SOUTH AMBOY, NJ–On Wednesday night, GMC Hoops headed over to South Amboy Middle/High School to take in a game from the sixteenth night of action from the 2009 Raritan Bay Summer League. This is the sixth straight summer that the web site is covering this league, which has provided great competition as well as a glimpse of future stars in the Greater Middlesex Conference.
GMC Hoops headed over for the final two games of the Wednesday tripleheader after working on the blog, and saw the Monroe took on Monsignor Farrell from Staten Island in another game from the High School Division. In the nightcap, two teams from the rough and tumble 7th and 8th Grade Division went at it as CJEOTO faced off against East Brunswick. See all the results from Wednesday night’s action.
Sorrento Powers Monroe Past Monsignor Farrell, 44-38
In the first game of the GMC Hoops Doubleheader, and the second game of the tripleheader on Wednesday at Raritan Bay, the Monroe Falcons took on Monsignor Farrell in a game from the High School Division at 6:30 PM. Monroe head coach, Bob Turco was on hand to coach the team, which fought the Lions basket for basket in a 20-18 first half. Monsignor Farrell, which entered the game undefeated thanks to a victory over Sayreville a few weeks ago, and a lopsided win over Union Catholic last week, got its 20 first half points thanks to two threes, five field goals, and four free throws in the half while Monroe got its 18 points on nine field goals. Freshman Victor Sorrento helped pace the Purple Birds with three field goals for 6 points while sophomore Mike Mahmoud added a bucket.
In the second half, Monroe took off as Sorrento scored 14 points in a 26-18 showing for the win. Sorrento ended up with a team high 20 points on nine field goals, and two foul shots while Mahmoud, who fouled out with 1:13 to play, ended up with four field goals, and two free throws for ten points. The Falcons also got help down low from a big kid, who picked up ten points on five field goals including four in the first half. The Purple Birds started out with some tough luck in the first minute or so of the second half as Sorrento had a couple scoring opportunities, but was unable to convert. Nevertheless, as Monsignor Farrell called for time with 18:44 to go, Monroe still only trailed by two, 20-18.
The Falcons then tied the game with a steal that led to a drive from the left side for a layup, and a 20-20 score at the 18:31 mark. Forty-one seconds later, Monroe then made a nice spin move for a bank shot in the paint that put the Falcons ahead by two, 22-20 at the 17:50 mark. The Purple Birds, which defeated another previously unbeaten team in the Parlin Pride on Monday night, went up by five as Mahmoud dished to the left wing for a line drive three point by a teammate that made the score, 25-20 at the 17:07 mark. Then, on a missed shot by Farrell, Sorrento grabbed the rebound, and passed upcourt to Mahmoud for a layup, and a 27-20 lead at the 16:47 mark. Mahmoud then made it an 11-0 run himself by swiping a steal, and taking it all the way for a layup, and a 29-20 lead with 16:34 remaining.
Monroe Township then added another field goal for a 13-0 run, and a 31-20 lead before the Lions came back with their first field goal of the second half at the 15:45 mark for a 31-22 score. Almost a minute later, the Staten Island school from the New York City Catholic League got another score to pull within seven, and forced Monroe to call for a 30 second timeout at the 14:53 mark. Monsignor Farrell’s defense continued to clamp down by deflecting a Sorrento pass for a steal that led to a fast break layup, and a 6-0 run for a 31-26 Monroe lead with 13:34 remaining. The Lions had a chance to get closer, but Mahmoud came up with a steal that eventually led to a Sorrento score on a follow with 11:47 to go in a critical four point swing that put the Purple Birds back up by seven at 33-26. Over two minutes went by before another score, but it would be Sorrento again as he battled for another offensive rebound and follow while being fouled. Despite missing the bonus free throw, the Falcon Freshman put his team back up by nine at 35-26 with 9:34 to play.
