South River Surges In Fourth To Win Championship, 65-57
SOUTH AMBOY, NJ–After starting the season 0-2 under new head coach, Rodney Harris, the Rams have now won three straight including a victory over Henry Hudson in the Championship Game of the 2009 South Amboy Tournament. Sophomore Larry Smith, who made the All Tournament Team along with teammate, Brandon Walsh, scored a layup as he was fouled with 1:40 to play to put the Rams up for good in a 65-57 victory. Smith had a team high 17 points to lead a balanced attack that included double figure scoring for Nick Boyler (14 points), Brandon Walsh (13 points), and Xavier Foster (13 points).
Foster scored ten of his points in the final period as the Rams outscored the Admirals 25-12 in the final frame. Dan Frederick poured in a game high 26 points for Henry Hudson while Mike Lucas and David Searcy chipped in with 14 and 10 points respectively. The Rams connected on 19 field goals, a three pointer, and 24 foul shots while the Admirals made 22 field goals, two three pointers, but only seven foul shots. Early on, it looked like South River was going to win easily as it started the game with an 13-4 spurt over the first 4:50 including a layup off a steal by Shawn Fenton (Walsh had the assist), two free throws by Foster, and a steal for a layup by Smith.
However, Henry Hudson fought back to make it a game as it closed the period with a 6-3 run to make the score 16-10 after one, and then began the second with a 15-9 spurt that included a three pointer at the 3:14 mark, and a layup at the 2:30 mark to tie things up at 25-25. The Rams went back out in front though as Foster connected on a jumper, Boyler made two free throws at the 1:47 mark, and then Fenton (6 points) came up with a block at the 21.5 second mark. South River then closed the half with one of two from the foul line for a 30-25 lead at halftime. The third quarter was all Admirals as they put together a 20-10 showing to take a five point lead heading into the fourth.
Henry Hudson opened the second half scoring with a jumper before Walsh made one of two from the foul line. The Admirals then tied things up at 31-31 with four straight points including a layin before Gavin Campbell put the Rams back out in front with two free throws at the 5:57 mark. Henry Hudson then took its first lead of the game at 36-35 on a steal for a layup attempt that drew a foul and produced one of two from the line with 4:24 to go in the period to cap a 5-2 run. The Admirals then added another layup for a 38-35 lead before South River called timeout with 3:59 left. The visitors from the Shore Conference then took a five point lead heading into the fourth by finishing the third with a 7-5 run including a three pointer from the top of the key that made the score, 45-40.
Taking over right away in the fourth, South River tied the game with a 5-0 run in just the first 47 seconds as Boyler swiped a steal for a layup as he was fouled for a conventional three point play to tie the game at 45-45. Both teams exchanged scores for a bit as Henry Hudson would take a lead only to have South River tie it right back up. The Rams took a lead before the Admirals went to the line and made two free throws at the 5:57 mark to tie it again at 49-49, and then took a 50-49 lead on a one of two showing from the charity stripe at the 5:40 mark. Henry Hudson then added two more scores for a five point lead before South River rallied back with a three pointer from the right wing by Foster, and a layup to tie the game at 54-54 with 3:51 left.
Following an Admirals timeout, the Rams took the lead on a one of two effort from the line by Foster (10 points in the fourth quarter) at the 3:06 mark for a 55-54 lead only to have Henry Hudson tie it right back up on a one of two showing of its own at the charity stripe with 2:42 to play. Walsh put South River back in front with two free throws for a 57-55 lead at the 2:18 mark only to have the Admirals tie things back up at 57-57 with two foul shots at the 2:05 mark. The Rams then had a chance to take the lead, but a shot with 1:47 to play rolled out, and Henry Hudson called for a 30 second timeout with the score still tied at 57-57.
Following the stoppage, Smith came up with a steal and scored the go ahead basket as he was fouled. Although the sophomore missed the bonus free throw, he sparked a game ending 8-0 run to wrap up the 65-57 victory. South River is now 3-2 overall on the season. Henry Hudson falls to 1-3 with the loss. Meanwhile, in the consolation, South Amboy got its first victory of the season by way of a 53-26 rout of Keansburg. Video highlights from South River’s win will be posted later this week.