We've just archived the summaries on several scrimmages that we covered in the pre-season, the three games seen at the 2006 Hoop Group Tip-Off Classic at Seton Hall University on December 17th, the Freshmen and JV Games of the Week, Freshmen and JV Roundups, blog entries, and all the summaries for the month of December, 2006 in the summaries archive.

GMC Hoops Summaries--January 4, 2007
Third Week Of Action

South Plainfield Hangs On To Defeat Old Bridge, 48-43

By Greg Machos
January 6, 2007

SOUTH PLAINFIELD, NJ--Despite a game high 20 points from senior guard, Shamai Santiago, and a commanding 41-24 lead with 6:13 to go in its game with Old Bridge, South Plainfield had to hang on for a five point, 48-43 victory over its Red Division foe in an interdivisional matchup. Santiago connected on 7 of 14 shots including four from three point range while making both his free throw attempts for all his 20 points while teammate and fellow senior, Opie Muse chipped in with 13 points on four of eight shooting from the floor, and five of six from the line. Muse also collected four rebounds, an assist and steal despite being hurt for a portion of the first half. Santiago picked up two rebounds, two steals, and an assist. Freshman forward, Dontae Johnson, added six first half points on two of six from the floor, and two of five from the free throw line while also collecting a rebound and a steal.

Senior Danny McCreesh added a two for four effort from the floor, and a one of two showing at the four line for five points along with two assists and a steal. Benny Gibson only had two points, but handed out six assists and picked up two steals and a rebound while sophomore guard, Mike Burton helped out with two points on one of seven field goals along with two rebounds, two assists, and two steals. Chris Pollin (a steal and a block), Dondray Hardin (an assist), and Kyle Matthews all played, but didn't score. On the other side of the ledger, junior guard, Quinton Crawford led the way for the Knights with 13 points on four of nine shooting including three treys along with two of two at the charity stripe for a team high 13 points along with four rebounds, four assists, and a steal. Senior center, Lance Rogers chipped in with 11 points on five field goals and one of two from the line to go along with nine rebounds and two blocks. Ray Brown added a two of eleven effort from the field and a three of four showing at the line for seven points, three rebounds, two assists, and a steal. Elvis Obi made two of five from the floor for his four points while collecting three rebounds and a steal.

Avass Sharif (one of two field goals for two points, three rebounds, an assist, and a charge), Resean Pardon (1 of 1 FGs for two points and a block), and freshman Joe Reyes (1 of 2 FGs and 2 of 2 FTs for four points, an assist, and a steal) rounded out the scoring for the visitors from Old Bridge while senior Justin Zimmerlink (three assists and two rebounds) and Kwadro Okrah (a rebound) also played, but didn't score. The Knights really shot themselves in the foot in the first half with only single digit scoring in both the first and second periods. Old Bridge made only 5 of 16 shots from the field in the opening half for 31.3 percent while committing 17 turnovers including ten on South Plainfield Tiger steals. Santiago alone had five field goals in the first half for SPHS as he made five of eight from the floor including two threes for 12 points, or half of the Tiger offense while picking up two steals and a rebound. For the game, the Tigers held advantages in threes (4-3), turnoves (15-22), assists (14-11), steals (11-6), quarters won (3-1), and free throw shooting (10 of 15 for 66.7 percent versus 6 of 13 for 46.2 percent). Meanwhile, Old Bridge held edges in charges (1-0), blocks (3-2), rebounds (27-14), and field goal shooting (16 of 40 for 40 percent versus 17 of 43 for 39.5 percent).

In the first half, South Plainfield actually doubled Old Bridge's output 24-12 with a 6-3 first quarter showing, and an 18-9 second quarter effort. The opening period saw Old Bridge shoot just one of six for 16.7 percent while committing ten turnoers. South Plainfield didn't shoot much better, but made more field goals (2 of 11 FGs for 18.2 percent) and free throws (2 of 2 FTs) while making half as many miscues. The Knights got their only points on a three pointer by Crawford at the 4:03 mark that compelled SPHS second year head coach, Bill Schulte to call for a timeout. Prior to that, the Tigers had jumped out to a 4-0 lead on a pair of free throws at the 5:18 mark by Muse, and a bank shot in the paint by Johnson off an entry pass by Gibson shortly afterward. The Tiger freshman forward then closed out the scoring in the frist frame with a layup off an assist by McCreesh at the 1:30 mark to make it a three point SP lead at the start of the second.

