2007 Rebounds Team Camp–August 6, 2007

NEPTUNE, NJ–For the second straight year, GMC Hoops traveled down to the Rebounds Facility in Neptune to take in the Rebounds Team Camp. Once again there was a very good field of teams including St. Joseph’s and Cardinal McCarrick, which were the only two teams from the Greater Middlesex Conference that competed in the Summer of 2006. This year’s camp had twelve teams as supposed to just eight the previous summer. Teams included: Bridgewater, Cardinal McCarrick, Freehold Township, Holmdel, Keansburg, Lakewood, Manasquan, Monmouth Academy, Neptune, Plainfield, Point Pleasant Boro, and St. Joseph’s. Other schools making a return trip to this camp besides McCarrick and St. Joseph’s included: Holmdel, Manasquan, and Neptune. Of the twelve teams in this year’s camp, the Shore Conference had the most representatives with seven teams while the GMC had two, and the Skyland, Watchung, and Prep each had one. Each team played two games every day for four days to end up with a total of eight games in the camp. On this first day, GMC Hoops arrived in time for the 7:20 PM round of games. By that time, both the Falcons and Eagles had already played a game as St. Joseph’s battled Neptune while Cardinal McCarrick faced off against Monmouth Academy at 6:10 PM. In addition to some notes on the earlier games, GMC Hoops had articles on four games from this night: Point Pleasant Boro versus Freehold Township, Holmdel against Keansburg, Neptune and Monmouth Academy, and the game of the night, and perhaps the summer between St. Joseph’s and Cardinal McCarrick.

Results From Earlier Action

Just as we arrived at Rebounds, the St. Joseph’s Falcons were all outside with their parents and supporters taking a breather following their game with Neptune. In the contest, St. Joe’s led by as many as 13 points late before Neptune scored the last seven for a 57-51 Falcon victory. Meanwhile, over on an adjacent court, Cardinal McCarrick was facing Monmouth Academy. The prep school, which used to be Lakewood Prep, features former Bishop Ahr standout, and all time leading scorer, Corey Francisco. In this game though, Francisco didn’t play, and the Eagles took advantage with a solid 82-67 win in a very high scoring contest for a team camp with a running clock.

Freehold Township Pulls Out Win Behind Strong Second Half, 53-43

After touching base with several of the St. Joseph’s parents as well as some of the assistant coaches, GMC Hoops went inside the Rebounds facility, and tried to get a sample of some of the action by taking in the game between Freehold Township and Point Pleasant Boro, which was scheduled for 7:20 PM. Freehold Township of the Class A North Division of the Shore Conference, was coming off a very special season in which they had lost only one game to LEAP Academy of Camden while compiling a record of 26-1 including wins over Group III State Champion, Shawnee, Holy Spirit of Absecon, Trenton, and CBA (3 times) before losing to GMC Red Division Champ, South Brunswick in the Central Jersey Group IV State Tourney Championship. Now, the Patriots are trying to rebuild after losing seniors Ed Fischer, T.J. Lafalce, Marcus Roberson, Rodger Wilmont, Alan Frost, and Brian Brikowski to graduation. Meanwhile, Point Pleasant Boro is looking to finally get over the hump in South Jersey Group II after losing to Haddonfield in the semifinals each of the past two seasons. The team, which competes in the Class B South Division of the Shore, won the regular season division title while compiling a 17-7 mark overall.

The first half was a very close battle as the Patriots jumped out to a 13-6 lead over the first 10:47 before Point Pleasant Boro rallied with a 16-8 run over the final 5:13 of the half to lead by one at the intermission, 22-21. In the second half, Freehold Township deployed a full court press, and it did produce results as the Patriots led by as many as 13 points late, and ultimately won, 53-43 with a 32-21 second half showing. For the game, Freehold Township made 21 of 50 shots for 42 percent while Point Pleasant Boro made 16 of 51 field goals for 31.4 percent. The Pats made more threes (5-4), and made more field goals in the second half (13 of 31 for 41.9 percent vs. only 8 of 19 for 42.1 percent in the second half). Meanwhile, Point Boro only made 9 of 26 shots for 34.6 percent in the first half, and then 7 of 25 for 28 percent in the second half. Free throw shooting wasn’t that good as both squads struggled at the charity stripe. The Patriots went only 6 of 13 at the line for 46.2 percent while Point Boro didn’t fare much better going just 7 of 14 for 50 percent. Things didn’t start out that well at all for the Panthers from Ocean County as they made only 2 of their first 14 shots for 14.3 percent over the initial 10:13 of the contest, but then closed out the first half by making 7 of their last 12 shots to take a one point lead going into the brief break.