Farrell went back to work on chipping away at Monroe’s lead with 8 of the next 11 points over a span of 4:34. First, the Lions got a layup at the 8:48 mark. Then, Monsignor Farrell scored again on a baseline jumper from the left side that gently bounced in for a 35-30 score with 6:51 to play. The New York squad continued to creep closer by making one of two from the foul line at the 6:17 mark to close the gap to 35-31. Monroe got a field goal to go back ahead by six at 37-31, but Farrell retaliated with a three pointer from the top of the key that pulled the Lions to within three at 37-34 with 5:04 to play. Mahmoud then made his only two free throws on the night to give the Purple Birds some distance with a 39-34 lead at the 4:31 mark. The Falcons continued to cling to that lead when it made one of two from the line for a 40-34 advantage with exactly two minutes to go. Farrell got the point back with one of two from the line itself at the 1:52 mark, but Mahmoud came up with a layup at the 1:42 mark for a seven point lead.
Despite some harrowing moments down the stretch, the Falcons were able to hang on for the win as Sorrento netted two free throws with 9.7 seconds to go for a 44-38 lead. With the victory, Monroe moves into first place in the High School Division at 2-0 while Monsignor Farrell slips into a second place tie with the Parlin Pride at 2-1.
| Team | 1 | 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monroe (2-0) | 18 | 26 | 44 |
| Monsignor Farrell (2-1) | 20 | 18 | 38 |
East Brunswick Stymies CJEOTO In Upset, 32-21
This game turned out to be one of the big surprises of the season, but in fairness to CJEOTO, and its coach, Ian Turnbull, the Panthers didn’t have three of their starters. EB, too though was going without a full roster, since one of its players wasn’t there either. However, the Bears played solid defense, and that translated into better play on offense, especially in the second half as they came away with a 32-21 win. The Panthers, which gave Monroe, one of the top teams in the 7th and 8th Grade Division, a scare in a 24-22 loss back on June 4th. In that game, Justin Zayas of Franklin made a big contribution for the Panthers with 15 points. However, against East Brunswick, Zayas, who scored the game’s opening basket, didn’t score again until the 13:17 mark of the second half, and ended up with ten overall to still lead the way.
East Brunswick’s defense not only stopped Zayas, but also locked down the entire CJEOTO team as it limited the Panthers to just three field goals, and three of six from the foul line in the first half, and held them to no field goals for a span of 23:33 from the 13:37 mark of the first half when CJEOTO’s diminutive guard, Brandon Bennett scored on an offensive rebound and follow to the 10:04 mark of the second half when Zayas grabbed an offensive rebound, and scored on a short turnaround jumper in the left low block. The Bears stifling defense gave them confidence on offense, which resulted in some productivity as they took at 28-13 lead with 10:35 left in the contest. Although, CJEOTO outscored EB by a 6-4 margin down the stretch, it just couldn’t snap itself out of its collective funk, and the Bears came away with a 32-21 upset to get their second win of the summer.
The Panthers got things going their way though in the early moments as Zayas opened the scoring with an offensive rebound and follow for a 2-0 lead at the 19:26 mark. Chris Minick had a chance to put CJEOTO up further, but misfired on both foul shots at the 18:04 mark. Minick then redeemed himself though with a follow after the Panthers, which dominated the boards, especially in the first half, grabbed three in this particular scoring sequence for a 4-0 lead with 17:17 to go before the intermission. After EB called a 30 second timeout at the 16:58 mark, the Bears got a layin that cut the deficit in half at 4-2 with 15:49 to play in the half. A minute and a half later, East Brunswick got the ball back, and made a nice push upcourt for a jumper from the left side that tied things up at 4-4 with 14:19 left in the first half. After a 30 second timeout by CJEOTO, Bennett put his team on top with his score at the 13:37 mark, but EB quickly replied with a floater from the right baseline to tie it up again at 6-6 with 13:30 to go in the half.
