Edison Outlasted by Plainfield in Cotoia Tourney Final

Eagles Fall Short Against Talented Cardinals in OT, 73-70

SOUTH PLAINFIELD, NJ—The South Amboy Tournament was not the only tournament scrambling for teams as a result of the latest COVID outbreak.  The 2021 Anthony J. Cotoia Tournament at South Plainfield High School was also in jeopardy, but fortunately, Bridgewater-Raritan and Plainfield were able to fill in as replacements for Perth Amboy Tech and Scotch Plains-Fanwood, and the Cardinals benefited by defeating Edison for the holiday tourney championship on Wednesday afternoon.

It wasn’t easy for Plainfield, which was last in the tournament back in 2014.  The Cardinals led by double figures midway through the second quarter only to have Edison rally to take a one point halftime lead.  From there, it was a knock down, drag out fight that needed an additional four minutes of overtime to settle the outcome.  In the end, the Cards claimed their first ever Cotoia Tourney title with a 73-70 thriller over the Eagles.

Edison, which is currently ranked 4th in the latest GMC Hoops Top Ten, is seven points away from being an undefeated 5-0 after losing this contest, and an early season GMC White Clash against 3rd ranked Colonia (59-57) on December 21st at Cangelosi Gymnasium in Edison.  The Eagles were led by Niko Barnes, who turned in a career high 37 points, and just came up short on a last second heave from about 35 feet out as time expired.

Barnes, who also picked up 9 rebounds, 3 assists, and a steal, was one of three Edison players to score in double figures.  Elisha White chipped in with a double-double of 15 points and 10 boards while also handing out 4 assist, swiping 2 steals, and blocking one shot.  Brian Hobson added 11 points including a three pointer from the left corner with 4:30 to play in the fourth that tied the game at 51-51.

Hobson, who also provided a spark with tough defense and scrappiness, also collected 5 rebounds.  Meanwhile, Plainfield was led by Chimeziri Okeoma, who scored a team high 33 points along with 4 rebounds and 4 assists.  Football standout, Tahmir Ellis, who recently committed to play for Delaware State, chipped in with a double-double of 12 points and 12 rebounds.

Plainfield had 9 of its 10 players that saw action in the game got into the scorebook while only 5 of the 8 players that played in the contest for Edison scored.  The Eagles had a 42-30 edge in points scored from inside the arc, but the Cardinals held a 25-16 advantage in points scored at the foul line, and an 18-12 edge in points from long distance.

Edison had a 37-35 edge in total rebounds while Plainfield had a 12-7 advantage in assists.  Each team outscored the other in two of the four periods of regulation before the Cardinals outscored the Eagles in the bonus frame by a 13-10 margin for the victory.  Plainfield opened the game with a 19-14 showing in the first quarter, and scored 7 of the first 11 points of the second for a 26-18 lead when GMC Hoops arrived.

Moments later, the Cardinals added another bucket for a 28-18 lead midway through the second.  However, Edison showed their grit by ending the first half with a 14-3 tear over a span of 3:50 capped by a follow from Barnes with under 10 seconds to play in the second for a 32-31 Eagles lead at the intermission.

The two teams went back and forth early on in the 3rd with Edison reclaiming a 36-35 lead after White got the ball in the left low block and got between two Plainfield defenders for a score with 3:18 remaining in the stanza.  The Cardinals then ended the third with 9 of the last 14 points including a layup from the left low block in the closing moments for a 46-43 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

The Eagles rallied back by scoring 8 of the first 13 points of the fourth capped by Hobson’s trey that tied the score at 51-51 midway through the period.  The Cardinals would retake the lead only to have Edison tie things up again when Barnes was fouled on a three point attempt, and made all three free throws to knot the game at 54-54 with 3:16 remaining in regulation.

Plainfield then went ahead on a three pointer from the left side by Okeoma with 1:26 remaining, but Edison scored 7 of the last 11 points of regulation including a pair of free throws by Hobson to tie the game at 60-60 with 11 seconds remaining in regulation.  After the Cardinals were stopped on their next possession, Barnes attempted a shot from near half court that was off the mark in time expired in regulation.

Opening the extra period by scoring 7 of the first 9 points including another trey from Okeoma, Plainfield took a 67-62 lead before Barnes rattled home a three of his own from the top of the key to pull the Eagles within a basket at 67-65 with 52 seconds to play in overtime.  The Cardinals managed to keep the Eagles at arm’s length to the very end when Barnes last second shot from about 35 feet hit back iron as time ran out.

With the loss, Edison dropped to 3-2 overall on the season while Plainfield, which defeated Bridgewater-Raritan in the opening round, improved to 3-1 on the young season.  The victory by the Cardinals was the 50th career win for their head coach, Mike Gordon, who coached for a season in the GMC at Piscataway Tech, and served as an assistant to Ron James, who is now his assistant at Plainfield.

The Eagles are scheduled to return to action on Thursday, January 6th when they travel to St. Thomas Aquinas to take on the top ranked Trojans in another key early season GMC White showdown.  Edison will then close out the week with a game against Freehold Boro of the Shore Conference at Cangelosi Gymnasium on Saturday, January 8th at 1:00 PM.  The Eagles game with Carteret was postponed since the Ramblers are now on pause.