Freehold Township got going right away with a steal, and push upcourt quickly for a dish to left that resulted in a layup, and a 2-0 lead at the 15:22 mark. Over a minute and fifteen seconds later, Freehold Township drew a charge, and then scored a little over a minute after that for a 4-0 lead with 12:50 to play in the first half. Point Boro finally got on the board by fighting for a loose ball off of a rebound, and scoring its first points of the contest by making a layup for its field goal of the game to make the score, 4-2 with 10:44 left before halftime. The Patriots had a chance to increase their lead, but after drawing a foul following a steal and subsequent layup attempt, they misfired on the foul shots, and the score stayed at 4-2 with 8:28 remaining in the half. The Panthers then came back for a foul line jumper that was a product a good ball movement to pull within two again after the Patriots got an earlier score to make it a 6-4 game at the 7:19 mark. Freehold Township got an offensive rebound and putback at the 6:53 mark for an 8-4 lead, and then scored once more on a jumper from the right wing for a 10-4 advantage at the 5:47 mark as Point Pleasant Boro called for time.

After the timeout, the Patriots, which had shot 5 of 13 from the field for 38.5 percent up to this point in the contest, went back to work. Following a jumper from the left wing by the Panthers that made the score, 10-6 at the 5:35 mark, the Patriots capped their strong start with a three pointer at the 5:13 mark for a 13-6 lead. At this point, Point Boro began to make its comeback. On the very next Panther possession, the Ocean County school got a three pointer to close within four at 13-9 with just under five minutes to play in the half. On the next Freehold Township possession, the Panthers defense came up with a steal, and converted it into a layup for a 13-11 Patriot lead with 4:43 remaining in the half. The Patriots then scored on their next possession to go back up by four, 15-11 with 4:28 to play in the half, but then Point Pleasant Boro reeled off nine straight points to take a 20-15 lead with 1:52 to go in the period. A layup underneath at the 4:16 mark ignited the Panther run while a layin off a 3 on 2 break tied things up at 15-15 with 3:57 to play in the half. A short time later, Point Boro took the lead on a layup off a steal that made the score 17-15 at the 3:36 mark. Finally, the Panthers capped the run with a three pointer from the right wing to take their largest lead of the game as an official timeout was called with under two minutes to go before halftime due to an injury.

Freehold Township would close the half with a 6-2 run including a three point play at the 1:33 mark that made it a one point, 22-21, Point Pleasant Boro lead at the half. However, for a 3:40 stretch, the Patriots only had one field goal while Point Boro registered two three pointers, and four layups for field goals in a 14-2 tear that represented the best run of the game by the Panthers. In the second half, both teams got off to shaky starts, particularly at the foul line as Point Boro missed its first two attempts of the half at the charity stripe with 15:22 to play, and Freehold Township only made one of four foul shots in the first 1:38 of the half. With the score tied at 22-22 at the 14:24 mark, Point Pleasant Boro went back on top on its next possession by breaking the Patriot pressure, and scoring on a baseline jumper from the left side to make it 24-22 at the 14:11 mark. The field goal was the first of the half for both teams as the Panthers began shooting 1 of 5 from the field for 20 percent. Freehold Township quickly tied the contest on its next possession to make the score, 24-24 with 14 minutes to play. Point Boro then took its last lead of the game on a drive for a layin at the 13:39 mark that made the score, 26-24. Sparked by a three pointer on its next possession, Freehold Township went on a decisive 10-0 spurt over a span of 1:14 for a 34-26 lead with 12:25 remaining.

