Resilient Atlantic City Outlasts Point Beach In 2 OTs, 80-73
TOMS RIVER, NJ–For the third time in 19 days, GMC Hoops was treated to a double overtime contest as third seeded and Group IV state champ, Atlantic City, was pushed to the limit by the smallest and lowest seeded team in the T of C field in Point Pleasant Beach.
Led by the pinpoint shooting and solid playmaking of guard, Matt Farrell, who scored 13 points in the first half including two threes, the Garnet Gulls, making its first appearance in the T of C, jumped out to a 12-0 lead, led 34-20 at the half, and were up by as many as 19 early on in the third before Atlantic City rallied with a 31-7 surge over an eight minute span including 21 of 24 points scored in just 4:52 to take a 53-50 lead with 3:55 left in regulation.
Point Beach would match AC’s resiliency though not only to force overtime, but double overtime as the Gulls scored 9 of the last 13 points of regulation, and then finished the first extra session by scoring 8 of the last 10 points to keep the game going. Â Riley Calzonetti willed his team into the second overtime by scoring six points in the final 47 seconds of the first extra session including two free throws with three seconds left to tie the score at 70-70.
Atlantic City would ultimately survive and advance thanks to a 10-3 showing in the second overtime. Â The Vikings scored all of their points at the foul line by making 10 of 14 from the charity stripe. Â Meanwhile, Point Pleasant Beach was worn down by the saga of the contest as it made several bad turnovers, and didn’t score any points until P.J. Kinneavy netted a three from the top of the key with 3.9 seconds left to shape the final 80-73 score.
The reward was the 30th victory of the season for Atlantic City, and a date with second seeded St. Joseph’s in the Tournament of Champions semifinals at Monmouth University on Friday night at 6:00 PM.  It was a game of wills in the final 20 minutes of the contest with the Vikings being able to outlast its feisty small school opponent.  Buoyed by a largely home crowd, Point Pleasant  Beach was able to dictate tempo in the first half with its patient methodical style that was able to enjoy success thanks to its ability to make shots.
The Garnet Gulls outscored the Vikings by a 24-6 margin from beyond the arc despite Atlantic City’s reputation for making big shots from deep. Â One of the Vikings threes though did come in a big spot as Isaiah Graves continued his clutch play this post-season with a triple from the left wing for AC’s first lead of the contest at 51-50 with 4:15 left in regulation. Â Â Four of the six Point Beach players had at least one three including Farrell, who knocked down three treys. Â AC made up for that deficit at the line by scoring 20 of its points there, and outscoring the Gulls by 11 at the charity stripe.
Atlantic City also enjoyed a distinct advantage in two point field goals (27-19) as it was able to use its size and athleticism down low to get many of its scores in the second half and both overtimes. Â The front line of Jahleem Montague (16 points), Ga’briel Chandler (17 points), and Dennis White (8 points) combined for 41 points. Â However, it was the Vikings full court man defense that made the biggest impact of all over the last 12 minutes of regulation.
Point Beach had been able to dictate the tempo with its deliberate and methodical style. Â However, when AC began to pressure from one end of the court to the next, the Garnet Gulls became uncomfortable. Â The Ocean County school started to become rushed and hurried on the offensive end, and Atlantic City was able to get them to miss shots and turn the ball over, which created transition opportunities that the Vikings were able to cash in. Â The Vikings have showed plenty of resiliency and resolve during the last three rounds of their post-season.
In the Group IV state semifinals, Atlantic City trailed GMCT finalist and Red Division champion, East Brunswick at the half, 33-23 only to respond in the final 16 minutes by outscoring the Bears, 28-16 including a 10 minute span where EB only had four points. Â In the Group IV State Championship against Linden, the Vikings trailed by three late in regulation, and twice in overtime before coming back to win. Â Going back to last year’s T of C, GMC Hoops has seen AC play four times with three of those contests being decided in overtime.
Atlantic City improved to 30-1 on the season while Point Pleasant Beach, a Shore Conference Tournament finalist, and Group I state champ, finished the season at 27-4.