 |
Uszenski
And Williamson Help Ahr Answer All Questions |
By Greg Machos
December 22, 2007SOUTH AMBOY, NJ—If there is anything that comes close to Red Sox-Yankees in the Greater Middlesex Conference, it would be Bishop Ahr and Cardinal McCarrick, especially in Basketball. Along with Middlesex and Dunellen, this has become one of the fastest growing rivalries in the GMC, if not the fiercest. Since the 1999-2000 season, these two teams have met, 13 times with the Eagles winning eleven of those games including Blue Division season sweeps in 2002-03, 2003-04, 2004-05, and 2006-07. The only year Bishop Ahr defeated McCarrick was in the 2005-06 season when Corey Francisco, as a junior, led the Trojans to a season sweep. While the Eagles have dominated in Basketball, the Trojans have dominated in football winning all four of its games against Cardy Mac. On Saturday, Bishop Ahr made a return trip to South Amboy to face Cardinal McCarrick in a key early season divisional showdown. The last time the Trojans visited McCarrick, the Eagles put out any hopes of Ahr winning the GMC Blue with a 64-61 victory in an intense battle before a packed crowd on January 27th.
Coming into the season, McCarrick was projected to win the GMC Blue after having such a solid summer over at the Linden Summer League, and Rebounds Team Camp, and just as good a fall at the Rebounds Fall League. Meanwhile, Bishop Ahr, which has had a great deal of success at the lower levels the past several seasons, encountered a road block in the form of Carteret in the Quarterfinals of the inaugural TBSA Summer League, and then started off on the wrong foot in the 2007 TBSA Summer League with four straight losses. However, with a squad that has seniors that began their high school careers with a Blue Division title at the Freshmen level, and a top seed in the 2005 Perth Amboy/GMC Tournament, and junior and sophomore classes that have each reached the Final Four of the Perth Amboy/GMC Tournament, the Trojans still managed to earn the ninth slot in the 2007-08 GMC Hoops Pre-Season Top Ten. When the season got underway last week, BGA stormed out of the game with a 75-16 pounding of Highland Park followed up by a solid win on the road at Metuchen, 77-43. Several days later, the Trojans cruised past Colonial Valley Conference member, West Windsor-Plainsboro South, 58-39. At the same time, McCarrick began the year with an 80-58 rout over J.F. Kennedy on the road, but then lost handily to state power, St. Anthony's by a score of 87-22. Two days later, the Eagles traveled to Spotswood, where they cruised to 78-45 romp over the Chargers.
Like the last time, it was a packed house at Cardinal McCarrick's gym. The Eagles bring an NBA like feel to their gym now with a DJ that plays music during timeouts, and before the half as well as gives the team introductions. Both teams had their student sections although Ahr's seemed more pumped up for this affair. With every Trojan basket in this game, you could hear the fierce roar of the BGA faithful while the McCarrick fans didn't seem to be able to match the Ahr intensity. You could tell that the Trojans were hungering for a win. For Bishop Ahr, this is the next closest thing to winning the Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament, or a state title. However, this time, there was a bit more incentive on the table for BGA. During the course of the off-season, and pre-season, the questions arose about who did the Trojans have to replace Corey Francisco. A four year starter at BGA, Francisco became the all time leading scorer in the school's history before graduating last June, and is now playing post graduate hoops at Monmouth Academy. For McCarrick, there were no such questions although they did lose their all time leading scorer in Vince Rosario last June as well. The reason is because they have Mike Burwell to fill the void, and with the likes of Dominic Appiah coming over from St. Peter's to take care of the paint, Burwell, a former player at Highland Park before transferring last year, could now become the dominant player for the Eagles.