Highlighting the Patriots run was a steal that led to a three pointer at the 13:06 mark, a steal of the press that turned into a layup at the 12:50 mark, and then another steal off the press that led to a short jumper to cap the run at the 12:25 mark. The Panthers put a halt to the spurt with a score on their next possession to make it a six point, 34-28 Patriot lead with 12:06 remaining. Freehold Township would get a score to go back up by eight before the Panthers netted a three pointer from the right corner for a 36-31 Patriot lead at the 11:37 mark. On their next possession, the Patriots replied with a three pointer of their own for a 39-31 lead with 11:22 to play in the contest. The Panthers came right back with a score on a baseline jumper from the left side for a 39-33 FTHS lead at the 11:11 mark. Point Boro made it a 4-0 mini-run with a score inside off a spin move for a 39-35 Patriot lead midway through the second half. Neither team would score for almost two minutes before Freehold Township grabbed a rebound on the defensive end, drove upcourt for a layup while drawing a foul, but missed the bonus free throw for a 41-35 lead at the 8:01 mark. Point Pleasant Boro would get a field goal to pull within four before the Patriots made one of two at the line for a 42-37 lead. A short time later, Freehold Township had to call a timeout in order to avoid a turnover so with just under six minutes to play, the Patriots still led by five, 42-37.

Over the next 3:45, Freehold Township scored seven of the next nine points to pretty much put the game out of reach. Following the timeout at the 5:57 mark, the Patriots quickly got on the board with a nice no look entry pass to the left low post for a layup to take a 44-37 lead. Twenty-one seconds later, the Patriots were on the board again with a pull-up jumper from the right wing off the break for a 46-37 advantage at the 5:30 mark. Neither team would score for a minute and a half after that before Point Pleasant Boro scored on the right low block with three Patriot defenders in the vicinity to end the 5-0 FTHS run for a 46-39 score at the 3:55 mark. But, Freehold Township would get a score, and then stepped to the line to make one of two free throws for a 49-39 lead with just 2:12 to play. Both teams exchanged four points over the final two plus minutes to give the Pats a ten point, 53-43 victory. With the win, Freehold Township finished the day with a perfect 2-0 record while Point Pleasant Boro was winless at 0-2.

Team 1 2 Total
Freehold Township (2-0) 21 32 53
Point Pleasant Boro (0-2) 22 21 43

Holmdel Too Much For Keansburg, 54-40

Besides Neptune, Holmdel was the other team to play three games on the first night of action at the 2007 Rebounds Team Camp. The Hornets, which were a powerhouse program in Group II back in the 1990s, played earlier in the day against Lakewood, and won by four, 41-37. On the other hand, Keansburg was playing its second and final game of the night. The Titans, which have been a contender in Central Jersey Group I from time to time, played its first game at 5:00 PM against Freehold Township and lost, 51-46. Holmdel, which competes in the Class A Central Division of the Shore Conference, was simply too much for Keansburg, which competes in the Class B Central Division of the Shore. The Hornets, which went 9-12 overall and 3-9 in division in 2006-07, jumped out to a 31-20 halftime lead, and then outscored the Titans by a 23-20 margin in the second half for a 54-40 victory.

The Titans, which finished 12-15 overall and .500 at 7-7 in divisional play, was as close as five points in the first half on a three pointer at the 2:35 mark, but Holmdel scored the final six points of the half, and then opened the second with a 17-7 tear over the first 10:36 for a commanding, 48-27 lead at the 9:24 mark. Keansburg, which made a nice comeback in a loss to South River in the Consolation Game of the South Amboy Holiday Tournament back in December, 2006, was unable to overcome the deficit despite outscoring the Hornets 13-6 the rest of the way. In the first half, Holmdel jumped out to a 18-9 advantage over the first 13:09 before Keansburg went on a 11-7 run over a span of 4:16 to pull within five with nearly two and a half left before intermission.

Both teams found it tough to score in the early going as Holmdel managed to get the only points in the first 5:17 for a 4-0 lead at the 14:43 mark. Keansburg would get on the board though with the next four points over a span of 1:46 including a drive to the left side of the key for a layup that capped the run and tied things up at 4-4 with 12:57 to go in the half. Holmdel then scored nine of the next eleven points over a 4:03 span to take a 13-6 lead as the Titans called for time. Highlighting the run was a three pointer that started things off at the 12:35 mark for a 7-4 lead. Following the timeout, the Hornets then scored five of the next eight points for a 14-5 tear, and an 18-9 lead with 6:51 left in the first half. Keansburg, which looks to have some fair talent this season as well as some size and athleticism, fought back with its best run of the half capped off by a three pointer at the 2:35 mark that closed the gap to 25-20.

