SOUTH PLAINFIELD, NJ–On Saturday, there were eight games on the schedule including two make up games from contests that had been snowed out on opening night. In total, there were four crossover games, three non-conference games, and one divisional game. The Metuchen Bulldogs hosted Middlesex in the only division game. This matchup from the GMC Blue was originally scheduled for opening night, but was called off due to a bomb scare against Metuchen High School.
The Bulldogs continue to play improved basketball with its fifth win in the past six games and second in a row after being upset by South River (69-63). The loss was the second in a row for the Blue Jays, which had recently won five straight. Metuchen outscored Middlesex in three of the four periods including a 15-7 showing in the first, and a 13-6 effort in the fourth for the 60-42 victory. Junior guard, Mike Crusco, and senior forward Nick Callas led the way with 12 points each while Vinnie Sardone, who looks to have improved the touch on his jumper, added 11 points. Evan Carberry only scored seven points, but had double digit rebounds with 15 while Kuari Quals added eight points and seven rebounds off the bench. Avery Barnes had a double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds in a losing cause while John Santoro chipped in with 12 points for Middlesex.
Moving over to the three non-conference games, the Greater Middlesex Conference, which entered the day at 31-21 versus foes outside of Middlesex County, went only 1-2. New Brunswick got the lone victory by defeating West Morris Central while Union Catholic downed Dunellen and North Brunswick was defeated by Randolph. The game between Union Catholic and Dunellen was a game originally scheduled on December 19th, but was postponed due to the wicked wintry weather that affected the region back then.
The Destroyers fell behind early 19-8, and never could catch up as Zach Dlabik scored 17 points on the game and Jamaad Nash ended 12 for the Vikings. Jonard Hall led all scorers with a game high 21 for DHS while Sean Gibney chipped in with 13 and Luke Francisco added 11. It was the fourth straight season that Dunellen has lost to Union Catholic. North Brunswick only scored 10 points in the second half, and got just two points from junior standout, Tait Pirkle in a 53-43 loss to Randolph from the Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference. Kyle Aiken led the Rams with a game high 27 points including 18 in the second half while Mark Gibson led NBTHS with a team high 19 points. After appearing to be among the elite teams in the GMC, the Raiders have come back down to earth a bit with two straight losses.
After starting the season 0-3, New Brunswick has come on strong with five wins in their last six games including four straight. The Zebras have yet to lose in their brand new gym. Junior forward, Jaquan Cook, led NBHS with a game high 21 points for his ninth straight double figure scoring game to start the season. Simuel Williams chipped in with 14 points while sophomore Milton Pittman added 10 in the victory. Trailing 28-26 at the half, New Brunswick surged with a 32-19 showing over the final two periods for the 58-47 victory. The win was the first against non-Middlesex County competition this year for the Zebras, which are now over .500 for the first time this season.
New Brunswick is starting to play like the team we expected it to be prior to the start of the season. Cook is putting up solid numbers consistently, and the team has just about been in every game. North Brunswick’s loss was a bit surprising since Randolph lost to Old Bridge. But then again, the Knights knocked off East Brunswick, which defeated the Raiders by two in the Brunswick Classic. You have to respect and admire Dunellen coach, Bernie Buniak for having his kids play the schedule that they play. He always has the Destroyers playing up in non-conference and in crossover competition. Although they have taken some lumps, the Destroyers will benefit in GMC Gold play.
Moving on to the crossovers, the biggest matchup of the day on Saturday was in South Amboy as ninth ranked Piscataway took on fifth ranked Cardinal McCarrick. The Eagles managed to offset the efforts of P-Way senior forward, Wayne Newsome (18 points and 13 rebounds) with team highs shared by Craig Thomas and Dana Raysor with 13 points each while Jeremy Cruz added 10 points in the 62-50 victory. Mo Isaac chipped in with 8 points and 8 boards while Charlie Gorman hit a clutch three late in the game and had 6 points. McCarrick, which knocked off third ranked North Brunswick (60-52) just 24 hours earlier, trailed 30-25 at the half before surging past the Chiefs with a 37-20 showing over the final two periods including a 15-5 tear in the fourth.
In one of the battles for Woodbridge bragging rights, the J.F. Kennedy Mustangs got a nice win over a Red Division foe with a 68-52 decision against Woodbridge. The Barrons were coming off its first victory of the season against Perth Amboy on Friday night. The Mustangs were coming off two tough losses earlier in the week against Middlesex (55-48) and Metuchen (61-50). Joe Marciano (21 points), Rasheed Howard (19 points) and Daishon Robinson (13 points) combined for 78 percent of JFK’s offense in the win. Meanwhile, the Mustangs limited Keith Hughes to just 12 points after the sophomore had a breakout game against Amboy with 28. Kyle Pearson led the Barrons with 21 points to tie for game high honors. Kennedy jumped out to a 22-8 first quarter lead and never really looked back although Woodbridge got to within nine at the half.
South River defeated Perth Amboy Tech for the first time since the 2004-05 season, and they did it in a big way. The Rams broke away from an 18-18 first quarter tie with a 27-8 surge in the second to take a 45-26 halftime lead. From there, it was never close as South River won its fifth game in seven outings after an 0-2 start. The Rams had nine different players score in the contest including four players that scored in double figures. Reserve Kyle Majewski put in a game high 18 points while Shawn Fenton chipped in with 16. Sophomore Larry Smith added 15 while senior guard, Brandon Walsh contributed with 12. Rashad Adams, a sophomore forward, had a team high 16 points for Amboy Tech in the loss. Don’t look now, but the Rams have done two things this season that they haven’t done in five years: Win a holiday tournament, and defeat the Patriots.
Finally, we have Monroe rolling past a relatively inexperienced squad from J.P. Stevens (64-23). Sophomore Danny Brix led the way with 18 points while Kenny Pace chipped in with 12 and Timmy Brix added 10. Zach Batchelor and Mike Mahmoud each had eight as well for the Purple Birds, which defeated Carteret handily on Friday night. The Falcons outscored Stevens in each quarter including an 18-4 spurt in the first. Brandon Ahmed and Marvin Crawford each had a team high 7 points in the loss for the Hawks. The GMC Red is now 3-12 in crossover games so far this season. Meanwhile, the GMC Blue is 8-0 and the GMC White is 10-3.
Monroe has been putting more of an emphasis on defense in practice lately, and it has paid off with three straight wins in which opponents have not scored more than 44 points. The Purple Birds are starting to play like the conference contender GMC Hoops thought they would be at the beginning of the season. How about the GMC Blue? Metuchen has begun to play well again while South River and Kennedy are above .500. Could state playoff berths be in the making for the Rams and Mustangs? We’ll have to wait and see, but so far, there are good indications that both will qualify. Cardinal McCarrick has rebounded nicely after losing to Sayreville on Wednesday night. The Eagles won two straight against ranked opponents in a span of just 24 hours.