ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
By: Rudy Brand
Ebony Jones knows her time as a high school basketball player is running out. Lately, she’s been playing with a sense of urgency and desire that has helped steer the Hillsborough High girls back on the winning track.
Jones and her teammates were in a funk during the last week of January, losing two straight games for the first and only time this season. They turned it around during a recent homestand, winning four consecutive games including last Saturday’s 54-32 romp over Bernards in the Somerset County Tournament quarterfinals.
The HHS senior point guard has picked up her scoring during the recent surge. Jones, who has hit double figures in four straight games to elevate her season average to 10.8 points per game, is the Hillsborough Beacon Athlete of the Week.
"This is my last chance," Jones said after posting 15 points, seven rebounds and six assists in Saturday’s victory. "I only have a certain number of games left. We have to get it together."
Jones scored seven points in a three-minute span midway through the first quarter when the Lady Raiders scored 23 straight points to take a 25-1 lead. All of the points came in transition.
While her recent offense has provided a spark, Jones has continued to bring her aggressive defensive game to the court. Saturday, she drew the tough assignment of guarding Bernards star Catherine Carr, who scored her 2,000th career point the previous night at Somerville. Jones took the challenge seriously, holding Carr without a field goal in the first half.
"I’ve seen her play in AAU so I’ve seen her play against people of our caliber," Jones said. "I know she knows how to play in those situations. This was more important because stopping her would help us win a county title."
Jones unveiled a new dimension to her game in last week’s 52-40 victory over Montgomery. She nailed four 3-pointers, including three in the second quarter, to fuel a 20-point performance. Normally a penetrating player who gets most of her points in transition, Jones stepped out behind the line and drilled four threes. HHS 3-point leader Heather Neumann sat out with a shoulder injury and perimeter threat Lisa Cannellos was hobbled by a sore ankle, so Jones took it upon herself to provide the bombs.
"I was just on that night, so I kept shooting," Jones said. "Why not? Somebody had to do it."
Jones is hoping she and fellow HHS senior starters Cannellos, Neumann and leading scorer Kelsey Kutch are ready to do it again on Somerset County’s grand stage.