Within the next 56 seconds though, Holmdel was back on top with two scores that gave the Hornets a 29-20 lead, and compelled the Keansburg coach to call a timeout with 1:39 to play before halftime. Holmdel then made a pair of free throws 55 seconds later to take a 31-20 lead going into the brief break. In the second half, the Hornets started off strong with 13 of the first 20 points over the initial 9:19 of the new period for a 44-27 lead. Then, Holmdel added two more scores for a 17-7 surge, and what would be an insurmountable, 48-27 lead with 9:24 remaining. Keansburg tried to rally with the next five points before Holmdel made one of two at the line for a 49-32 lead at the 4:50 mark, but despite the Titans getting a 6-5 edge the rest of the way, the Hornets were able to come away with the win, 54-40. With the victory, Holmdel improved to 2-0 on the camp while Keansburg finished its first day at 0-2.

Team 1 2 Total
Holmdel (2-0) 31 23 54
Keansburg (0-2) 20 20 40

McCarrick Edges St. Joe’s In A Thriller, 69-64

In the finale of the opening day at the 2007 Rebounds Team Camp, Cardinal McCarrick faced off against St. Joseph’s in what would be a game that not only lived up to its hype, but also gave many going away from the contest a great deal of enthusiasm towards the upcoming basketball season. After Cardinal McCarrick took a 36-25 lead at the half thanks to 14 points on two threes, a field goal, and 6 of 7 from the foul line over the final 9:10 of the period by Mike Burwell, St. Joseph’s, which got eight points on two field goals and 4 of 5 from the line by Paul Konopacki in the last ten minutes of the first half, rallied in the second period with a 39-33 showing, but fell short by five, 69-64. McCarrick led throughout much of this game, but after leading by as many as twelve in the second half, and holding a five point, 63-58 lead with 38.5 seconds left, St. Joseph’s rallied with a 22-12 surge over a span of 7:24 to pull within one at 65-64 with 7.9 left. However, after appearing to get a huge break on a McCarrick turnover on the inbounds underneath its own basket with 2.8 seconds left, St. Joe’s was called for an foul away from the ball. Wil Snider then stepped to the line when the Falcon bench was called for a technical foul. Snider then made one of two from the line, and then Burwell made one of two technicals for a 67-64 lead. Still with a chance to tie on a three pointer, the Falcons quickly fouled on the side out of bounds, but with 0.4 remaining, Eliazor Landano made both foul shots to clinch the 69-64 thrilling McCarrick victory.

In a game that revived a rivalry that began to simmer back in the early part of the decade when in the 2002 East Brunswick/GMC JV Tournament Championship, St. Joseph’s defeated Cardinal McCarrick by a score of 46-39. The following summer, the two teams engaged in a memorable semifinal matchup in the 2002 Middlesex County College Summer League that McCarrick almost won. On a last second alley-oop play from Mike Garcia to Billy Wagner, the Eagles missed the shot, and St. Joseph’s escaped ultimately to lose to New Brunswick in the Championship. Then, of course, the two teams faced each other in the 2003 Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament when Cardinal McCarrick, led by Mika Wilson, who had transferred to the school prior to the start of the 2002-03 school year, won its first and only GMCT title, 67-56. The 2002-03 McCarrick team went on to be selected as one of the ten greatest teams during the first five years of the GMC Hoops web site while the 2002-03 St. Joseph’s squad was also chosen.

Due to the late finish of the Freehold Township and Point Pleasant Boro game, action in this contest wasn’t picked up until about midway through the first half with the Eagles leading, 15-10. The Eagles had a chance to go ahead even further, but Mike Brennan threw the ball away on a kick out to the perimeter with 9:40 left in the half. Burwell did pick up his fellow frontcourt mate by drawing a foul on a layup attempt some thirty seconds later for a 16-10 lead at the 9:10 mark. On the next Falcon possession, Konopacki scored on a layup that closed the gap to four at 16-12 with 8:38 to go in the half. St. Joe’s had a chance to get even closer when Vastola was fouled on the baseline by Tom Costello, but he missed the front end of a one and one, and the score remained 16-12 with 7:49 to go in the half. Brandon Vas came up with a big play as he got a steal, and an assist on a layup by Konopacki, who was fouled on the play, but missed the bonus foul shot for a conventional three point play, and McCarrick, which netted a free throw earlier, led 17-14 at the 5:54 mark. A short time later, the Eagles came back down and scored on a layup for a 19-14 lead at the 5:35 mark, but the Falcons came right back to Konopacki, who drew a foul, and made two free throws for a 19-16 McCarrick lead at the 5:26 mark.

