Piscataway Falls To Rahway In League Championship, 49-38
RAHWAY, NJ–On Friday evening, GMC Hoops traveled over to Rahway High School again for the Championship Game of the inaugural Rahway Summer League. The contest involved a GMC team as fourth seeded Piscataway, an upset winner over top seeded Cardinal McCarrick in the semifinals, was looking to knock off second seeded Rahway. RHS would win this battle of Indians as it went on an 8-2 run to end the first half, and then pulled away with a 25-17 showing in the second half for the 49-38 victory.
Rahway Defeats Piscataway For Title, 49-38
This was a closely played game for the most part. It wasn’t until 10:21 to go in the game that either team had a lead bigger than five points. The Indians then closed out the game with a 14-8 run that included a 10 of 14 showing from the foul line in the game’s final 4:16 to win by eleven. GMC Hoops picked up the action with Rahway leading by a score of 12-11 with 7:56 to go in the first half. On its next possession, Piscataway took a 14-12 lead as Vik Singh first made one of two at the line, and then on the missed second free throw, Donovan Kirkland got the offensive rebound, and kicked to Greg Davis for a score with 7:20 to go in the half. Rahway subsequently tied things up at 14-14 with a field goal at the 6:34 mark, but after the Chiefs forced a five second call with 5:27 to go in the half, they went back ahead when Davis passed to Brian Wong for a three pointer from the right wing that made the score, 17-14 with 5:01 to go before halftime.
Rahway would get a layup at the 4:52 mark to draw within one, but Galen Smith, a transfer from Cardinal McCarrick, drove the left baseline for a floater that went in for a 19-16 lead with 4:34 to go in the half. The Indians then closed the half by scoring eight of the last ten points of the half for a three point lead at the intermission. The run started with a three pointer from the right wing at the 2:44 mark for a 20-19 advantage. Rahway then forced a steal that resulted in a drive for a layup attempt that drew a foul, and resulted in two free throws for a 22-19 lead with 2:22 to go in the half. Singh made two from the foul line for a 22-21 RHS lead at the 1:32 mark, but after missing two foul shots with 1:18 to go in the period, the Indians closed out the first half scoring with two free throws at the 55.9 second mark for a 24-21 lead at the break.
Neither team had a lead bigger than three points over the final 7:56 of the half. Rahway actually had a 10-4 run in the final 5:01 of the half while Piscataway’s scoring in the final eight or so minutes of the period came in the form of 3 of 4 from the line by Singh, a three pointer by Wong, and field goals by Davis and Galen Smith. The second half started with P-Way getting the first five points for a two point lead. Tajae Sharpe grabbed a rebound, and passed to David White, who was fouled, and made one of two from the line. On the missed second free throw though, Singh grabbed the offensive rebound, and scored on the follow to tie the game at 24-24 with 19:21 to play in the game.
A little over a minute later, Sharpe swiped a steal, and scored a layin for a 26-24 lead with 18:14 to go. Rahway would tie things up at 26-26 on a scoop shot in the left low block. The Indians then took the lead on a kickout for a three pointer from the left side that made the score, 29-26 with 15:01 to go. RHS then made it a 7-0 run with a steal that led to a floater that banked in for a 31-26 lead at the 14:46 mark. Tyjohn Young tried to get the Chiefs going again with two free throws at the 14:07 mark, but Rahway made two foul shots of its own with 13 minutes to go, and after the two teams exchanged turnovers, and Young missed two free throws, the Indians scored a layup down in the right low block to take the biggest lead of the game at 35-28 with 10:21 left. Davis got two of those points back on an offensive rebound and follow off a missed three by Sharpe for a 35-30 score at the 10:02 mark.
After a Piscataway timeout with 9:59 remaining, the two teams again exchanged turnovers as Rahway was called for a travel down low at the nine minute mark, and P-Way threw the ball away at the 8:30 mark. The Indians then went back up by seven on a layin at the 8:17 mark for a 37-30 lead. The Chiefs pulled within five again as Singh drew a foul on a shot, and made two free throws for a 37-32 Rahway lead with 6:29 left. RHS then committed a push off foul at the 5:21 mark, but after an Indian timeout with 5:17 to play, Piscataway wasn’t able to take advantage. A minute later, the Indians made two from the line for a 39-32 lead. P-Way had a chance to draw within five again, but Sharpe missed the front end of a one and one at the 3:36 mark, and Rahway went up by nine with two free throws at the 2:38 mark for a 41-32 score. The home team then outscored the Chiefs by an 8-6 margin the rest of the way for the 49-38 victory, and the league title.
With the win, Rahway closed out the summer with a 12-1 record while Piscataway ended the season at 8-4.
| Team | 1 | 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rahway (12-1) | 24 | 25 | 49 |
| Piscataway (8-4) | 21 | 17 | 38 |
GMC Hoops thanks Dunellen head coach, Bernie Buniak and JFK head coach, Chris Banos for providing information on this league.