After going 1-1 in the Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament, the South Brunswick High boys basketball team will see what it can do in the Central Jersey Group IV event.
South Brunswick opened play in the GMC with a 46-41 win over New Brunswick on Feb. 17.
South Brunswick trailed after the first quarter (11-10) and was tied at the half (19-19). The difference in the game was South Brunswick's 15-7 edge in the third quarter.
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"Our win versus New Brunswick was big," South Brunswick Coach Joe Hoehman said. "The kids really came out to play, and I don't think our intensity dropped throughout the entire contest. We did make things a little harder on ourselves by missing some shots inside as well as struggling from the foul line, but a win is a win. Even though we struggled from the line and from the field at times, the boys made up for it in other areas."
One of those areas was in rebounding.
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"It was tight down the stretch, but when they missed shots, we really limited their second chance opportunities down the stretch," Hoehman said. "TJ Taylor pulled down nine boards, while Chris Bourne added twelve."
Kory Sanders (12 points) and Mike Green (10 points) both scored in double figures. Danny Strickland and TJ Taylor added nine points each.
This win put South Brunswick into the GMC quarterfinals against top-seeded Piscataway on Feb. 20 at Middlesex County College. Piscataway won, 52-43.
This was the third time Piscataway has defeated South Brunswick this year. All of the games have been competitive, being decided by less than 10 points. Piscataway defeated South Brunswick, 46-37, on Dec. 23. Piscataway defeated South Brunswick, 38-35, on Jan. 25.
On Feb. 20, South Brunswick trailed by three points after the first period (11-8) and the half (22-19).
"On Super Sunday in the quarterfinals versus Piscataway, we struggled once again from the floor, which proved to be the difference," Hoehman said. "It was a closely contested battle the whole way, but we just couldn't get over the hump. It was a four-point game with a little over four minutes to go, if we knock down one or two more shots, who knows what would have happened. Neither team shot great from the floor, but our 31 percent isn't going to win you many big games. I do have to give our guys a ton of credit, though. We started down 9-0 to start the game and our guys never gave up. We played with enough energy to win, but we just need to get our offense rolling."
Kory Sanders (14 points), Mike Green (11 points) and Chris Bourne (11 points) all scored in double figures for South Brunswick.
South Brunswick will open play in the Central Jersey Group IV Tournament on Monday at East Brunswick. South Brunswick is the 15th seed, but has a favorable matchup for a team going up against a second seed. South Brunswick defeated East Brunswick, 45-42, on Jan. 6. East Brunswick defeated South Brunswick, 59-53, in overtime on Feb. 5.
"Even though we are the fifteenth seed playing at the second seed, this year we are 1-1 vs the Bears," Hoehman said. "It's really anyone's game. I think we match up real well with them. If our defense plays as I know it can and we shoot the ball okay, I think we could be competing in the quarterfinals."
