Overcome Foul Shooting Woes With Key Free Throws Down The Stretch For Victory
PERTH AMBOY, NJ–For the first time this season, GMC Hoops took a trip up to Perth Amboy Tech High School to see the Patriots in action against Gold Division rival, South Amboy. This was a big game for both teams since they are trying to qualify for the states. Chances are slim that the winner has a shot to catch Dunellen especially since the Guvs lost to the Destroyers on Tuesday at The Faber.
Amboy Tech got off to a strong start as the Pats made 7 of 9 shots in the first quarter including a perfect 3 of 3 from Malcolm Batts (6 of 9 FGs and 4 of 6 FTs for 16 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 steals) for a 16-11 lead. The Guvs had led 7-6 after a three pointer from Joe Charmello (23 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals) at the 4:11 mark, but the Patriots responded with a 10-2 run. Both Rashad Adams (4 of 7 FGs including a three pointer for 9 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 assists) and Batts combined for 8 of 10 shooting in the first half and 17 points. The two account for 13 of the 16 points in the first quarter. Momentum then swung in favor of South Amboy as the Guvs went into the locker room at halftime with a 25-23 lead thanks to a 14-7 showing in the second. However, it wasn’t pretty as both teams combined to go 7 of 20 from the line in the period. The Guvs were just 6 of 18 from the line in the first half while the Pats were only 2 of 8.
South Amboy went on a 12-0 spurt over a span of 3:56 for a 19-16 lead as Charmello had three one of two trips to the foul line while junior Mike Arway chipped in with a one of two showing of his own. Amboy Tech responded with a 4-1 run including a Jesse Crespo layup off an assist by Adams at the 4:06 mark, and then an offensive rebound and follow by Adams off a Crespo miss to tie the game at 20-20 with 2:12 to go in the half. Dan O’Connor scored a layup and Charmello followed that with a steal for a layup for a 24-20 lead, and remained ahead by two at the intermission. In the third, the Governors took advantage of the fact that Adams got into foul trouble, and had to spend considerable time on the bench. South Amboy opened up the period with a 9-2 spurt including a three pointer from the left wing by Charmello for a 34-25 lead.
Perth Amboy Tech showed plenty of fight, and refused to go away as it put together a 7-0 run including two free throws by Batts at the 2:34 mark, a jumper by Batts at the 1:02 mark, and a three pointer from the left wing by Crespo as time expired for a 34-32 score heading into the fourth. In the final period, South Amboy appeared to have Amboy Tech on the ropes a couple times only to have the Patriots come back both times to make a game of it. Charmello opened the fourth with five straight points for a 39-32 lead before the Pats rallied back with five of their own including another three by Crespo at the 6:00 mark to make the score, 39-37. The Guvs came up with another 5-0 run on one of two free throws by Luke O’Connor and steals for layups by Charmello and Arway for a 44-37 lead with 4:57 to play.
Once again, the Patriots fought back with a three pointer from the left side by Anthony Pena at the 3:01 mark, and two free throws from Batts at the 1:51 mark for a 44-42 Guv lead. However, the home team wouldn’t get any closer as it didn’t score the rest of the way while South Amboy got two huge free throws from Tim Simko at the 43.3 second mark. Arway went to the line, and sank of one two with 17.4 seconds left, and on the second miss, Christian Geant came up with the offensive rebound, and drew a foul for one of two foul shots as well to wrap up the 48-42 victory. The win pulled the Guvs to within a game of .500 while Amboy Tech dropped to three games under .500.
This game wasn’t pretty, but South Amboy will take the win. The Governors only went 11 of 33 from the foul line while Amboy Tech was just 6 of 15. The Guvs did take care of the basketball with only 11 turnovers while forcing 18 by the Patriots. South Amboy outscored Perth Amboy Tech in two of the final three periods of play in the win. The Guvs were 17 of 40 from the floor while Amboy Tech was 16 of 39 from the floor. Despite a difficult night shooting, Charmello kept playing and the result was a game high in scoring. It was the first time all year that I saw both Batts and Adams played, and I liked what I saw. Both can score, make plays, and rebound. Crespo didn’t get many touches, but made the most of all of them by going 3 of 4 including 2 of 3 from beyond the arc.