On this day though, Ahr would answer all questions, and make believers out of doubters as Kevin Uszenski, who had been waiting in the wings for the better part of the last two seasons while Corey Francisco roamed the hardwood over on the corner of Tingley and New Dover in North Edison, finally got his chance to let everyone know how good a player he is. Uszenski had a team high 20 points along with 5 rebounds, 4 assists, a steal, and a block along with two huge charges on Julio Rosario and Mike Burwell respectively to help the Trojans overcome an early 18-7 first quarter lead to tie the game after three quarters at 49-49, and then pull out a thrilling 72-68 win before a jubilant BGA crowd that finally felt a huge monkey come off its back. Fellow senior, Mike Williamson also chipped in with 18 points on 6 of 11 shooting including 2 of 5 from downtown, and 4 of 6 at the line while also collecting 5 steals, 3 assists, 3 rebounds, and a block. Martese Street helped out inside by making 4 of 5 shots, and 2 of 2 from the line for 10 points, 2 rebounds, an assist, steal, and a block. Meanwhile, for McCarrick, Burwell led the charge with 22 points, but only on 7 of 18 shooting including 3 of 6 from beyond the arc while making 5 of 8 from the line. The senior forward also collected 5 rebounds, 4 steals, and 2 assists while junior guard/forward, Rosario added 20 points on 8 of 17 shooting from the floor including a three pointer, and 3 of 6 at the line. Rosario also picked up 3 rebounds, an assist, and a steal. Helping out on the boards was Appiah, who grabbed 14 rebounds along with scoring 8 points for McCarrick. For more individual stat information, check out the game stats page on this contest.
For the game, Ahr outscored Cardy Mac in each of the last three periods after the Eagles jumped out to an 18-12 first quarter lead. The Trojans shot well from the field going 23 of 44 overall for 52.3 percent for a including 7 of 16 from three point land for 43.8 percent. In addition, BGA was blazing at the line going 19 of 24 for 79.2 percent. Meanwhile, the Eagles were not that bad going 25 of 57 from the floor for 43.9 percent including 5 of 15 from downtown for 33.3 percent. One thing that really hurt the Eagles was their effort at the line as they only made 13 of 25 for 52 percent. In addition, turnovers hampered the South Amboy school as it committed 24 miscues while Ahr only had 16. In other team statistical departments, McCarrick dominated the boards with a 36-16 rebounding edge, but Ahr actually had more blocks (4-2). The Trojans also had edges in steals (13-8), assists (17-11), and charges (2-1). In the first quarter, Bishop Ahr made 5 of 11 shot attempts including 2 of 6 from beyond the arc, but missed both of their foul shot attempts, and committed three turnovers. Meanwhile, McCarrick came out on fire shooting 9 of 15 from the floor for 60 percent including 2 of 4 from downtown, but missed their two foul shots, and made six miscues to keep Ahr hanging around. The Eagles led by as many as eleven at 18-7 with 2:38 left in the period as Burwell had nine points while Rosario added five and Appiah had two offensive rebounds for putback to give him four. Burwell opened the game with a three pointer off a pass by Rosario, and then Rosario ripped the ball away from Williamson, and went the length of the floor for a layup, and a 5-0 lead.
Derek Figueredo (10 points on 3 of 3 from three point range, and a foul shot) got BGA on the board with a trey for a 5-3 McCarrick lead when Burwell was fouled by the Trojans at the 6:55 mark. The Eagles then scored five of the next seven points as Rosario drilled a three pointer from the right wing, and then Appiah grabbed another offensive board for a putback that made the score 10-5. Uszenski put a halt to McCarrick's run by drawing a key charge on Rosario at the 5:19 mark, and the Eagles couldn't go ahead any further for the time being. Eventually, Cardinal McCarrick would get another score thanks to Burwell as he got a layup as he was fouled, but missed the bonus free throw. Branten Widgeon (a double-double of 11 points and 11 rebounds) grabbed the loose ball off the rebound, and called timeout to avoid a turnover at the 4:46 mark with the scoreboard reading 12-5 in favor of the hometown Eagles. On the next Trojan possession, Burwell picked up a steal at halfcourt, and raced downcourt for a breakaway one handed slam that made it 14-5 at the 4:21 mark. Ahr would get another score that cut the deficit in half at 14-7, but Cardy Mac then went up by double digits as the Eagles scored the next four points. The points came thanks to an unconventional four point play as Burwell drove in for a layup, and drew the foul, but missed the bonus free throw. However, Appiah picked him up by grabbing the offensive board, and putting it back in for an 18-7 advantage at the 2:38 mark. On the verge of perhaps being blown out, Bishop Ahr rallied with the last five points of the period all coming from Williamson as he made a jumper, and then connected for a three that appeared to bank in off the glass to make the score, 18-12 going into the second.
