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GMC Hoops Summaries--February 18, 2010
Week Nine--GMCT Round Of Sixteen

Fourth Quarter Spurt Helps Spotswood Advance To Elite Eight, 56-48

By Greg Machos
February 18, 2010

SPOTSWOOD, NJ--Thursday night was a historical night in the 2010 Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament. Not only did Piscataway's reign as GMCT champs come to an end, but also Spotswood advanced to the quarterfinal round for the first time in school history. Despite shooting 16 of 49 from the floor including a 2 of 20 showing from long distance, the Chargers were able to advance thanks to an 8-0 run midway through the fourth period, and by making 7 of 10 free throws down the stretch for the 56-48 victory. Senior guard, Tyler Osofsky, led the way with 17 points including eleven in the second half while Cody Pace chipped in with 13 points.

The Chiefs were led by junior Thierno Diallo, who connected on 6 of 10 shots including 3 of 4 from three point range while making both of his free throws to match Osofsky for game high with 17 points. Diallo also had 6 rebounds and a blocked shot. Sophomore Tajae Sharpe chipped in with 11 points along with 4 steals, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists. Pace was 6 of 12 from the field for Spotswood, and one of two from the line while also collecting four rebounds and four steals. Allen Kuiper also contributed for the winners with 10 points, 6 rebounds, 2 blocks, and a steal. Spotswood used a 33-30 edge in rebounds, and a 22 of 33 showing at the foul line to get the victory. Piscataway was only three of six from the charity stripe.

Each team outscored the other in two of the four quarters played. Another key difference was turnovers as the Chiefs made 23 miscues while Spotswood had 19. Both teams had 14 offensive rebounds although Spotswood had a 10-5 edge in offensive boards in the first half. P-Way shot 20 of 61 from the floor including 5 of 15 from beyond the arc. In other statistical areas, the Chiefs had more assists (13-12) and more blocks (4-2) while the Chargers had more steals (11-8) and charges (2-1). Things didn't start off too well for the home team as the Bolts went one of nine from three point range in the quarter, missed their first six shots, committed seven turnovers, and yielded a 12-1 P-Way spurt for a 14-8 Chiefs lead.

Spotswood was also just 5 of 10 from the free throw line while neither team got a field goal until the 5:32 mark of the period. To their credit though, Spotswood went to the basket, and it paid off big dividends in the long run as the Chargers went into the bonus at the 7:33 mark of the second quarter, and the 5:36 mark of the fourth period. Kuiper began the scoring with a one of two showing at the line with about a half minute gone by. Spotswood then attacked the offensive glass as Pace and Osofsky grabbed offensive rebounds, which led to the latter getting fouled, and making one of two at the line for a 2-0 lead at the 7:10 mark. Almost a minute and a half later, Osofsky drove to the basket again, and drew a foul on the drive for another one of two showing from the line for a 3-0 lead.

On Piscataway's very next possession, Sharpe got the Chiefs on the board with a jumper from the right side for a 3-2 Spotswood lead with a little less than two and a half minutes gone by in the opening period. The Chargers went up by two again as Pace was fouled on the drive, and connected on one of two for a 4-2 lead at the 5:09 mark. Spotswood, which went 0 of 6 in the first 3:36 of the game, had a chance to go up by more, but Mike Liming (6 points on 6 of 6 FTs, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, a steal, and a charge) was called for traveling. Osofsky would pick up his teammate though as he picked up a Liming pass on the right wing for a three pointer and a 7-2 lead that forced Piscataway head coach, Guy Jensen to call for a 30 second timeout.

Following the stoppage, Piscataway got back into the game with an offensive rebound and follow by sophomore forward, Tyjohn Young (3 of 4 FGs for 6 points, 2 rebounds, an assist), and a score by Diallo while forcing a Charger turnover that prompted Spotswood head coach, Steve Mate to call for time at the 2:34 mark. The timeout didn't stop the Chiefs as Diallo added a jumper, and then a three pointer for a 9-0 run, and an 11-7 lead with 51.78 seconds to go in the first. Osofsky drew the Chargers within three on one of two from the line at the 29.76 mark, but Brian Wong (2 of 5 FGs for 5 points, a rebound, and a steal) connected on a three pointer, and Danny Cole (a point, four rebounds, an assist, block, and charge) drew a charge on Osofsky with 5.52 seconds to go for a 14-8 lead after one.