Forty seconds later, the Eagles went back ahead by five as Branten Widgeon, whose older brother Kenny graduated from St. Joe’s in 2006, and is now attending Mount St. Vincent College, connected on a pair of free throws for a 21-16 score with 4:46 to go before intermission. The exchange of free throws continued as Gerard Lewis got into the fray with a one of two showing at the charity stripe for a 21-17 lead at the 4:31 mark, and then Burwell made two from the line for a six point, 23-17 McCarrick lead with 4:26 to go in the half. The Falcons had chances to get closer, but Vastola was called for a backcourt violation at the 4:15 mark, and then Vas misfired on a couple free throws at the 3:44 mark. Burwell then made a traditional three point play when he grabbed an offensive rebound off a missed front end of a one and one by Alvin Baptiste-Ousley, and put it back in as he was fouled for a 26-17 Eagle lead with 3:06 remaining in the period.

Nearly a half minute later, Burwell struck again for three points of a different kind as a knocked in a trey from the right wing for a twelve point, 29-17 advantage. On the very next St. Joe’s possession, Konopacki scored on a traditional three point play to bring the deficit back down to single digits at 29-20 at the 2:26 mark. Once again though, Burwell struck from long distance as he took a pass from Taylor Snider for another trey that made the score, 32-20 with 1:52 to go in the first half. Najhi Talley then got into the scoring column with a layin at the 1:30 mark for a 32-22 McCarrick lead. On a subsequent Eagle possession, Cardy Mac picked up three offensive rebounds including two by Baptiste-Ousley, and they resulted in a putback by Widgeon for a 34-22 McCarrick lead at the 59.5 mark. Konopacki then made one of two at the line for a 34-23 Eagle edge with 42.6 to play in the half, and then Burwell netted two foul shots for the South Amboy school’s largest lead of the contest, 36-23 with 31.9 remaining before halftime. Despite two missed free throws by Lewis with 14.7 left in the period, the Falcons still managed to have the final word as Dhaliwali Gaganjot grabbed a rebound, dribbled upcourt, and dished to Mark Bauer for a short jumper from the left wing as time expired in the first half for a 36-25 Cardinal McCarrick lead at the intermission. At the start of the second half, the Eagles increased their lead back to a dozen with three of the first five points as Rosario made a three pointer from the left corner off a pass by Burwell for a 39-27 lead with 15:08 to go in the game.

Fighting back, St. Joe’s scored the next six points via both the conventional and unconventional forms of the three point play. First, Lewis made a traditional three point play at the 14:44 mark for a 39-33 McCarrick lead. Then, after Konopacki missed a pair of free throws with 14:03 remaining, Gaganjot got an offensive rebound and assist on a three pointer from the right side by Steve Rennard for a 39-33 score with 13:48 to play. Keeping the Falcons at a distance, McCarrick reeled off the next six points in a span of 1:55 to regain its twelve point advantage at 45-33 with 11:53 remaining. Eliazor Landano sparked the run with an offensive rebound and assist on a Burwell jumper for a 41-33 lead at the 12:35 mark. Ten seconds later, Wil Snider, swiped a steal, drove the length of the court, and made a nice little spin move for a layup that gave McCarrick a double digit lead again at 43-33 with 12:25 remaining. Julio Rosario then capped the mini-run with a pair of free throws at the 11:53 mark for a 45-33 advantage as St. Joseph’s called for time. After the timeout, the Falcons scored six consecutive points over the next 2:46 to close within six again at 45-39 with 9:07 to play. Rennard had four of the six points including a steal off Landano for a layup at the 10:59 mark and left handed scoop shot at the 9:47 mark. The soon to be sophomore guard had a chance to make his first score a three point play, but missed the bonus free throw. Konopacki then capped the run with a score as he was fouled, but like Rennard earlier, missed the bonus free throw for the six point Cardy Mac lead with a little over nine minutes remaining.

