PISCATAWAY, NJ–On Thursday afternoon, GMC Hoops traveled over to Piscataway High School to take in a rare afternoon varsity game from the GMC Red Division between the third ranked Chiefs and the fourth ranked South Brunswick Vikings.
After giving up the first bucket of the game, the Vikings went on a 7-0 run capped by a Vic Huetz score for a 7-2 lead with 6:23 to play in the first quarter. South Brunswick’s lead grew to 16-5 thanks to a 9-3 run over a span of just 1:48 that was capped by a Mike Ugarte score at the 4:35 mark of the first.
Piscataway battled back by scoring 9 of the last 12 points of the opening frame including a basket by Keyshawn Grant as he was fouled to close the gap to 19-14 heading into the second.
The Vikings then outscored the Chiefs by a 25-10 margin in the second highlighted by threes from Anthony Blakey at the 5:53 mark, Mike Ugarte with under two minutes to go in the second, and Chris James at the 4:04 mark and before the buzzer for a 44-24 halftime lead.
South Brunswick then scored 7 of the first 11 points of the second half including a jumper in the paint off a spin move by Mike Ugarte at the 5:23 mark for a 51-28 lead. Piscataway didn’t give up though, and thanks to a couple of highlight reel dunks by Grant, the Chiefs rallied.
Over a span of eight minutes, P-Way outscored SBHS by a margin of 28-13 including a three from the left wing by Jordan Davidson that banked in towards the end of the third, another trey by Davidson at the start of the fourth, and a three by D’Ondre Dent at the 5:48 mark of the final period.
Piscataway actually began the fourth trailing 64-44, but put together a 12-0 spurt over the first 2:12 to get within single digits, but couldn’t get any closer than eight points as Mike Ugarte hit a couple clutch threes to have put the Vikes back up by double digits at 73-59 with 3:17 remaining.
From there, South Brunswick was able to hang on for the 80-70 victory. Mike Ugarte led five different Vikings players in double figures with a game high 21 points while Mattias Arrindell led the Chiefs with 18 and Jordan Davidson chipped in with 17. The Vikes had 7 different players connect on a three for a total of 16 treys.
Piscataway was outscored by a margin of 48-9 from long distance in the contest. The Chiefs made up the difference with a 50-18 edge in points scored from within the arc. P-Way was 13 of 25 from the line while South Brunswick was 14 of 20. Below are game notes from the action:
First Quarter
6:23 left in the first quarter and PWAY calls time after a Vic Huetz layup off a steal and assist by Ryan Moran gives SB a 7-2 lead.
4:35 left in 1st qtr and South Brunswick now leads 16-5 after a short jumper in the paint by Mike Ugarte off the inbounds. Vikings have scored 9 of the last 12 points.
0:00–End of the first qtr and PWAY pulls to within 5 at 19-14 thanks to a bucket and one by Keshawn Grant. Chiefs end period on a 9-3 spurt.
Second Quarter
6:50 left in 1st half and South Brunswick takes a 25-16 lead on an Anthony Blakey three from the left corner.
5:53 left in 1st half and PWAY gets a 3 pt play from Cameron Saintil to close gap to 25-19. Ends a 6-2 start to the 2nd by South Brunswick.
4:04 left in first half and South Brunswick now leads 33-19 after this Chris James three from the left corner off a swing pass by Anthony Blakey.
0:00–End of 1st half and South Brunswick leads 44-24 on this Chris James three off a fake at the top of the key, and a dribble to the left. Mike Ugarte had a three from the right wing earlier. Vikings 25-10 2nd qtr.
Third Quarter
5:23 left in 3rd and South Brunswick now leads 51-28 after a pull-up jumper by Mike Ugarte off a spin move from the right wing. Vikings open 2nd half on a 7-4 run.
4:32 left in 3rd and Keshawn Grant swipes a steal and goes in for a double pump reverse rim rocker to put Pway within 53-34.
3:48 left in 3rd and South Brunswick calls time after a Chris James trey from the left corner puts SB up 56-35.
2:29 left in 3rd and PWay’s Jordan Davidson and Keshawn Grant combine on an alleyoop dunk by Grant for 59-39 SB lead.
0:00–End of 3rd and South Brunswick leads Piscataway 64-44 after Jordan Davidson gets a three to bank in from the right wing.
Fourth Quarter
5:48 left and South Brunswick calls time after 10-0 Pway run to start 4th incl. this D’Ondre Dent 3 for 64-54 Vikings lead.
5:20–PWay gets another score to pull within eight at 64-56. Chiefs on a 28-13 surge since trailing 51-28 at the 5;23 mark of the third.
3:17 left in the 4th and South Brunswick now leads 73-59 after a Mike Ugarte three from the right wing. Vikings on a 9-3 run that included another Ugarte three from the left side earlier.
2:36 left in 4th and South Brunswick calls time after getting a loose ball with a 73-61 lead.
0:00–Game just ended with South Brunswick defeating Piscataway 80-70 thanks to a Vic Huetz layup from the right side to seal the win. Mike Ugarte led five different players in double figures with 21 points for South Brunswick. Piscataway’s scoring for the game. Mattias Arrindell led the Chiefs with 18 while Jordan Davidson has 17. South Brunswick had seven different players make a three pointer. The Vikings had a total of 16 threes in the game, and outscored P-Way by a margin of 48-9 from beyond the arc. Piscataway had a 50-18 edge in points scored from within the arc. The Chiefs were 13 of 25 from the line while the Vikes were 14 of 20.