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GMC Hoops Summaries--March 3, 2010
Week Eleven--East Brunswick/GMC JV Tourney

Junior Chiefs Hang On To Beat Pesky Carteret, 52-49

By Greg Machos
March 3, 2010

EAST BRUNSWICK, NJ--It was a big day for Carteret Hoops as the JV team was playing in its first East Brunswick/GMC JV Tourney semifinal since the 2002 season when it lost to Cardinal McCarrick. In addition, the varsity was still playing in the North Jersey Section 2 Group III Tournament against White Division rival, New Brunswick after upsetting third seeded Somerville in the opening round on Monday. Meanwhile, the Junior Chiefs of Piscataway, the tourneys top seed was trying to win its first championship since GMC Hoops began taking records in 2002. P-Way was making its second straight trip to the Final Four, and fourth in the last nine years.

The twelfth seeded Junior Ramblers, which reached the Elite Eight of this tournament last season, reached the semifinals by virtue of victories over 21st seeded Old Bridge in the preliminary round, fifth seeded Bishop Ahr in overtime (56-51), and fourth seeded Spotswood (61-44). Meanwhile, Piscataway got a bye to the Round of 16, where it defeated Sayreville (62-39), and then won over Red Division rival, East Brunswick in the Quarterfinals (43-34). Carteret came out swinging in the first quarter with a 16-11 showing only to be outscored in each of the final three periods as Piscataway moved on to the Championship game with a 52-49 victory. For the game, the Junior Chiefs went 20 of 53 from the floor for 38 percent including one of seven from long range while the Junior Ramblers were 18 of 38 from the floor for 47 percent including 4 of 11 from beyond the arc.

At the free throw line, the Junior Ramblers were 9 of 16 for 56 percent while Piscataway was 11 of 12 for 92 percent. In other statistical areas, Carteret had fewer turnovers (13-15), more assists (11-9), and more charges (3-0), but P-Way had more blocks (4-2), steals (10-5), offensive rebounds (15-4), and total rebounds (33-18). Leading the way for the Junior Chiefs was junior Anthony Greene, who made 6 of 11 shots from the floor, and 3 of 4 from the line for 15 points along with 4 rebounds, and a block. Sophomore Greg Davis chipped in with 13 points on five field goals and a three pointer to go along with two rebounds and three steals. Fellow sophomore, Vik Singh chipped in with 10 points on 4 of 8 shooting from the floor, and a perfect 2 of 2 from the line to go along with 5 rebounds, 4 assists, and three steals.

On the losing side of the ledger, junior forward, Devon Byrd led Carteret with 14 points on 4 of 8 shooting from the floor including two of four from three, and 4 of 6 shooting from the line. He also picked up a rebound while handing out four assists, and swiping two steals. Teammate, Joey Nigro chipped in with 11 points on 4 of 9 shooting including one of three from long distance, and two of four from the line. Nigro also had two steals, two rebounds, and an assist. The Junior Ramblers came out swinging in the first by making 6 of 12 shots from the floor including two of five from three point range, and both foul shot attempts. Meanwhile, the Carteret defense limited P-Way to just 5 of 15 shooting from the field including a three pointer. Both teams did a good job minimizing turnovers as CHS committed three while PHS made two.

There were three lead changes in just the first 3:17 as Piscataway took a 5-4 advantage before Byrd sank to foul shots for a 6-5 Carteret lead at the 4:43 mark. The Junior Ramblers increased that to four on a three pointer from the left corner by Nigro at the 4:09 mark for a 9-5 lead. Davis countered with a layup with 3:55 remaining in the period for a 9-7 Carteret lead, but then the Junior Ramblers reeled off seven of the next nine points including a three pointer by Byrd for a 16-9 lead. Greene then ended the quarter with a floater to make the score, 16-11 in favor of CHS heading into the second. Carteret then started the second quarter off with four straight points including a drive for a layup by Nigro for a 20-11 lead before Greene made one of two from the foul line at the 6:59 mark for a 20-12 score. Piscataway then got an offensive rebound and putback by Singh off a miss by Greene at the 6:21 mark, and two free throws from Justin Kirkland (4 points, 7 rebounds, a steal and a block) for a 5-0 run, and a 20-16 Junior Ramblers lead with 5:30 to go in the half.

Nigro then made a nice pass to a teammate for a layup attempt that drew a foul with 5:18 left in the second, but Carteret couldn't take advantage thanks to two missed free throws. Just under a minute later, Byrd drove to the hoop and drew a foul that resulted in a one of two showing from the charity stripe for a 21-16 Carteret lead. Kendall Marks (6 points, a rebound, and a steal) made it a 7-1 run that closed the gap to 21-18 with 4:09 to play in the half. Piscataway had a chance to get closer, but was called for an over the back foul, and that resulted in one of two from the line by Carteret for a 22-18 lead at the 3:46 mark. Over the next 1:28, Piscataway would tie the game at 22-22 on layups by Singh and Davis, but the Junior Ramblers would go back in front at 24-22 on two free throws at the 2:18 mark. On a subsequent P-Way possession, Singh tied the game up again at 24-24 on a follow at the 1:40 mark.

