Colonia Outlasts South Plainfield in 2OT, 56-52

Patriots Win 4th N2G3 Sectional Title Since 2007 in Thriller

COLONIA, NJ—For the first time in three years, South Plainfield and Colonia took to the floor to play against each other.  It was also the first time in 15 years that the two schools faced off in the state playoffs, and the first time in 32 years that they played each other for a sectional championship.  The last time South Plainfield and Colonia dueled for a sectional title, it went to overtime.  This time, it went even further:  Double Overtime.

However, the ending would be similar to many over the course of this 57 game rivalry that has spanned almost four decades.  Entering Tuesday night’s, 2022 NJSIAA North Jersey Section 2 Group 3 Championship, Colonia had won 40 times including 19 straight dating back to the 2005 GMCT Semifinals, and 26 out of the last 33 times since the inaugural season of GMC Hoops in 2000-01.  When the dust settled on Tuesday night, Colonia made it 20 straight and 41 of 58 times.

Tied at 48-48 after the first overtime, the top seeded Patriots outscored the Tigers 8-4 in the second overtime to win 56-52.  It is Colonia’s first sectional title since 2019, and fourth N2G3 crown since 2007.  It is the first and only sectional title for the Greater Middlesex Conference in 2021-22.  It wasn’t easy though.   South Plainfield battled its way back in the final 15:44 of the contest to force overtime after being down a dozen.

Just 16 seconds into the second half, Colonia’s junior forward, Noah Taylor got an and one and made the bonus free throw for a 27-15 lead.  South Plainfield began to battle back with a 6-0 run including an and one by Anthony Nigro at the 6:40 mark and a floater from the left baseline by Joe Oduro at the 6:21 mark to close the gap to 27-21.

Following a Colonia score with a little over six minutes left in the third, South Plainfield resumed its rally.  Highlighted by two three pointers by Nigro including one at the 2:40 mark, the Tigers pulled within five at 33-28.  SPHS then scored 7 of the last 11 points of the third to pull within two at 37-35 heading into the fourth.  

The final period of regulation was a grind as Colonia and South Plainfield only combined for 16 points in the frame.  The Tigers would get the lion’s share though with a 9-7 edge to tie the game at 44-44.  The Patriots held a tenuous 43-42 lead with 17.8 seconds left in regulation, but SPHS knotted the game at 44-44 on a Brandon Dean putback with 3.6 seconds left in the fourth.

After the Patriots drew first blood, Dean struck again with a three to put the Tigers on top, 48-46 with a minute left in the first extra session.  Colonia managed to tie the game and force the second overtime on two huge free throws by Justin Gordon.  Saivon Pressley and Dean exchanged scores to begin the overtime, and then Gordon and Billy Anderson got back to back scores for a 54-50 lead with just over two minutes to play.

The Tigers then added another score and got a timeout with 1:31 to play and trailing 54-52.  South Plainfield had a chance to tie or take the lead with under a minute to go, but Jaeden Jones forced a turnover out of a double team, drove down the floor on the left side, and drew a foul that produced one of two from the line with 46.7 seconds to play for a 55-52 lead.

With South Plainfield still only trailing by three, it had the ball again with a half minute left, and looked to tie the game.  Unfortunately, the Tigers were called for an illegal screen with 18.8 seconds left.  Anderson then drew a foul with 17.2 seconds to go and made one of two from the charity stripe for a 56-52 lead.

South Plainfield then missed two three point attempts in the closing seconds and Colonia came away with the victory and its seventh sectional title overall.  Taylor led the Patriots with a team high 15 points along with a game high 13 rebounds for a double-double and 2 blocks.  Anderson chipped in with 14 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, a block, and a steal while Pressley added 11 points, 2 rebounds, an assist and a steal.

Gordon, who picked up three fouls in the first half, managed to stay in the game, and finish with 8 points, 7 boards, 4 assists, and 2 steals while senior forward, Mike Howell also contributed with 6 points, 8 rebounds, and 2 assists.  Jones, a sophomore, rounded out Colonia’s scoring with 2 points, all from the line, along with 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals.  Senior Matt Scherb also saw action in the title game.

Dean led all scorers with a game high 24 points on 9 total field goals including a trey and three from the line while also collecting 3 steals, 2 rebounds, and an assist.  Oduro chipped in with 11 points, 3 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 blocks, and an assist.  Nigro also scored in double figures with 10 points including his two second quarter treys.

Tareak Williams (4 points, 2 rebounds, an assist, and a steal), Michael Mendez (2 points and a rebound), and Jalen Russell (a point, 7 rebounds, an assist, and a steal) rounded out the scoring for South Plainfield.  Junior Steven Moench (3 rebounds, an assist, and a steal) and sophomore Ikenna Ibeku also played for the Tigers.  

Statistically speaking, Colonia outscored South Plainfield from within the arc by a margin of 48-30, but the Tigers countered that with a 9-0 advantage from long distance, and an 11-8 margin from the foul line.  The Patriots size was expected to be a factor and it was with a 38-23 edge on the boards, but the Tigers athleticism did manage to hold its own on the glass with a 5-3 edge in blocked shots.  

Forcing turnovers also helped the Tigers stay in the contest.  South Plainfield had a 9-6 edge in steals while Colonia did a better job of sharing the basketball with a 13-6 edge in assists.  Colonia outscored South Plainfield in the first two periods while the Tigers edged the Pats in each of the last two quarters of regulation.  SPHS outscored Colonia 29-15 over the last 15:44 of regulation.  

With the victory, Colonia improved to 25-4 overall on the season, and will face the North Jersey Section 1 Group 3 champion, Ramapo in the North Jersey Group 3 regional final, or state semifinal on Thursday at 7:00 PM at Phillipsburg High School.  The game will be a rematch of the 2019 Group 3 state semifinal won by Ramapo, 35-32 at East Orange Campus.

South Plainfield concludes an incredible season at 23-7 overall and with its first official division title since 2005.  The Tigers did technically win the GMC Blue in the COVID season a year ago, but the GMC didn’t recognize division winners.  SPHS also reached its first GMCT Elite Eight in 15 years, and first sectional final in 18 seasons.  In five seasons, head coach John Greco has turned a program from 5-20 his first year to sectional finalists.

COLONIA NOTES: With his 11 points in the victory, Colonia senior guard, Saivon Pressley now has 1,458 career points. Pressley has scored 773 of those points over the last two years for the Patriots including 581 this season for an average of 20.0 points per game.