Somerville Rallies Down The Stretch To Defeat Middlesex, 53-40
BOUND BROOK, NJ–On Monday evening, GMC Hoops made the journey out to Bound Brook High School for the fourth time this summer as the opening round of playoff games took place in the Bound Brook Summer League. This year, there is only one team from the Greater Middlesex Conference as Middlesex was playing in the 7:00 PM quarterfinal. The Jays were taking on Somerville with the victor to take on the winner of the Franklin-Bridgewater matchup taking place right after at 8:00 PM.
Late Second Half Surge Helps Somerville Advance
The Middlesex Blue Jays almost pulled off the upset. For 34 minutes, MHS played the type of basketball that they’ve played every time GMC Hoops has seen them play this summer. Smart, unselfish team basketball on offense, and tough defense gave them a shot against a much taller Somerville team down low. The result was a 36-32 lead with exactly six minutes to play. However, it wasn’t to be. The third seeded Pioneers finally lived up to their ranking by finishing the game with a 21-4 surge for a 53-40 victory over the sixth seeded Blue Jays in the opening round of the playoffs at the Bound Brook Summer League on Monday night.
John Santoro led the Blue Jays in a losing cause with 11 points on 4 of 8 shooting including one of three from three point range while also making two of four from the foul line. He also had two steals and an assist. David Schenck chipped in with 9 points on 4 of 7 shooting from the floor and one of two from the foul line while also blocking two shots, swiping two steals, handing out two assists, and grabbing a rebound. Chris Winkleman also contributed with 6 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals while soon to be sophomore, Connor Bogus made 2 of 4 shots for 4 points along with 6 rebounds.
As a team, MHS was 16 of 40 from the floor for 40 percent including 4 of 14 from three point land while making 4 of 8 from the line. Meanwhile, Somerville connected on 18 of 48 shots for 38 percent from the floor including 6 of 14 from beyond the arc while making 7 of 10 from the charity stripe. In other statistical areas, the Pioneers edged the Jays in the turnover war (11-12), but Middlesex converted more of them with 14 points off Somerville miscues. The Pioneers scored 11 points off MHS mistakes. Somerville outrebounded Middlesex by a margin of 29-19 including a 13-9 showing on the offensive boards. The Pioneers cashed in on their second chances with a 12-6 edge in second chance points.
Somerville had more assists (11-9), steals (9-6), and charges (1-0) while Middlesex had more blocks surprisingly enough (1-0). The Jays started this game like they had against Franklin on July 8th, and Bridgewater on July 22nd. They took the first shot to take control of the game, and set the tone and tempo throughout much of it. On the first possession of the game, Santoro connected for his only three pointer on a shot from the left wing to make the score 3-0. He then added one of two from the line at the 17:16 mark for a 4-0 lead. Somerville, meanwhile, struggled as they couldn’t convert a three on one fast break opportunity at the 15:10 mark. Middlesex continued to start off well with a three pointer from the left wing for a 7-0 lead with 14:45 to go in the half.
Schenck continued the run with a bank shot inside at the 14:10 mark for a 9-0 lead. Winkleman then capped the run with one of two from the foul line for a 10-0 lead with 13 minutes to play in the first half. Everything that the Jays had built up to this point was undone though once the Pioneers finally got going. Somerville didn’t get its first field goal until the 12:15 mark of the first half, but then rallied with a 20-5 surge to take a five point lead into the locker room. The Pioneers made one of two from the foul line after another field goal to close the gap to 10-5 with 11:04 to play in the half. They added another two scores including a short shot with 7:17 to go in the half for a 10-9 Middlesex lead. After Schenck made one of two from the foul line for an 11-9 lead with 6:45 to go in the half, Somerville took the lead at 12-11 with a three pointer from the top of the key at the 6:05 mark.
The Pioneers then added one of two from the line at the five minute mark for a 13-11 lead before making a three pointer from the top of the key at the four minute mark for a 16-11 advantage. Both teams then scored four points each to round out the first half scoring for a 20-15 Somerville lead at the intermission. Middlesex only got two field goals and one of two from the line over the final 12:15 of the half. The two baskets came in the final four minutes after being without a field goal for at least 8:15. Somerville made 8 of 20 shots from the floor including three of seven from long distance while netting two of four from the line. The Blue Jays, meanwhile, were only 5 of 21 from the floor including two of eight from downtown, and made three of six from the foul line. Each team had six turnovers with MHS getting six points off Somerville turnovers.
Middlesex appeared to be in trouble at the beginning of the second half as Somerville converted a traditional three point play at the 19:06 mark for a 23-15 score. However, the Jays showed some resiliency by not only rallying to tie the game, but take the lead, and hold it for a bit. MHS got a three pointer from the top of the key at the 17:44 mark to close the gap to 23-18. Winkleman followed that up with a straight on jumper off a pass from Schenck at the 16:37 mark for a 23-20 Pioneer lead. Somerville got a three pointer for a 26-20 lead before Middlesex scored five unanswered including a three by Winkleman and a layup by Schenck to pull within one before the Pioneers made one of two from the line for a 27-25 lead with 13:25 remaining.
The Jays then scored the next four points including an offensive rebound and follow by Bogus for a 29-27 lead before the Pioneers tied the game up at 29-29 with a bucket at the 9:42 mark. Following a Middlesex timeout, Somerville went ahead with a three pointer off a steal for a 32-29 lead at the 9:07 mark. The Blue Jays stormed back though to take the lead with seven straight points including a drive through the middle for a layup and a foul by Santoro that was converted to a three point play at the 8:17 mark, a Schenck layup at the 6:50 mark, and another layup while being fouled by Santoro for a 36-32 lead with six minutes to go. Over a span of 13:06 Middlesex had put together a 21-9 tear that turned an eight point deficit into a four point lead.
Once again though, Somerville closed out the half with a huge surge. This time, it decided the game. The Pioneers, who outscored Middlesex by a margin of 41-9 over a stretch of 18:15 in this contest, got a score to start the rally at the 4:34 mark, and then after a MHS timeout, tied the game on a tip in with 4:18 to play. The Jays then committed a couple of turnovers that the Pioneers converted into points with a field goal and a three pointer for a 41-36 lead. Somerville, now on an 11-0 run, made two free throws at the 2:33 mark for a 43-36 lead. The Pioneers then closed out the game with 10 of the final 14 points to win by the score of 53-40. With the victory, Somerville improved to 6-3 on the summer, and advanced to the semifinals to face second seeded Franklin. Middlesex ended the summer at BBHS with a 4-5 record.
| Team | 1 | 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Somerville (6-3) | 20 | 33 | 53 |
| Middlesex (4-5) | 15 | 25 | 40 |
GMC Hoops thanks Bound Brook head coach, Anthony Melesurgo and his staff for their assistance and hospitality this season.