The game, which saw neither team have a lead bigger than nine points while there were six lead changes and eight ties, went back in favor of Carteret as Nigro sank two foul shots with 1:31 left in the second for a 26-24 lead. Greene then scored on a follow of a Davis miss to tie it again at 26-26, but the Junior Ramblers took the lead going into the locker room as Byrd made a nice pass to a teammate for a layup, and the 28-26 lead at the half. Looking at the first half scoring, Nigro had 9 points at the break for Carteret on 4 of 8 shooting including a three along with two of three from the line while collecting two rebounds and a steal. Byrd led all Junior Rambler scorers with 10 points on three of four shooting including a three, and 3 of 4 from the line. He also had an assist and a steal. Meanwhile, for Piscataway, Davis led the Junior Chiefs with 9 points on 4 of 8 field goals including a three. He also had three steals and a rebound.

Singh chipped in for P-Way with 6 points on 3 of 6 shooting while also collecting three rebounds and two assists. Greene also helped out with 2 of 5 shooting and one of two from the line for 5 points and 2 rebounds. Statistically speaking, Piscataway was 10 of 28 from the floor for 36 percent while Carteret was 9 of 18 for 50 percent. The Junior Ramblers were two of seven from beyond the arc for 29 percent while P-Way was one of three. At the line, CHS was 8 of 14 while PHS was five of six. Turnovers were nearly even with Carteret getting the edge (6-7), but Piscataway owned the boards with a 17-12 margin including a 7-2 edge on the offensive glass. Both teams had five assists, but Piscataway had more steals (5-2) and blocks (2-0). Carteret had the only charge in the first half. The game continued to seesaw throughout the third period before Piscataway scored four of the last six points for a 40-38 lead.

Singh opened the second half scoring with an offensive rebound and follow off a Davis miss for a 28-28 tie at the 7:30 mark. Nigro then handed out an assist on a Carteret layup for a 30-28 lead at the 6:39 mark. The Junior Ramblers then added another layup at the 5:51 mark for a 32-28 lead as P-Way called for a 30 second timeout. Over the next 2:14, the Junior Chiefs scored four straight points including an offensive rebound and follow by Cameron Hackett and two free throws by Marks at the 3:37 mark for a 32-32 tie. Nigro then got his only points of the second half on a scoop shot for a 34-32 lead with 2:50 to go in the third. Forty-one seconds later, Singh inbounded to Smith for a layup, and a 34-34 tie at the 2:09 mark. The Junior Chiefs then had a chance to take the lead, but Carteret drew a charge, and called a timeout with 1:51 remaining in the period. Carteret then went back out in front 36-34 with another layup off a feed from Byrd at the 1:05 mark. Singh then found Kirkland for a score that tied it again at 36-36 with 53 seconds to go in the period.

The Kirkland bucket sparked a 6-2 run in the final 53 seconds to give Piscataway its first lead of the game since the early first quarter at 40-38 heading into the fourth. Carteret then opened the final stanza with a layup that squared the game again at 40-40. P-Way then put together a 6-0 run that included an offensive rebound and follow by Davis off a Devonte Smith (2 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, and a steal) miss for a 42-40 lead at the 6:31 mark, a block and rebound by Greene that he took the length of the floor for another layup at the 5:51 mark for a 44-40 lead, and then after a P-Way timeout at the 5:35 mark, Greene made two foul shots for a 46-40 lead with 5:18 to play. On the ropes, Carteret refused to quit, and fought back with an 8-2 spurt over the next 2:48 including a three pointer at the 4:07 mark for a 46-43 P-Way lead. After a timeout by the Junior Chiefs, Smith dished to Greene for a layup, and a 48-43 lead with 3:45 to go.

Carteret answered with five straight points in the form of a layup off another assist by Byrd at the 3:15 mark, and then a three pointer from the left wing that banked in at the 2:30 mark for a 48-48 tie. Byrd then put the Junior Ramblers ahead at 49-48 with a one of two showing from the charity stripe with 1:54 to play. However, the lead didn't last long as Greene scored on a pull-up jumper less than 30 seconds later to give P-Way the lead for good at 50-49 with 1:28 to go. On Carteret's ensuing possession, Byrd was called for a traveling violation at the 1:14 mark, and after a Piscataway timeout with 1:04 to go, Singh netted two free throws for a 52-49 edge with 24 seconds left on the clock. The Junior Ramblers called timeout with 14 seconds to go, but was unable to get a three to tie the game as the Junior Chiefs advanced to the finals. With the victory, P-Way improved to 24-1 overall on the season, and played Hillsborough in the Championship.