The second saw much more offense as South Plainfield scored two thirds of the twenty-seven points registered in the stanza. The Tigers made seven of twelve shots from the field including two three pointers while connecting on two of four at the line for its eighteen points in the period while Old Bridge fared a bit better than the first with a four of ten showing. SPHS made only two turnovers in the quarter while OBHS added seven more mistakes. The Tigers, which are now 5-1 in the GMC including two wins over Red Division foes, took an 8-3 advantage early in the period before Old Bridge's Elvis Obi got a basket as he was fouled, but missed the bonus free throw to make the score, 8-5 at the 6:45 mark. Over the subsequent 2:20, South Plainfield embarked on a 9-4 spurt including a field goal and three pointer by Santiago and a pair of free throws by Johnson to take a 17-9 lead with 4:25 to go before the break. Ray Brown got one of those points back for the Knights with a one of two effort at the foul line with 3:48 remaining in the half for a 17-10 Tiger lead, but SP finished the half by scoring seven of the last nine points for a 24-12 lead at the intermission. Santiago highlighted the half closing burst with a three pointer, and then a steal for a layup.

At the start of the third, Old Bridge appeared to get itself back on track with a 7-0 rally that followed a score by SPHS to start the half. Crawford capped the run with a three pointer from the right corner to make it a 26-19 Tiger lead with 5:14 to go in the stanza. Muse then made one of two free throws for an eight point lead before Brown put together a nifty move for his first field goal of the game to make it 27-21 in favor of South Plainfield with 4:40 left in the period. Over the next 6:27, SPHS went on a game deciding 14-3 tear to take a seemingly comfortable, 41-24 lead early in the fourth quarter. During this span, the Knights couldn't even muster up a field goal as Rogers made one of two free throws at the 3:12 mark, and Brown hit a pair at the 46.5 second mark. Meanwhile, Muse took in a dish from Gibson for a layup and a 29-21 lead, and then Santiago scored the last five SPHS points with two foul shots following an Old Bridge technical at the 2:09 mark, and a three pointer with inside of a minute left to make it a 34-24 lead entering the final frame. Muse then added two free throws to open the fourth quarter scoring and make it 36-24 at the 7:25 mark, and Burton added to that with a layup and Santiago hit his final trey of the game to make it a seventeen point lead with a bit more than six minutes left.

The Tigers began putting their reserves in little by little, and Old Bridge took advantage with a 19-7 game ending spurt. South Plainfield, which had eight turnovers in the second half, had most of its miscues after the intermission occur over the final six plus minutes of the contest. The Knights applied some full court pressure while SP became passive and tried to take some time off the clock. If the Knights had knocked down a trey or two, it could have been more interesting at the end. Santiago, who had left the game after making his last three, had to return to settle the rest of the team down. Danny McCreesh got a late score that helped preserve the victory as the Tigers won, 48-43. With the win, South Plainfield moves up to 5-3 overall on the season, and 5-1 in the Greater Middlesex Conference while Old Bridge, which fell behind 45-3 at halftime in a 68-21 loss to South Brunswick on Thursday night, drops to 1-7 on the year, and 0-5 in conference play.

GMC Hoops Summaries--January 4, 2007
Third Week Of Action

Rosario And Burwell Lead The Way Again For McCarrick, 72-51

By Greg Machos
January 4, 2007

SOUTH RIVER, NJ--Behind a game high 27 point performance from Vince Rosario, and a 23 point performance from Mike Burwell, the Eagles of Cardinal McCarrick won their sixth game of the season with a victory on the road at South River, 72-51 on Friday night. In a game broadcasted on WCTC, McCarrick, which is currently ranked sixth in the WCTC Top Ten behind the likes of South Brunswick, Immaculata, and Bridgewater, jumped out to a 42-26 halftime lead behind a strong first half from Burwell, who had seven field goals, a three pointer, and 6 of 12 at the foul line for 23 points. Meanwhile, Rosario, who is inching ever so close to the all time scoring mark held by current South Amboy coach, George Krzyzanowski, got his 27 on ten field goals, a three pointer, and four foul shots.

