BOUND BROOK, NJ–On Thursday night, GMC Hoops again ventured over to Bound Brook High School to take in the ninth night of games from its summer league. The site arrived in time to see nightcap of the Thursday quintupleheader between New Brunswick and Bernards. Take a look at the results from the other games played on this eighth day action as well as the latest standings.
Zebras Click On All Cylinders In Rout Over Bernards, 62-28
Coming off a solid win over Piscataway on Tuesday night, the New Brunswick Zebras were looking to keep up the momentum as they headed toward the playoffs. In their way were the Mountaineers of Bernards, which like Piscataway was playing out the regular season. This game would be indicative of the direction that both teams were going in as New Brunswick rolled despite not having Jaquan Cook in the lineup. The Zebras jumped out to a 15-5 lead in the first 6:29 of the game, and even though Bernards got back to within five minutes later, they put the game away by ending the half strong with a 16-4 tear for a 31-14 halftime lead. In the second half, the Zebras opened up with a 10-2 spurt over the first 3:09 to take a 41-16 lead. From there they coasted to a 62-28 victory to lock up the second seed in the upcoming playoff round.
After being over at Elizabeth and Linden earlier in the day, GMC Hoops arrived with 15:07 to go in the first half, and the Zebras already out in front by a 9-3 score. Over the next 23 seconds, New Brunswick scored four more points on two steals that led to layups by Simuel Williams for a 13-3 lead at the 14:44 mark. Bernards got a score to pull within eight before Nigel Scott got into the act with a layup at the 13:31 mark for a 15-5 lead. The Mountaineers tried to climb back into the game with the next five points including two free throws at the 11:57 mark, and a three pointer from the left side at the 9:18 mark for a 15-10 New Brunswick lead with 9:18 left in the half. Williams then quelled the revolt with a baseline drive on the left side for a layup, and a 17-10 lead at the nine minute mark.
Bernards closed the gap to five again a minute later with a layup, but the Zebras responded with nine straight points including the following:
- A layup at the 7:30 mark off an assist by Williams to make the score 19-12.
- A jumper from the right side for a 21-12 lead with 7:10 to play in the half.
- One of two from the line at the 5:15 mark for a 22-12 lead.
- A steal that led to an offensive rebound and follow for a 24-12 lead at the 4:27 mark.
- A dish by Scott for a layup at the 3:13 mark to cap the spurt for a 26-12 lead.
The Mountaineers finally ended the NB run with a field around the two minute mark of the first half, but Williams played a part in all of New Brunswick’s final five points of the half including an assist on a baseline drive and kickout to John Simpson for a jumper that made the score, 28-14 at the 1:27 mark, one of two from the line at the 57 second mark, and a steal that led to an offensive rebound and follow with three seconds remaining for the 31-14 lead at the intermission. In the second half, New Brunswick simply picked up right where it left off with 10 of the first 12 points of the second half to take what would be an insurmountable lead. Less than 45 seconds into the half, Scott grabbed an offensive rebound off a missed layup by Williams, and put in the follow for a 33-14 lead. The Zebras quickly got the ball back, and scored again on a layup by Simpson at the 18:55 mark for a 35-14 lead. A little more than a minute after that, Williams handed out an assist on a three pointer from the right side after a Bernards score for a 38-16 lead.
Williams handed out another assist when he passed to Scott for a three pointer from the right side to cap the 10-2 spurt, and give the Zebras a 41-16 advantage with 16:51 remaining. Over the next 11:13, New Brunswick would outscore Bernards by a 12-9 margin as Williams struck for a three pointer, and his teammates outhustled the Mountaineers for several offensive rebounds that led to a layup at the 5:38 mark for a 53-25 lead. NBHS then closed out the contest with 9 of the last 12 points for the 62-28 victory. With the win, New Brunswick improved to 7-1 on the summer while Bernards dropped to 1-6.
| Team | 1 | 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Brunswick (7-1) | 31 | 31 | 62 |
| Bernards (1-6) | 14 | 14 | 28 |
GMC Hoops was back out at Bound Brook on Tuesday night to see the final two games of the Quarterfinal round of the playoffs.