On the next Cardinal McCarrick possession, Wil Snider made a ball fake to his right in the direction of Rosario, and then drove to the hoop for a layup that put the Eagles back up by eight, 47-39 with 8:45 to go. Rennard came back to the line on the very next Falcon possession, and sank one of two from the foul line for a 47-40 Eagle lead with 8:26 left. Replying quickly to expand its lead, McCarrick went up by double digits again as Widgeon made a nice kickout to Taylor Snider for a three pointer that made the score, 50-40 with 8:02 remaining. Starting to take over the game, Rennard came right back down the floor with a drive for a layup that brought the Eagle lead back down to single digits at 50-42 with 7:50 to play. The Eagles, which actually outscored the Falcons by a margin of 8-3 over a 1:35 stretch, got another three pointer from Rosario for a 53-42 edge at the 7:32 mark. Beginning their game closing rally at this point, St. Joseph’s scored six straight points over a span of 1:35 to pull within five at 53-48 with just under six minutes to go. Lewis capped the run when Konopacki took a pass from Rennard, and gave a nice entry feed to the soon to be junior forward for a scoring attempt that drew a foul. Lewis then hit both free throws at the 5:57 mark for the five point Cardy Mac lead. St. Joe’s would return the favor though as Lewis fouled Rosario on a subsequent McCarrick possession, which resulted in two free throws that ended the Falcon 6-0 burst, and a 55-48 lead with 5:32 to play.

Now reaching an exciting crescendo, the game began to pick up the pace as Konopacki picked up a steal, and got the ball downcourt for an eventual layin by Lewis to bring the Falcons to within five once more at 55-50 with 5:05 left. Quickly responding, Widgeon got an offensive rebound and putback to put the Eagles ahead by seven again, 57-50 at the 4:50 mark. St. Joseph’s continued to creep closer though with four straight points in just 36 seconds including a steal for a layup by Konopacki at the 4:14 mark for a 57-54 McCarrick lead. Giving his team some much needed breathing room, Taylor Snider came up big with two key foul shots for a 59-54 Eagle edge with 4:05 to go, but the Falcons came right back with a response on the very next possession as Gaganjot dished to Rennard for a layup that made it 59-56 in favor of McCarrick at the 3:43 mark. Following a Falcon timeout, St. Joe’s had an opportunity to either close within one, or tie the game up, but Wil Snider came up with a huge defensive play by drawing a charge on Talley at the 3:17 mark to preserve a now tenuous, three point lead. Finally pulling within one, St. Joseph’s got a key score on a turnaround jumper in the left low block by Konopacki for a 59-58 Cardy Mac lead with 2:50 left.

For nearly a minute, neither team scored until Widgeon come up with another key offensive rebound following a missed jumper by Wil Snider for a putback that put the Eagles ahead again by three at 61-58 with just inside two minutes remaining. A half minute later, the older Snider made a nice entry pass to Widgeon for a layup attempt that drew a foul, and resulted in one of two from the foul line for a 62-58 lead at the 1:29 mark. Leading now by two possessions, McCarrick appeared to have St. Joseph’s on the ropes, especially when Wil Snider stepped to the line with 51.5 seconds left. However, the soon to be junior guard, failed to make either of his free throw attempts, and the Falcons were still alive. Burwell would later make one of two at the charity stripe for a very healthy, five point, 63-58 lead at the 38.5 second mark. Never saying die though, St. Joe’s battled back to within one as the athletic Konopacki grabbed a rebound of Snider’s missed second foul shot, and drove the length of the floor for a layup to make the score, 63-60 as the Falcons called timeout with 31.4 to play in regulation. Following the stoppage, St. Joseph’s forced a turnover, and Gaganjot drew a foul that resulted in a pair of free throws at the 30.5 mark for a 63-62 McCarrick lead.

On the ensuing inbounds, the Eagles got the ball to Burwell, who dribbled up the floor, and drew a foul with 25 seconds left. The 6’6″ forward then calmly made two free throws for a 65-62 lead. Once again, Cardinal McCarrick had the Falcons on the ropes as it were able to stop them on their next possession, and Widgeon was fouled with 15.6 remaining. However, the Eagles, which went 12 of 20 from the free throw stripe in the final 7:32 of the contest, couldn’t sow the game up as Widgeon misfired on both foul shot attempts, and St. Joe’s had new life. Given a reprieve, the Falcons aimed to take advantage by first quickly scoring on a nice give and go between Steve Brandenberg and Rennard for a layup at the 7.9 mark. Then, on the following inbounds play, the GMC Red Division team forced the GMC Blue squad to commit a turnover underneath its own basket. Following a McCarrick timeout, St. Joe’s attempted an inbounds play when the officials called the Falcons for a foul away from the ball. As Wil Snider stepped to the line to attempt a double bonus with 2.8 left, the Falcon bench was assessed a technical. Snider then made one of two at the line, and Burwell followed suit with one of two of his own on the technical for a 67-64 lead. Fouling quickly off the inbounds to Landano, Brandenberg stopped the clock with 0.4 left, but the soon to be junior guard made both free throws that put the game away, 69-64.