At the beginning of the second, Cardinal McCarrick, which cooled off significantly in the frame by going just 3 of 14 from the floor, scored the first points before Ahr rallied with the next six as Uszenski scored on a jumper and a layup, and then Jordan Madsen got an offensive rebound and putback to close the gap to two before Eliazar Landeo connected for his only points of the game on a three pointer that made the score, 23-18 at the 5:44 mark of the period. Moments later though, Williamson made two foul shots for a 23-20 McCarrick lead, and then after an offensive rebound and putback by Widgeon, Madsen stepped up to the line, and made two foul shots for a 25-22 McCarrick lead at the 4:32 mark. About forty-five seconds later, the Eagles were assessed a technical foul, and Uszenski made two free throws for a 25-24 lead with 3:48 to go before intermission. On the enusing inbounds, Ahr got the ball to Figueredo, who passed to Uszenski on the left wing for a jumper that capped a 19-7 tear over a 4:51 span that gave the Trojans their first lead of the contest at 26-25 with 3:37 to go in the half. From that point on until the 1:18 mark of the fourth quarter, there would be a total of 18 lead changes and 11 ties by both teams. In total, the game had the lead change hands 20 times.
The first of those lead changes came after Will Snider misfired one two foul shtos at the 3:23 mark as the senior guard made up for it nearly two minutes later with a jumper that was a little bit beyond the free throw line for a 27-26 McCarrick lead at the 1:32 mark. Then, after Rosario came up empty at the foul line, Appiah grabbed the offensive board, and was fouled on a putback attempt that resulted in one of two free throws for a 28-26 lead going into the intermission. At the half, Bishop Ahr, which went 4 of 9 from the floor in the second made 9 of 20 overall for 45 percent including 2 of 9 from three point range for 22.2 percent. Meanwhile, Cardinal McCarrick ended up just going 12 of 29 from the floor after a subpar shooting effort in the second for 41.4 percent including 3 of 7 from downtown for 42.9 percent. The two big statistics though were free throws and turnovers, where the Eagles only went 1 of 8 at the line for a paltry 12.5 percent and made 12 miscues while Bishop Ahr was a lot better making 5 of 8 for 62.5 percent, and only made 10. Looking at the first half scoring, Burwell was 4 of 8 from the floor including a three pointer for 9 points while collecting a rebound, assist, and a steal despite getting into some foul trouble. Uszenski paced Bishop Ahr with 3 of 7 field goals, and 2 of 2 free throws for 8 points along with a rebound, assist, steal, block, and a charge. Williamson did his part to chip in for the Trojans by going 3 of 6 from the floor including a three pointer, and made 2 of 4 at the line to equal Burwell's output. In the second half, both teams combined to score 86 points as Bishop Ahr managed to pull the game out by outscoring the Eagles, 46-40 over the final two periods of play.
In the third period, BGA didn't waste much time getting back into the swing of things with a score on its opening possession. Billy Rooney, who did a solid job orchestrating the offense for the Trojans, passed to Street, who was cutting in from the left wing for a layup that tied things up at 28-28 at the 7:48 mark. On the next Eagle possession, Widgeon made one of two at the line to put McCarrick back up by one at 29-28 with 7:35 to go in the third. Quickly responding, Ahr took its first lead of the second half when Street kicked out to Figueredo of the left wing for a 31-29 Trojan lead at the 7:14 mark. Burwell then made two straight threes off of feeds by Snider to give McCarrick the lead back at 35-31 before Figueredo got his final trey of the game off a pass from Williamson that made it a one point game at 35-34. Williamson then got on the board himself with a layup off a pass by Uszenski that put the visitors back on top at 36-35 before Rosario drew a foul on a drive that got the Ahr faithful in an uproar. The Cardinal McCarrick junior then sank one of two at the line with 5:39 to play in the period to tie the score at 36-36. The lead continued to shift hands as each team traded a basket for a 38-38 tie before Rooney stepped up to the line for two foul shots that made the score, 40-38 with 4:25 to go in the third. The Eagles then embarked on a 4-0 on as Rosario got a score, and then Widgeon followed with an offensive rebound and putback for a 42-40 lead at the 3:23 mark. On the next Ahr possession, Uszenski made two free throws to tie the game again at 42-42, and spark a 7-0 Trojan run before the Eagels fought back with five straight points including a three point play by Appiah at the 1:52 mark that tied the game again at 47-47.
