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Adams Scores 20 To Lead Hornets Past Panthers For Title, 38-32 |
By Greg Machos
December 29, 2009SOUTH PLAINFIELD, NJ--The Panthers of Perth Amboy were looking to end 2009 like it had started the 2009-10 campaign, with a victory. Amboy, which defeated South Plainfield in the opening round of the Cotoia Tournament, 55-53 in double overtime, was facing the Hornets of Hamilton West for the Championship. Hamilton, which defeated J.P. Stevens by a score of 57-44 in the opening round, entered the game at 2-1 on the season.
The Hornets gave way early to a 6-0 run by Perth Amboy, but behind All Tournament team selection, A.J. Adams, they were able to rally back for a 14-8 lead after the first period, and then held off a late charge by the Panthers to win the Championship of the inaugural Anthony J. Cotoia Tournament at SPHS. Adams scored a game high 20 points on seven field goals and six foul shots while fellow all tourney teammate, Cedric Bryant chipped in with 8 points on three field goals on two foul shots in the 38-32 victory.
Hamilton West got the victory behind 15 field goals and 8 free throws while limiting Amboy to 10 field goals, two threes, and six foul shots. The 12-2 run to end the first period was the decisive segment of the game as it helped the Hornets take a lead that grew to as much as nine twice in the second half. The Panthers were out of sync offensively, and were outhustled at times as players such as Yoelbin Sanchez and Kearny Canela had a tough time getting on track. Head coach, Edwin Santana tried different combinations of players throughout, but couldn't find the right formula for victory.
Wancel Arias, who also made the All Tournament Team along with freshmen Hamilton Capellan, registered 7 points on three field goals and a foul shot while junior Victor Verdecia led Amboy with a team high 9 points on three field goals and three foul shots. Capellan scored a basket and a three pointer for 5 points on the night. Hamilton West won two of the four periods while Amboy won the third by a slight margin, and tied the fourth.
The Hornets got on the board first with a layup underneath at the 6:29 mark before Verdecia tied it with a jumper at the 6:13 mark. The Verdecia score sparked a 6-0 run that included an Arias layup at the 4:08 mark for a 6-2 lead. However, Hamilton battled back in the decisive stretch of the game by outscoring Amboy by ten the rest of the way. Adams had a hand in the rally with a baseline jumper from the left side that made the score, 12-8 with 1:55 left in the period.
Trailing 14-8 at the end of one, the Panthers came out the gate fast to start the second period with a 4-0 run that included another Arias layup at the 6:15 mark before Adams made one of two from the line for a 15-12 lead. The Hornets stayed in control thanks to an 8-4 run to close out the second quarter including a score down low by Adams and a jumper from Simon Lapointe for a 23-16 lead going into the locker room at the intermission. After a shaky start on its first possession of the second half, Amboy got going with the first three points of the third including one of two from the line by Verdecia, and a steal for a fast break layup.
Now leading by only four at 23-19, Hamilton called for time at the 6:11 mark. Following the timeout, the Hornets got a bucket to go up by six before the Panthers responded with a foul shot, and then forced a five second call with the score 25-20 at the 4:40 mark of the second. Amboy then had a chance to get closer, but Chael Hernandez (4 points) missed two foul shots at the 3:15 mark, and Verdecia missed on the follow. Hamilton then scored a bucket off the fast break for a 27-20 lead as Perth Amboy called for time at the 2:51 mark of the third.
The Hornets then added another basket to go up by nine before Capellan sank a three pointer to make the score, 29-23 heading into the fourth. Hamilton West started the final period with the first three points to go up by nine again as Adams got another layup, and the Hornets added a one of two showing from the line for a 32-23 lead with 6:43 left. However, Amboy didn't quit, and refused to go away. Despite having struggles offensively, the Panthers showed some resiliency throughout the contest. Unfortunately, Amboy just couldn't get over the hump.
Canela helped the Panthers immediately respond with his only points of the game on a three pointer at the 6:30 mark. Forty-seven seconds later though, Adams made two free throws for a 34-26 Hamilton advantage. Amboy then scored four of the next five points as Verdecia sank two foul shots, and Capellan got his final points of the contest on a floater that banked in at the four minute mark for a 35-30 score. There was a lull in the scoring for nearly two minutes before Verdecia stole a pass from a Hamilton player, and went in for the layup to cap a 9-3 run for a 35-32 Hornets lead with 2:10 to play.
Perth Amboy had a chance to get even closer, or tie when they got the ball on a tie up, and called for a full timeout with 1:44 left. However, the Panthers couldn't capitalize on the opportunity, and Adams sealed the 38-32 win with two free throws at the 28 second mark. With the victory, Hamilton improves to 3-1 overall on the season while Amboy drops its third contest in four games after defeating Piscataway in its opener. The Panthers are now 2-3 overall on the season including 0-2 against non-conference foes.
Read the article on South Plainfield's victory over J.P. Stevens in the consolation game as well as see details on the final day of action in this tournament, and video highlights from this game and the consolation in the GMC Hoops Blogosphere.
Team |
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
Hamilton West (3-1) |
14 | 9 | 6 | 9 | 38 |
Perth Amboy (2-3) |
8 | 8 | 7 | 9 | 32 |
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