22 55
South Brunswick 23 24 47