NEPTUNE, NJ–On Monday night, GMC Hoops revisited Rebounds after it usual long trip down Route 35 following a full day at work to take in the 9:00 PM round of games at opening night of the 2008 Rebounds Fall League. There were two key matchups on the docket involving GMC teams: Spotswood and South Brunswick.
The Chargers, which had been participating in the HawksBasketball Fall-Ball Classic for the past several years, were making their first appearance at Rebounds while South Brunswick, which competed in the league last year, was making a return trip. On this opening night, both Spotswood and SBHS, which are competing in Division B, had solid tests for opponents as the Chargers were taking on the Bishops of Asbury Park while the Vikings were battling the Pirates of West Windsor-Plainsboro South, and the Colonial Valley Conference.
Spotswood Opens Rebounds League With Huge Win, 49-47
Arriving late to Rebounds after getting out of work, and making the hour long trek down Route 35 South, GMC Hoops stepped onto the Celtics court to watch the Chargers and Bishops at the 14:06 mark with Asbury Park in the lead at 6-5. Fifty-two seconds later, Asbury Park swiped a steal, but couldn’t convert with 13:14 to go in the first half. Twelve seconds after that, Tyler Osofsky dove for a loose ball, and picked it up to create a fast break opportunity that ended up with a Pat Dwyer shot swatted away by a Bishop player at the 13:02 mark. On the next Asbury Park possession, the Central Jersey Group I contender scored on an offensive rebound and putback for an 8-5 lead with 12:39 to go before halftime.
Forty seconds afterward, the Bishops got on the scoreboard again with a drive into the paint that drew a foul, and made one of two at the foul line for a 9-5 lead at the 11:59 mark. Meanwhile, Spotswood continued to sputter in the early going as Dwyer was called for a traveling violation at the 10:28 mark. Neither team scored for the next 1:15 before James Pareti swiped a steal, and headed in for a layup attempt that was swatted from behind, and also called for goaltending to make the score, 9-7 in favor of Asbury Park at the 9:13 mark. A little more than a minute later, the Bishops lobbed in an inbounds pass for a score down low that put them back up by four at 11-7 with 8:03 to go in the first half. Fifty-five seconds later, Osofsky found James Pareti for a jumper from the left wing that was true to pull the Chargers within two at 11-9 at the 7:08 mark.
The web site took a break from the action to watch some of the South Brunswick and West Windsor-Plainsboro South matchup. However, it did return to the action with 1:34 to go in the first half. Over the span of 5:34 that the site was away, there was very little scoring as both teams combined for just six points. The Bishops had just gotten two of those points with a field goal at the 1:34 mark for a 4-2 edge during the span, and a 15-11 lead. On the Chargers next possession though, they came right back as Dwyer drained a trifecta from the right wing to pull his team within a point at 15-14 with 1:20 to go in the half. Asbury came right back on its next possession with one of two at the line to go ahead by two again at 16-14 with 1:06 to play before the intermission.
The game continued to be a tennis match with both teams going back and forth as Spotswood tied the game up when Ross Gerhart passed to Dwyer for a drive along the left baseline that drew a foul that picked up two free throws for a 16-16 tie at the 56.3 mark. The Bishops would get the final points of the first half on a three pointer from the left wing for a 19-16 lead with 49.8 seconds left. Gerhart was then fouled on the floor at the 16.9 second mark, and then drew a foul on the inbounds from James Pareti with 15 seconds left, but misfired on both free throws. Asbury Park then thwarted another Spotswood score by stealing off Dwyer for a layup attempt, but missed as time expired in the first half with the score, 19-16.
GMC Hoops returned to the action after watching more of South Brunswick against West Windsor-Plainsboro South with 14:09 to go in the game. Over the first 5:51 of the second half, Spotswood scored 8 of the first 12 points to grab its first lead since the site’s arrival in the gym at 24-23. Osofsky then netted one of two at the line for a 25-23 lead with 14:09 to go. The site watched some more of the Pirates and Vikings, but again returned with 10:55 left to see Asbury Park net a three pointer from the top of the key to cap a 5-4 showing to pull within one at 29-28. The Chargers then scored 5 of the next 8 points including two free throws at the 8:14 mark by Gerhart for a 34-31 lead. Over the next 6:48, Asbury Park outscored Spotswood by a 10-7 margin to tie the game at 41-41 with 1:26 left before Gerhart struck again at the line with two free throws for a 43-41 lead.
