BOUND BROOK, NJ–Last Thursday, the 2010 Bound Brook Summer League came to an end with top seeded Watchung Hills defeating second seeded Franklin by a score of 49-46 for the Championship. Watchung won the battle of Warriors for the title after defeating Bound Brook in the semifinals and Manville in the quarterfinals. Franklin reached the finals after defeating Bridgewater in the opening round, and Somerville in the final four.
There were nine teams in this league including only one from the Greater Middlesex Conference. Middlesex went 4-5 overall, and earned the sixth seed in the playoffs before falling to third seeded Somerville. The league had several key defections from last year as Piscataway, J.F. Kennedy, Immaculata, and New Brunswick left to play in other leagues. P-Way and Kennedy joined the newly formed Rahway Summer League this summer while New Brunswick went to play in the Monday/Wednesday Division of the Linden Summer League. Union Catholic remained in the league although it had a squad in the Rahway league.
Seven of the nine teams were from the Skyland Conference including three from the Delaware East Division (Bridgewater, Franklin, and Watchung Hills), two from the Valley Division (Bound Brook and Manville), one from the Raritan Division (Somerville), and one from the Delaware West Division (Hunterdon Central). Each team played eight games in this league with Watchung Hills winning the regular season title, and earning the top seed for the playoffs.
As mentioned earlier, Middlesex was 4-5 on the summer at Bound Brook. The site saw the Jays play four times during the season, and each time, the Jays played competitively with victories over Franklin and Bridgewater, and tough losses to Hunterdon Central and Somerville. Middlesex handed Franklin its first loss of the summer while the victory over Bridgewater in the season finale gave the Blue Jays the sixth seed over the Panthers. Then, in the playoffs, Middlesex had a 36-32 lead late in the second half against Somerville before the Pioneers pulled the game out with a 21-4 game closing surge for the 53-40 win. MHS lost its season opener against Hunterdon Central (41-32).
The Jays were led by the play of soon to be senior, John Santoro along with contributions from Chris Winkleman, David Schenck, and Connor Bogus. Santoro averaged 9.5 points per game over the four Middlesex games that GMC Hoops covered this summer. He played key roles in the victory over Bridgewater (10 points), and in defeat against Somerville (11 points). David Schenck has improved steadily during the summer with solid play in the win over Franklin as well as a fine contribution in the loss to Somerville. In the four games covered by the site, MHS averaged only 36.8 points per game, but limited their opponents to just 38.5 points per contest. In three of the contests, the Jays shot 44 of 117 for 38 percent while their opponents were only 41 of 124 for 33 percent. MHS was 2-1 in these three games.
Defense and team play will be key components to success for the Blue Jays this season. Middlesex lost some key players from last year including Avery Barnes, Terrell Mayers, Adam Wells, and Mike Lester. However, the Jays still have five of its top players from last year returning. The team is well coached by Brian Feath, and will still be a very competitive squad. Limiting opponents to low scoring, and playing well together were key aspects to the team’s success in several wins this summer, and will be relied upon to overcome offensive limitations, and height disadvantages. The Blue Jays also competed in the Hillsborough JV league, Kean Ironman Challenge, at the FDU-Florham team camp this summer.