South River, which got a team high eleven points from junior guard, Eric Seawright, and ten points from senior guard, Mariano Rodriguez, trimmed the deficit to 50-38 going into the fourth, but were outscored 22-8 in the final period as the Eagles pulled away. Helping McCarrick get the win was a wide disparity in free throw attempts. For the game, Cardy Mac had 26 foul shots and made 13 for 50 percent while South River had 16 attempts and made 10 for 62.5 percent. Forward Kwasi Bell added eight for the Rams while guard Tony Gomes chipped in with six. Julio Rosario and Branten Widgeon added five each for Cardinal McCarrick, which is now 6-1 overall on the season including a 5-0 mark in the GMC Blue while South River, which had more threes in the contest (6-4), dropped to 2-5 on the year including an 0-4 mark in divisional play. Take a look at WCTC's complete season schedule here.

GMC Hoops Summaries--January 3, 2007
Third Week Of Action

Seres, Krzyzanowski, and Lenahan Lead Guvs Past Amboy Tech, 64-52

By Greg Machos
January 3, 2007

PERTH AMBOY, NJ--Brian Seres had a game high 22 points while teammate Colin Krzyzanowski connected for 10 of his 17 points in the first quarter and fellow Guv, Larry Lenahan added seven of his nine points in the first half to spark South Amboy to a 64-52 victory over Perth Amboy Vo-Tech on Wednesday afternoon in Perth Amboy. Seres got his 22 on five field goals, a three pointer, and nine foul shots while Krzyzanowski made two field goals, four threes, and a foul shot for his 17 points. Lenahan scored his nine on three field goals and three foul shots while Mark Simko added seven on a field goal and five free throws. Perth Amboy Vo-Tech was led by Jose Tavarez, who connected for a team high 20 points on six field goals, a three, and five from the line while teammate Joey Castro chipped in with twelve on three field goals, a three pointer, and three foul shots. Wilson Diez added nine for the Patriots on three treys.

For the second time in a week, GMC Hoops traveled down to Perth Amboy Vo-Tech High School, but this time, it was to see the host school, Amboy Tech Patriots take on Gold Division rival, South Amboy in a regular season matchup. So far in 2006-07, both teams have gotten off to fine starts with the Patriots already equaling last year's win total at 4-1 while South Amboy has been one of the biggest surprises in the GMC this season with four wins in its first five games also including victories over two state tourney qualifiers from last year in Bound Brook and Piscataway Vo-Tech. The only loss for the Governors was to another state tournament qualifier in Henry Hudson, which has made the playoffs in each of the last two seasons. Perth Amboy is coming off a championship in its own holiday tournament while South Amboy finished third in their Yule-Tide tourney.

Amboy Tech had a season to forget last year. After gaining a share of the GMC Gold Division title with the likes of Juan De Los Santos and Hector Aponte in 2004-05, the Patriots were only 4-17 overall last season, and finished 1-9 in divisional play. Meanwhile, South Amboy finished a surprising third in the Gold, and came within a couple games of making the state tournament for the first time since the 2001-02 season with the trio of Nick Shaw, Dan Nuzzie, and Mario Choinski. The winner of this contest had a good chance of being a contender in the Gold especially with first place surprise, St. Peter's coming up on the horizon of both teams' schedules. Jose Tavarez and Freddy Espinal return this season for Amboy Tech while Brian Seres got a new backcourt mate in Sayreville transfer, Mark Simko. The first half saw South Amboy mostly in control with a 20-13 lead after one on a trey by Seres, and a later score by Larry Lenahan, who really battled well underneath and hustled for the Guvs.

In the second, South Amboy pushed its lead to double digits midway through the frame. After an off-balanced jumper from the right side by Tavarez made the score, 20-15 with 5:56 left in the half, Guv guard, Colin Krzyzanowski knocked in two straight wide open threes that drew the ire of Amboy Tech coach, Artie Wachtel, who called for a timeout at the 5:02 mark with South Amboy now in front, 26-15. The Patriots, which battled back numerous times in the opening half despite being down, pulled within six before Krzyzanowski drained another trey from the right corner, and Seres knocked down a pair at the line to make the score, 31-20 with 3:01 to go before the intermission. Nearly forty seconds later, Seres struck for another pair at the charity stripe for a thirteen point, 33-20 margin before Amboy Tech scored five straight points including a bucket by Freddy Espinal at the 1:34 mark to make it an eight point game at 33-25. Perth Amboy Vo-Tech ended the first half by scoring three of the last five points to make it a seven point, 35-28 South Amboy lead at the half.