Spotswood scored the first three points of the second as Kuiper made one of two from the foul line at the 7:46 mark, and Liming connected on both his charity shot attempts with 7:33 to play in the half for a 14-11 P-Way lead. Cole got his only point of the game after being fouled on a layup attempt, and making one of two from the free throw stripe at the 6:53 mark for a 15-11 Chiefs edge. The Chargers fought back to tie it up at 15-15 with 6:09 remaining in the second on great hustle that led to two layups by Pace. The home team then went up by two as Pace, who was 3 of 6 from the floor in the first half and made one of two from the line for 7 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 steals, got another layup off an assist by Liming. Piscataway went back out in front with four unanswered points consisting of an offensive rebound and follow by Justin Kirkland (3 of 6 FGs for 6 points, 6 rebounds, and a block), and a layup by Young for a 19-17 lead at the 3:23 mark.

In a game that saw eight lead changes and three ties, Spotswood went back out in front thanks to play from its bench. Sophomore Tommy Soulias (2 of 2 FGs including a three for 5 points and 2 rebounds) contributed with a three pointer from the left side to put the Bolts back in front, 20-19 at the 2:19 mark. Tom Pareti caught a deflected pass for a layup and a 22-19 lead before the Chargers went into the double bonus and Liming made both at the line for a 24-19 advantage. Piscataway would end the first half though with five of the last seven points including a three pointer by Diallo off an assist by senior Julius Nadarajah (4 assists and 4 rebounds) to close the gap to 26-24 at the intermission. In the first half both teams struggled from the field with P-Way doing slightly better.

The Chiefs went 10 of 26 from the floor including 3 of 11 from three point range while Spotswood was 7 of 27 from the field including a 2 of 16 showing from downtown. The Chargers managed to take the lead though thanks to a 10 of 16 showing from the foul line while the Chiefs were only one of two. Spotswood also had a 19-15 edge on the boards thanks to its two to one advantage on the offensive glass. The Bolts also had edges in turnovers (10-13), steals (7-3), blocks (2-1), and charges (1-0). The Chiefs had more assists (7-6). Diallo had game high at the break with 10 points on 4 of 6 shooting including a perfect 2 of 2 from three point land. He also grabbed five rebounds. Spotswood got off to a fast start to begin the second half, but Piscataway responded with an 11-6 showing the rest of the way to pull within one heading into the fourth.

Over the first 2:21 of the third, the Chargers scored six of the first eight points including a layup by Osofsky from Liming. Osofsky had four points in the run while Pace had the other two to give Spotswood a 32-26 lead. Over the next 2:20 though, P-Way fought back with seven unanswered points in the form of a three pointer by Diallo, a foul line extended jumper by Kirkland, and a layup by Young from Sharpe for a 33-32 lead at the 3:19 mark. Kuiper tied the game up at 33-33 with one of two from the line for Spotswood with 2:49 to go in the third. The Chiefs went back out in front, but Kuiper got a score to tie things up at 35-35 before Liming drew a charge on Diallo at the 1:58 mark. Twenty seconds later, Kuiper, who had six points in the period, converted a traditional three point play for a 38-35 lead. Sharpe then ended the third with a score to close the gap to 38-37 heading into the final period of play.

Sharpe had a chance to give the Chiefs the lead early in the fourth, but missed both his free throw attempts at the 7:23 mark. Diallo picked his teammate up though when scored a layup off a fast break for a 39-38 lead. Kuiper gave the Chargers the lead for good with a soft jumper from the right side at the 6:37 mark for a 40-39 lead. Kuiper's basket sparked a decisive 8-0 run that included a Pace layup off an inbounds play, two free throws by Liming at the 5:36 mark, and a drive for a layup by Pace at the 4:28 mark for a 46-39 lead. Wong connected on a jumper to pull P-Way within five at 46-41, but Osofsky came up with a huge offensive rebound and follow at the 2:52 mark for a 48-41 lead. Following a Spotswood timeout at the 2:22 mark, Sharpe connected on a short baseline jumper from the left side at the 1:37 mark to make it a five point game again at 48-43.

However, the Chiefs couldn't get any closer as Osofsky went four of six at the line while James Pareti (3 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, and a charge) got his only points of the game with a three of four showing at the charity stripe to help close out the 56-48 win. With the victory, Spotswood, which claimed its highest seeding ever in the GMCT this year, reached the Elite Eight for the first time in school history. The Chargers were seeded sixth in the 2003 GMCT, but lost to Old Bridge in double overtime (73-68) in the Round of 16. Spotswood improved to 16-4 overall on the season including a 13-4 mark in conference play. Piscataway fell to 12-11 overall and 10-10 in the GMC. In the quarterfinals on Sunday, Spotswood will play fourth seeded East Brunswick in a rematch of a game played last Saturday and won by the Bears at the SAC, 61-51. Analysis will be forthcoming in the blog.

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