Continuing to go back and forth like a swinging pendulum, the two teams continued what would go down as perhaps the best game of this growing rivalry. McCarrick took the lead again as Appiah stepped to the line with 35.6 remaining. The junior transfer misfired on both foul shots, but Burwell was there to pick him up wth an offensive rebound, and putback for a 49-47 lead. Stopping Ahr on its next possession, the Eagles appeared poised to go up by four entering the final frame, but Williamson came up with a huge play for a four point turnaround to tie things up at 49-49 by stealing the ball from Burwell, and going in for the layup. The fourth and final period was much of the same for the two teams as they combined for 42 more points. Neither team would score for the first 1:09 of the period although Widgeon would grab an offensive rebound, and promptly call timeout to preserve the possession at the 7:47 mark. Uszenski finally broke the ice with a bank shot from the left wing at the 6:51 mark to give Ahr a very tenuous two point, 51-49 lead. On the next Eagle possession, Rosario promptly replied with a jumper from the right side off of a pass from Burwell for a 51-51 tie at the 6:30 mark. Widgeon then put McCarrick ahead with two free throws at the 6:08 mark for a 53-51 lead. Uszenski attempted to tie things up with a drive to the hoop, but was fouled hard, and made only one of two at the line for a 53-52 Cardy Mac lead with 5:33 remaining in regulation. Burwell then made one of two himself at the line for a two point advantage, but that was quickly erased as Street threw down a one handed slam much to the delight of the Trojan fans for a 54-54 tie.
Back and forth they continued as Burwell then made two free throws at the 5:09 mark to put the Eagles ahead, 56-44, but Ahr would tie it once more on its next possession as Rooney dished to Uszenski for a layup that knotted things at 56-56. Rosario gave McCarrick the lead again with two free throws at the 4:37 mark that made the score, 58-56, but then after Rooney made one of two at the line to cut the deficit in half at 58-57 at the 4:27 mark, Uszenski drew a charge on Burwell for his fourth foul of the game with 4:05 left. The teams would keep wrestling for the lead as the Trojans got a score to go ahead by one at 59-58, but the Eagles seemed to make a push with four straight points that made the score, 62-59. The run was highlighted by a steal by Burwell off of Uszenski following a rebound by the Trojan player off a Burwell dunk, and the McCarrick senior would later score on an offensive rebound at putback. However, Ahr and its fans seemed to want this game more, and it showed as Uszenski connected on a three pointer from the right wing to tie things up at 62-62 with just 2:51 to play in regulation. Twenty-four seconds later, Burwell drew a foul that prompted outrage from the Bishop Ahr bench including freshmen coach, Rocky Prodoscimo, who was full of emotion as always. Burwell then made two free throws at the 2:28 mark for a 64-62 lead. Those free throws would be the final points of the game for Burwell as on the next Ahr possession, Street drove to the basket and drew a foul from the McCarrick leading scorer, and the Trojans and their fans celebrated the moment since they all knew it opened the door to a long awaited victory.
Street would hit both of his free throws at the 2:13 mark for a 65-65 tie, and then 55 seconds after that, Williamson broke the tie for good with a three pointer from the right corner for a 67-64 lead at the 1:18 mark. Trying to regroup without one of their leaders, Cardinal McCarrick called for time at the 57.4 second mark. Following the timeout, the Eagles got the ball to Rosario, who put up a three, but it didn't fall. Widgeon grabbed the offensive rebound, but squandered the second chance with an ill-timed traveling violation at the 52.6 second mark. Fouling almost immediately, McCarrick forced Figueredo to the line, where the senior guard got his final points of the game with a one of two showing for a 68-64 lead with 48.4 seconds to play. Williamson then got a steal, and gave the ball to Rooney, who drew a foul from Rosario as the Eagle junior left the game also with five fouls. Rooney then made both free throws, and the Eagles started at a two possession game with 31.6 remaining. From there it was all academic was McCarrick scored four of the last six points including a drive for a layup by Snider, but Bishop Ahr won the game, 72-68 to improve to 4-0 overall, and 3-0 in the GMC Blue. Meanwhile, McCarrick dropped to 2-2 overall, and 2-1 in divisional play.
Team |
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
Bishop Ahr (4-0) |
12 | 14 | 23 | 23 | 72 |
Cardinal McCarrick (2-2) |
18 | 10 | 21 | 19 | 68 |
RETURN TO THE GMC HOOPS HOME PAGE
If you are finished viewing the GMC Hoops Summaries, and would like to see other parts of the website. Click below to return to the GMC Home Page.
Return to the GMC Hoops Home Page
If you have any questions about, or any suggestions for this website, please feel free to either fill out our guestbook, or contact me at gmachos@gmchoops.com.