BOYS BASKETBALL: SBHS had the pace it wanted until a late Tornadoes’ run in a Central Jersey Group IV quarterfinal game Wednesday night.
By: Rich Fisher
TRENTON For almost three quarters, the South Brunswick High boy’s basketball team did what it hoped to do against Trenton High.
But a dry spell at the final two minutes of the third quarter snowballed into a dismal fourth quarter as the 2nd-seeded Tornadoes pulled away for 65-35 victory over the 7th-seeded Vikings in an NJSIAA Central Jersey Group IV quarterfinal game Wednesday night.
South Brunswick (15-10) hoped to come out and control the tempo. Prior to the game, coach Marc Babich felt the game had to be in the 40’s for the Vikings to have a chance.
The Vikes did a good job of keeping it that way, trailing 25-19 at halftime and 37-31 with 2:12 remaining in the third quarter. But Trenton (23-2) ended the period with a 6-0 run, which extended to 12-0 early in the fourth quarter. Finding themselves down 49-31, the Vikings began to show the wear and tear from playing a bigger, faster, deeper team. They continued to hustle, picking up knee burns from diving on the floor, but could only score four points in the final period.
"We were playing very well for the first three quarters," Babich said. "They hurt us on the glass, but we were tough. We were banging and we were physical. But give them credit, their guy (Robert Hines) did a great job on the glass."
Hines, a 6-5 sophomore, collected 16 points and 18 rebounds, and had 12 offensive boards. In the third quarter alone, eight of his points came on put-backs, including the final two buckets of the period.
South Brunswick trailed 13-12 after one quarter and took a 17-16 lead on Shawn Miller’s three-pointer midway through the second quarter. Trenton responded with nine straight points and would not trail again, but South Brunswick kept it close behind the inspired third-period play of Dan Joworisak. The senior forward scored six straight Viking points to cut a 35-25 deficit to 37-31. But Trenton responded with its run to pull away.
The Vikings shot just 15-for-44 from the field and 3-for-12 from the foul line, while Trenton was 23-for-40 from the field and 17-for-26 from the line. Trenton held a whopping 47-20 rebounding edge and forced the Vikings into 23 turnovers.
Trent Horton led South with seven points while Joworisak and Drew Biri had six each. Biri and Michael Knight-York both fouled out, hurting the Vikings already thin ranks.
"We had the tempo where we wanted it," Babich said. "But they made some great defensive plays and they just picked it up."