Trojans Victory Over East Brunswick Huge For BGA And The Rest Of GMC Blue
NORTH EDISON, NJ–On Monday afternoon, the Trojans of Bishop Ahr came up with a huge win by defeating East Brunswick at home, 63-60. The win not only gave Ahr a great deal of confidence heading into the rest of the season and upcoming tournaments, but also gave the GMC Blue a big shot in the arm in terms of respectability. Entering the contest, Bishop Ahr had won some close games and struggled in not so close games.
The Trojans had garnered a 57-52 victory over Spotswood and January 2nd, and a 56-52 win at Metuchen on January 11th. Then, in a game that GMC Hoops covered on January 7th against South River, the BGA struggled offensively with turnovers and poor shooting at times in a 60-42 victory. Turnovers have been a problem for the Trojans, but they did a much better job against East Brunswick, and it resulted in a victory.
The win over the Bears was a huge victory for the Bishop Ahr program. Over the past several years, the Trojans have climbing the ladder towards being on the level of the elite teams in the conference. Three straight years, Bishop Ahr has reached the GMCT Elite Eight while at least gaining a share of the GMC Blue in each of the past two seasons. Two seasons ago, Ahr came up with a huge victory at Cardinal McCarrick that helped it gain a share of the Blue Division crown.
However, the Trojans, which have won 20 straight games in Blue Division competition dating back to the 2007-08 season, got a victory against one of the top teams in the GMC Red this season. East Brunswick entered the contest with only one loss on the road at Old Bridge (62-51), and defeated the likes of North Brunswick (63-61), New Brunswick (68-62), Piscataway (63-57), and one of the Shore Conference’s top teams in Freehold Boro (72-67 in OT).
The Trojans played like they’re capable of playing, and it resulted in a victory that is a huge step toward putting BGA into a contending role for this year’s GMCT Championship. The program has made huge strides since scrapping for wins and being knocked around in the rough and tumble GMC White back when the site was first launched. Slowly, but surely, the program has turned things around. With solid Freshmen and JV teams, Ahr has built a solid foundation that has started to produce results at the varsity level over the past few years.
Rocky Prodoscimo has guided Bishop Ahr Freshmen Teams into the Perth Amboy/GMC Freshmen Tournament Final Four in each of the last four years with an appearance in the finals back in 2006 (lost to J.P. Stevens 60-36), a fourth place finish in 2007 (lost to Spotswood in the third place game), a third place finish in 2008 (defeated New Brunswick in the consolation), and a third place finish in 2009 (defeated Monroe in the consolation). Bob Johnston and Tom Roarty have helped guide the JV to three straight Final Four appearances in the East Brunswick/GMC JV Tournament in 2006, 2007, and 2008 including two straight berths in the finals.
The win is also huge for the GMC Blue as a whole since it means validation. So far the Blue Division is undefeated in crossover games, and only lost two non-conference games. However, it has lacked a real true quality crossover win until now. The Blue Division has improved from top to bottom, and this victory gives teams such as Metuchen and Middlesex a say in the GMC Hoops Top Ten as well as gives teams such as Kennedy, South River, and Highland Park more respect and consideration. Meanwhile, Spotswood, is a legit contender for the GMCT as well. Let’s not forget the Chargers defeated East Brunswick and Monroe the week of the seeding meeting last season.