Nearly two minutes went by without a score before East Brunswick came up with an offensive rebound, and follow at the 11:41 mark for an 8-6 edge. Minick then came up with an offensive rebound and follow attempt that drew a foul, and produced two free throws for an 8-8 tie at the 11:20 mark. Following another East Brunswick 30 second timeout at the 10:18 mark, the Bears started to roll with a 10-0 run sparked by a steal on an intercepted pass that was converted into a layup for a 10-8 lead at the 9:17 mark. The Bears then got an offensive rebound and follow at the 8:50 mark for a 12-4 spurt since the 4-0 CJEOTO lead, and a 12-8 lead as CJEOTO called for time at the 8:48 mark. Following the timeout, East Brunswick went back to work with a layin on a scoop shot at the 7:44 mark that made the score, 14-8. Thirty-two seconds later, the Bears made one of two from the line at the 7:12 mark for a 15-8 lead.
East Brunswick could have gone up further too, but missed two free throws at the 5:50 mark, and only made one of two from the line at the 3:28 mark for a 16-8 lead. Two minutes later though, the Bears capped the run with a baseline drive from the left side for a reverse layup, and an 18-8 lead. CJEOTO, which had been held scoreless for 11:06, finally got on the board to close out the first half scoring when Minick got another two offensive rebounds, and drew a foul for a one of two showing at the line that made the score, 18-9 at the break. Over the first 20 minutes of the game, the Panthers only had three field goals, and made 3 of 6 from the foul line while East Brunswick connected on eight field goals while only converting 2 of 6 free throw attempts.
In the second half, things didn’t get much better for CJEOTO as East Brunswick continued to put the screws on. The Bears opened up the second half scoring with an offensive rebound and follow at the 18:27 mark for a 20-9 lead. Meanwhile, the Panthers had a scoring chance, but couldn’t convert as Ram Benimadho misfired at the line with two airballs at the 18:06 mark. Neither team would score after that for the next 2:21 before EB got on the board again with a layin at the 15:45 mark for a 22-9 lead. On the Panthers next possession, Minick stepped to the line again, and made a perfect 2 of 2 for his team’s first points of the second half, and a 22-11 EB lead at the 15:16 mark. Following a full timeout by the Bears with 14:27 to play, they got a rebound, and a drive upcourt through the CJEOTO defense for a layup, and a 24-11 lead with 13:49 left. Zayas then finally got going with his first points since the opening seconds of the game with two free throws for a 24-13 Bear lead at the 13:17 mark.
East Brunswick then shot itself in the foot a bit with an 0 of 2 showing from the foul line with 12:27 left, and then an elbow for an offensive foul at the 11:30 mark. However, the Bears did get on track again with a jumper from the left side that bounced in for a 26-13 lead with 11:01 to play. They followed that up with a layin at the 10:35 mark for a 28-13 lead, and as CJEOTO called a full timeout with 10:29 left, the EB fans in attendance were cheering enthusiastically as their team, which had struggled in four of its previous five games, was in complete control. After the timeout, the Panthers showed some faint signs of life as Zayas got the team’s first field goal in over 23 minutes with an offensive rebound and score from the left side to close the gap to 28-15 at the 10:04 mark. CJEOTO then followed that up with another quick score on a layup to pull within eleven at 28-17 with 9:39 to play.
Stemming the tide, East Brunswick called for time at the 9:35 mark, and then neither team scored for a full 2:10 before the Bears put together some nice teamwork and passing upcourt for a breakaway layup, and a 30-17 lead with 7:25 remaining. EB added another score before Zayas made a layup with 5:14 left for a 32-19 score. Zayas then closed the scoring out with two free throws in the final minute of play to round out the 32-21 final score. With the victory, East Brunswick improved to 2-4 overall while CJEOTO dropped to 2-3.
| Team | 1 | 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| East Brunswick (2-4) | 18 | 14 | 32 |
| CJEOTO (2-3) | 9 | 12 | 21 |
GMC Hoops will be out at the Raritan Bay Summer League next week to see more games.