Krzyzanowski drained three treys and made one of two at the line in the second for ten of his total points in the contest while Seres had ten of his 22 in the opening period. Lenahan scored two layups and made three of four at the line for seven of his nine points on the game in the first half. The third period saw the Guvs put some separation between themselves and the Patriots by scoring 16 of the 26 points in the frame to take a 51-38 lead going into the fourth. The final quarter saw Perth Amboy Tech pull out a slim 14-13 edge, but it wasn't enough to overcome the Guvs, which wound up winning the contest, 64-52. With the victory, South Amboy moved up to 5-1 overall on the year in its best start since GMC Hoops has been covering them, and 2-0 in divisional play while Perth Amboy Vo-Tech dropped to 4-2 overall, and 1-2 in the GMC Gold. Note: You can view all of the video footage from this game in our clips archive section.

GMC Hoops Summaries--January 2, 2007
Third Week Of Action

Rosario And Burwell Propel McCarrick To Easy Win, 69-28

By Greg Machos
January 2, 2007

SOUTH AMBOY, NJ--For the first time this season, GMC Hoops traveled out to Cardinal McCarrick High School in South Amboy to watch the Eagles play. It also marked the first time we viewed Middlesex in action as well. The Eagles, which were ranked second in the 2006-07 GMC Hoops Pre-Season Top Ten, certainly didn't disappoint on this night. After the Junior Varsity squad defeated Middlesex by a 47-35 count in the opener of the first JV/Varsity Dooubleheader of 2007 for GMC Hoops, Cardy Mac went out and systematically dismantled the beleaguered Blue Jays. Middlesex was unable to solve the Eagle pressure all night as it had more turnovers (30) than points scored (28). The Blue Jays scored in single digits in three of the four periods while McCarrick blew the game wide open with a 23-7 showing in the first period, and a 21-5 effort in the second for a 44-12 halftime lead as the Eagles went on to win easily, 69-28.

Vince Rosario, who just recently gave a verbal commitment to FDU, scored 22 points on 8 of 15 field goals including five three pointers, and one of two foul shots. Rosario had 19 points in the first half while teammate Mike Burwell scored 16 over the first two periods for 35 of McCarrick's 44 first half points, or 79.5 percent of the Eagle offense. Burwell, who ended up with 20 points on the night on 8 of 21 field goals including a three along with 3 of 6 at the line, also grabbed 12 rebounds for a double-double while also collecting five assists, a steal, and a block. Rosario had seven assists, two steals, and a block. Younger brother and sophomore, Julio Rosario, went 3 of 9 from the field while making both foul shot attempts for eight points while collecting four rebounds, two steals, and an assist. Senior point guard, Rolffi Canela and junior reserve Will Snider each had five points on two of two shooting including a three pointer while Canela added four assists, two rebounds, and a steal.

Senior forward, Ricky McCutcheon went only one of four from the field and one of two at the line for three points, but grabbed six boards, handed out two assists, picked up two steals, and blocked a shot. Senior guard, Carlos Garcia chipped in with a three pointer in his only field goal attempt for three points and an assist while junior guard, Sean Williams (1 of 1 FGs for 2 points and 2 rebounds) and junior forward, Branten Widgeon (0 of 3 FGs and 1 of 2 FTs for a point along with four rebounds and a steal) rounded out McCarrick's scoring. Sophomores Eliazor Landeo (0 of 2 FGs, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals) and Tom Costello (a rebound and a steal) also played, but didn't score. Meanwhile, for Middlesex, Mark "Sparky" Stockton led the charge with all seven of his points in the second half as he connected on 3 of 10 from the field and 1 of 2 at the line for the game. Older brother, John Stockton (2 of 5 FGs including two threes for six points, two assists, a steal, and a rebound) and teammate Nick Fariella (3 of 5 field goals and 0 of 2 free throws for 6 points, 3 blocks, 2 rebounds, and 2 assists) each added six points in the losing effort.

