NEPTUNE, NJ–On Monday, October 17th, GMC Hoops took another trip down to the Hoop Group Headquarters to take in the final two hours of games from the 2011 HGHQ Fall League. Both GMC teams were in action as Perth Amboy took on Freehold Township while Metuchen fought Lacey. We have play-by-play from the action in the contest between Freehold Township and Perth Amboy.
Lacey Cruises Past Metuchen, 65-21
Once again it was a learning experience for the Bulldogs as they took on a bigger and more experienced squad in Lacey from Ocean County. Â Metuchen trailed 37-7 at the start of the second half, and then opened the second half with a bucket for a 39-7 lead at the 18 minute mark before MHS came back with a score on its very next possession.
The two teams again exchanged baskets with Metuchen responding to an earlier Lacey putback with a short turnaround jumper by Brian Eustace for a 41-11 Lions lead. Â Lacey pounded the offensive glass in the second half with a number of possessions with multiple offensive boards including one that resulted in a putback at the 14:30 mark for a 43-11 lead.
The Lions had a chance to go up even further after getting a steal on the defensive end, but after four offensive rebounds, they came up short on a foul line jumper with just under 13 minutes to play. Â A minute and a half later, the Ocean County team battled for another offensive rebound and follow while being fouled, and after a Metuchen timeout with 11:35 left, Lacey missed the bonus free throw, and got another offensive rebound, but missed the follow attempt.
About a minute and a half later, the Lions benefited from another offensive rebound as they drew a foul on the follow, and made a pair of free throws for a 47-11 lead. Â On its next possession, the Bulldogs got on the board with a three pointer to close the gap to 47-14 with 9:20 left, but Lacey got a quick basket again off another offensive rebound for a 49-14 advantage. Â The Lions expanded their advantage to 37 points with a putback after getting another four offensive rebounds.
Lacey then closed the game with a 14-7 spurt over the final nine minutes of play to round out the 65-21 win.