It was probably the best game of the entire summer covered by GMC Hoops, and considering the web site saw in action in ten different summer leagues, and five team camp or showcase events, that’s quite a compliment considering the tremendous volume of games seen. With the victory, Cardinal McCarrick moved up to 2-0 on the team camp while St. Joseph’s dropped to 1-1.

Team 1 2 Total
Cardinal McCarrick (2-0) 36 33 69
St. Joseph’s (1-1) 25 39 64

Neptune Runs Monmouth Academy Out Of The Gym, 81-67

In one of the nightcap games of the evening, Neptune faced off against Monmouth Academy on the court adjacent to where the St. Joseph’s and Cardinal McCarrick game was taking place. This contest was back and forth, up and down, and up tempo basketball as the two teams combined for 77 points in the first half, and 148 for the game. Neptune got the better of those points in an 81-67 victory. The Fliers led pretty much throughout, and led by as many as 25 points at a couple points in the second half. Monmouth Academy, which was without the services of former Bishop Ahr standout, Corey Francisco, closed the game with seven of the final eight points and a 16-5 run in the last 4:34 to make the contest more respectable. Both of these teams battled the two GMC squads at this camp earlier in the evening as Neptune lost to St. Joseph’s by six, and Monmouth Academy dropped another high scoring decision to McCarrick, 82-67.

Over the first twelve minutes of the game, both teams combined for 32 points as the Fliers took a 20-12 lead. A little less than a minute and a half later, Monmouth Academy, which was formerly Lakewood Prep, crept to within six points on a pair of free throws that made the score, 20-14 at the 6:37 mark. Neptune then got a three pointer for a 23-14 lead before Monmouth Academy came back with a score of its own at the 6:24 mark for a 23-16 Flier lead. Over the next 1:04, Neptune reeled off six of the next eight points including a one of two showing at the foul line for a 29-18 lead with 5:20 left before intermission. Monmouth Academy then attempted to rally with four of the next six points over a span of 1:08 to close the gap to nine at 31-22 with 4:12 remaining in the half. The Fliers then made it a double digit lead, and their biggest of the game with six straight points including two foul shots at the 3:23 mark for a 37-22 lead.

Neptune High School would get another score, and could have even built up a lead as high as twenty points, but missed a free throw, and then a subsequent offensive rebound and putback attempt at the 2:47 mark. Nevertheless, the Fliers were flying with a 39-22 lead before Monmouth Academy closed the half with a 9-7 run for a 46-31 Neptune lead going into the brief break. In the second half, the Fliers came out firing with an 18-9 tear over the first 8:54 for a commanding, 64-40 lead with 11:06 remaining. Neptune, which has been a perennial state power, and looking to return to that level this coming season, scored six of the next eleven points for a 70-45 advantage with 8:28 left. Both teams then scored six points each over the next 1:31 for a 76-51 Flier lead at the 6:57 mark. Monmouth Academy then closed the game out with 16 of the final 21 points for the 81-67 score. Neptune, which played three games on this opening night of the camp, raised its record to 2-1 while Monmouth Academy dropped to 0-2.

Team 1 2 Total
Neptune (2-1) 46 35 81
Monmouth Academy (0-2) 31 36 67

Standings After Day One

Below are the standings after day one. Cardinal McCarrick led the way with a 2-0 record while St. Joseph’s was 1-1. Neptune and Holmdel played three games on the first day while Plainfield did not play. The Fliers played against Point Boro at 5:00 PM, St. Joseph’s at 6:10 PM, and then after a break, competed against Monmouth Academy at 8:30 PM. Holmdel’s busy first day schedule included a game versus Lakewood at 6:10 PM, a 7:20 PM contest against Keansburg, and then an 8:30 PM finale against Bridgewater.

  • Holmdel (3-0)
  • Cardinal McCarrick (2-0)
  • Freehold Township (2-0)
  • Neptune (2-1)
  • St. Joseph’s (1-1)
  • Bridgewater (1-1)
  • Lakewood (1-1)
  • Plainfield (0-0)
  • Manasquan (0-2)
  • Point Pleasant Boro (0-2)
  • Keansburg (0-2)
  • Monmouth Academy (0-2)

GMC Hoops returned the next day, August 7th for a second day of action at the Rebounds Team Camp. Day two was a full day of coverage.