Junior Dan Kelly pitched in with 4 points on 2 of 4 shooting while grabbing two rebounds and handing out an assist. Sophomores Mike Perrone (1 of 4 FGs for two points), Ryan Farley (1 of 4 FGs for two points, four rebounds, an assist, and a steal), and Mike Colacci (0 of 7 FGs and 1 of 2 FTs for a point, two assists, a rebound, and a steal) rounded out the Blue Jay scoring. Junior reserve, Billy Lester (0 of 3 FGs, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals) also played, but didn't score. The game was completely dominated by McCarrick from the opening tip. The Eagles had more threes (9-2), fewer turnovers (18-30), and held advantages in rebounds (36-13), assists (23-10), and steals (14-6) while blocks (3-3) and charges (0-0) were even. An even wider chasm existed in the shooting department where the home team went 26 of 60 from the field for 43 percent while Middlesex was just 12 of 42 for 28.6 percent. At the line, Cardy Mac went 8 of 14 for 57.1 percent while the Blue Jays were only 2 of 6 for 33 percent. The Eagles outscored the visitors in every quarter, and Middlesex just barely managed to score in double figures in the third period.

Cardinal McCarrick got going right away in the first period with a 23-7 showing. The Eagles jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first minute and a half as Ricky McCutcheon scored off a nice baseline entry pass by Garcia, and that was followed up by a Rosario bucket off a feed from Burwell. McCutcheon then swiped a steal, and dished to Rosario for a three pointer from the right wing that made it 7-0, and compelled second year Middlesex coach, Brian Feath to call for time at the 6:11 mark of the first quarter. The stoppage wasn't the tonic as the Eagles eventually went on an 8-0 spurt following back to back scores by Fariella, who accounted for half of the Blue Jay scoring in the opening half. With five minutes to go in the first, Rosario got a steal and assist on a one handed slam by Burwell that got the crowd roaring, and the Eagles going again. Rolffi Canela then got into the act with a three pointer that made the score 15-4 with 3:17 left as the Blue Jays again called for time. Following that timeout, Cardy Mac closed out the frame with an 8-3 run for the sixteen point lead as the Eagles made 9 of 16 attempts from the floor including three treys while making two of four at the line and committing just three turnovers.

Meanwhile, Middlesex's offense was in suspended animation as the Blue Jays made only 3 of 12 shots and one of two at the line while turning the ball over eight times. Rosario made three of five field goals including a three pointer along with one of two at the charity stripe for 8 points while collecting 2 assists, and a steal. Burwell made 4 of 8 field goals including a trey of his own along with the dunk, and one of two foul shots for 10 points while grabbing four rebounds, and picking up an assist and a block. For the Blue Jays, Fariella was the only bright spot going 3 of 4 from the field for six first period points. Just when you thought it couldn't get much worse for Middlesex, it did as McCarrick continued to relentlessly pressure the Blue Jays, and Rosario picked up his game with 4 of 7 field goals in the second period including three treys for 11 points as the Eagles put together a 21-5 showing for a 44-12 first half surge. Burwell only made 2 of 8 from the floor, but also had two of four at the line and six more rebounds to give him a double-double by halftime.

Middlesex wound up with nine more turnovers in the second stanza for seventeen total in the first half while McCarrick outrebounded the Blue Jays 18-7 on the strength of Burwell's exploits on the glass. The Blue Jays managed to make only 5 of 23 from the floor including a three pointer for a paltry 21.7 percent while making one of two at the line. On the other hand, the Eagles were just about at fifty percent going 17 of 35 from the floor including six threes while making 4 of 8 at the line. Moreover, Cardy Mac just had five turnovers in the entire first half. As a matter of fact, the Eagles didn't commit their tenth turnover until the fourth quarter when the reserves were inserted into the contest. In the second half, the home team coasted to the tune of a 25-16 edge to close out the game with a 41 point victory. With the win, Cardinal McCarrick raised its record to 5-1 overall, and is still undefeated in division and conference play. Meanwhile, Middlesex drops its fourth in its last five after winning its opener, and is now 2-4 overall on the year, and 1-3 in divisional play.

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