However, on the very next Bishop offensive sequence, Asbury Park registered a traditional three point play to go ahead by one at 44-43 with 1:10 remaining. Spotswood promptly replied with a two free throws by Osofsky to go back on top, 45-44 with 59.9 seconds left. Following an Asbury Park timeout with 59.2 to go, the Bishops tied the game with one of two at the line for a 45-45 score with 31.9 left. Spotswood quickly took the lead back though as James Pareti originally made one of two at the line, but after a Bishop lane violation, made the second free throw for a 47-45 lead. The game continued its frenetic back and forth pace as Asbury Park made a circus shot with 15 seconds to go in regulation for a 47-47 tie.
The Chargers then called a timeout with 13 seconds left, and after the stoppage, Gerhart, who made six free throws down the stretch, sank two charity shots for a 49-47 lead with 7.8 seconds left. Asbury Park then called a timeout after Spotswood used up one of its fouls to give, and then the Bishops missed a shot at the buzzer for the 49-47 Charger win. Spotswood improved to 1-0 on the fall while Asbury Park fell to 0-1. Next week, the Chargers take on Marlboro while the Bishops face off against Allentown.
| Team | 1 | 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spotswood (1-0) | 16 | 33 | 49 |
| Asbury Park (0-1) | 19 | 28 | 47 |
West Windsor Plainsboro-South Downs South Brunswick, 44-36
For the second straight year, the South Brunswick Vikings are competing at the 2008 Rebounds Fall League. Last fall, SBHS participated in the league for the first time, and finished at 4-4 after being in the inaugural TBSA Fall League two years ago. On this opening night, the Vikings had a non-conference opponent, but a nearby foe in West Windsor-Plainsboro South, which is only a few miles to the south of South Brunswick High School. Over the first 18:26, West Windsor-Plainsboro South grabbed a 19-11 lead. The Pirates had another opportunity to go up even further, but missed out on it with a turnover at the 57.9 second mark. The Mercer County school, and Colonial Valley Conference member, got a basket and a foul, but missed the bonus free throw for a 21-11 with 17.1 seconds left. The Vikings got a basket before the end of the first half to make the score, 21-13 at the break.
During the course of this opening night, GMC Hoops went back and forth between this game, and the other game involving a GMC team, Spotswood, which was taking on Asbury Park. The site came back over to the Viking-Pirate contest with 16:25 to go in the game, and West Windsor-Plainsboro South leading 25-19. Nearly a half minute later, the Pirates got another field goal to go up by eight at 27-19 with just under 16 minutes to play. The Vikes got a drive in for a floater off the glass to pull his team back to within six again at 27-21 at the 14:49 mark. Neither team would score for the next two minutes before the Pirates big man sank a turnaround jumper off the glass for a 29-21 lead. The lead went down to six again with an Andrew Buckner layup by the Vikings at the 11:57 mark that made it 29-23.
A little more than a half minute later, West Windsor-Plainsboro South scored on an offensive rebound and follow for a 31-23 lead. South Brunswick got back within six again about a half minute later as Buckner sank a jumper that closed the gap to 31-25 with 10:56 left. The Vikes then got another score on a bank shot to pull within four at 31-27 with 10:30 left. The game became even more tenuous as the Pirates were called for a carry with 9:42 to go. Brett Pinnix then dished to a teammate for a layup that closed the gap to two at 31-29 as WWPS called for time at the nine minute mark. However, SBHS couldn’t get any closer. Over the next 7:12, West Windsor-Plainsboro South outscored its GMC opponent by a 6-4 margin for a 37-33 lead with 1:48 left. South Brunswick had a chance to pull within two, but had the ball stolen with 1:24 left.
After drawing a foul, the Pirates missed the front end of a one and one, but grabbed the offensive rebound with 54.9 to go. Fouled again some five seconds later, West Windsor-Plainsboro South netted two free throws for a 39-33 lead at the 49.6 mark, and then following a blocked shot on the defensive end, the Pirates put the game away with a layup at the 29.8 second mark for a 41-33 lead. WWPS went on to win the game by a final score of 44-36 to improve to 1-0 on the fall while South Brunswick fell to 0-1. Next week, the Vikes take on Brick Memorial while West Windsor-Plainsboro South will battle Ocean Township.
| Team | 1 | 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| West Windsor-Plainsboro South (1-0) | 21 | 23 | 44 |
| South Brunswick (0-1) | 13 | 23 | 36 |
GMC Hoops plans to be back out at Rebounds next week to see both Spotswood and South Brunswick again in action.