Falcons Claim First State Tile With 2nd Victory Over Pirates This Season
TOMS RIVER, NJ–St. Joseph’s finally did it. For the first time in school history, the Falcons have a state title in boys basketball. A school that has dominated the landscape in Middlesex County for decades can now finally say it is truly one of the elite teams in the Garden State. Head coach Dave Turco has accomplished his goal of making St. Joe’s a state power during his tenure. The Falcons were able to do it by defeating a solid Seton Hall Prep team for the second time this season with a 77-68 victory in the Non-Public A State Championship at Pine Belt Arena on Saturday.
Once again, it was a solid team effort that gave the Falcons the win for the state crown. Temple bound Quenton DeCosey lead the way with 30 points while also collecting 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks according to the Star-Ledger. DeCosey now has 1,592 career points, which places him just a point shy of former Bishop Ahr standout, Corey Francisco for fifth place on the GMC Hoops Grand Club scoring list. Knowing that Seton Hall Prep was going to come ready to play on Saturday, DeCosey raised his game another level. Danny Brix chipped in with 19 points to raise his career total to 1,185 points. Karl Towns also scored in double figures by adding 12 points including two threes while also picking up 8 rebounds and 6 blocked shots.
Jimbo Long also helped out with 9 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists while Karim Awad contributed with 5 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals. James Ziemba helped wrap up the win with a layup late in the game for his only points of the contest. Seton Hall Prep was led by Dallas Anglin and Stephon Mosely, who each scored 23 points. Spencer Weisz, who led the way in the Pirates victory over DePaul in the Non-Public B North Championship on Thursday with 23 points, was limited to only a dozen in this contest as Brix did a solid job defensively. After having a back and forth battle the first time these two teams met with 20 lead changes and 7 ties, the rematch was decided by one big surge.
Following an 8-0 spurt by Seton Hall Prep that turned a 6-4 deficit into a 12-6 lead midway through the first period, the Falcons went on a 41-14 outburst over a span of 14:47 to take a 47-26 lead with 5:07 remaining in the third. Towns sparked the surge with a turnaround jumper from the right low block at the 3:30, and then a three at the 3:06 mark. Brix added a trey of his own while DeCosey added a dunk. DeCosey then took over in the second period with 11 points and an assist in the second as he got out into the open floor and slashed his way to the basket. Towns then capped off the run early in the third with his second trey of the game for the 21 point lead. Seton Hall Prep tried to battle its way back into the game, and came close by forcing turnovers, attacking the basket, and getting to the foul line.
The Pirates were able to get within six points with a little over a minute to play, but couldn’t get any closer than that. The victory for the Falcons finally made it their year. After having many seasons come to an end at the hand’s of Non-Public A powers CBA and Seton Hall Prep, St. Joe’s finally broke through. It is not only a great moment for the coaches, players, parents, alumni, and students at the school, it is also one for the GMC. For the first time since Piscataway defeated Teaneck for the Group IV Championship in 1994, a team from the Greater Middlesex Conference won a state title. The Falcons are also the third team in conference history to compete in the Tournament of Champions. St. Joe’s joins Amboy Tech (1993) and P-Way as the only GMC teams to participate in the event.
Winning on Saturday also gave St. Joseph’s its 28th straight win this season, which is a new record for consecutive wins in a season during the GMC Hoops era. The previous mark was set by South Plainfield with 27 in a row back in the 2003-04 season. With their 29-1 record, the Falcons earned the second seed in the NJSIAA Tournament of Champions this week, which is the highest seed ever given to a GMC team in the event. St. Joe’s will play the winner of Asbury Park and Plainfield in the T of C semifinal on Friday night at Rutgers. Plainfield, the third seed in this year’s T of C, reached the final before losing to St. Anthony’s 61-49 last season. The Cardinals will be playing with plenty of motivation this week so the potential Friday night matchup could be quite a game.