Jankoski shot puts South in MCT hoop final

Pirate boys edge Trenton again

By: Bob Nuse
   It’s a shot Dan Jankoski has probably taken on the playground hundreds of times. He’s probably dreamed of making it even more often than that.
   The clock is running down, his team is trailing by a point in a tournament game, and Jankoski lines up a three-point shot and swishes it to win the game.
   Only this time, it wasn’t a dream.
   Jankoski’s 24-footer as time expired gave the West Windsor-Plainsboro High South boys’ basketball team a 49-47 win over Trenton Friday night in the Mercer County Tournament semifinals. With the win, the Pirates advanced to the MCT finals against Hightstown. The game will be played Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. at Mercer County Community College.
   "You always hope to make a shot like that," said Jankoski, a reserve forward who finished with six points on a pair of three-point shots. "A lot of kids on this team have made big shots throughout the course of the season. I’m just happy that I could contribute one of them in a key game in the season."
   This wasn’t just any key game in the season. This was a game that put the Pirates in the MCT final for the first time in school history. And this wasn’t just any shot, it was the biggest shot of the season and came from a player who was not the first option as the Pirates inbounded the ball with less than five seconds to play, trailing by a point.
   "I was not the first option," Jankoski said. "There are four seconds left and we don’t have a timeout, so he calls the play that we normally run. But it’s not meant for a deep three. We just had to go with it and see how play develops. We had one extra pass and I was able to get the shot off."
   The play is designed to get the ball into the hands of point guard Jordan Robinson. It’s a play the Pirates have needed to run at the end of the game on several occasions this season. It didn’t result in game-winning shots earlier this year in losses to Bishop Eustace and Montgomery, but it worked Friday as South beat Trenton for the second time this season.
   "You work on these situational series all the time and here we are without a time out and the ball at half court," said South coach Bob Schurtz, whose team improved to 17-7 with the win. "We have one set play we usually go to and I wanted to get the ball to Jordan in the corner for an open look and let him dribble-drive and penetrate.
   "Their big guy denied him on the corner and the first screener, Dan in this case, pops to the top of the key. I’m thinking catch it and go to the rim. He’s thinking square up and knock down a 24-footer. He was open and he’s an excellent set shooter. He found a way to make the play."
   It was one of several big plays down the stretch for the Pirates. After leading the entire game until midway through the third quarter, South found itself in a hole after a 13-1 run by Trenton gave the Tornadoes a 39-31 lead. Jankoski made his first big shot when his three-pointer to close out the third quarter cut the lead to 39-34. But the Pirates still trailed, 47-38, with less than four minutes left.
   "When we played Trenton last time, we were down seven with about three minutes left and we were able to come back and pull out the win that time," Jankoski said. "So this time, Coach called a time out and settled us down and reminded us that we pulled it out once before against them and a few other times this season. There have been some really close games and we have found a way to win. When you watch college games, the really good teams find a way to win. I am glad we’re developing into one of those teams."
   The Pirates held Trenton without a point over the final four minutes of the game. They cut into the lead a little at a time, first on a foul shot by Jarrett Austin and then on another by Derek Lester. An Andy McKeever basket with just over two minutes left cut the lead to 47-42, and Lester’s basket less than a minute later cut the lead to 47-44. McKeever made a pair of free throws to cut the lead to one and set up Jankoski’s heroics.
   "It couldn’t happen to a better player," Schurtz said. "He is ‘Coach Dan Jan.’ We joke about it, but there is not a person on the team that is more into every game. He’s into every huddle whether he’s on the court or not on the court. He’s calling out every play. For him to hit the shot, his senior year, to put us in the Mercer County championship, is well deserved."
   Of course, Jankoski didn’t do it alone against Trenton. J.B. Fitzgerald was a monster on the boards, finishing with 17 rebounds. Austin led a balanced offense with 11 points, while McKeever and Lester added 10 apiece. Robinson played turnover-free basketball at point guard. It was a total team effort.
   "We all have our parts on the team and my part is to rebound," Fitzgerald said. "I have to put my work in. That’s the only way we’re going to win, if everyone does their part. When we go out on the court we don’t see Trenton or Hightstown or any other team. We just see five players ready to take something away from us. We go out there and battle against them with everything we’ve got.
   "We grow more and more each game. We have become more and more of a team each game. It just keeps getting better and better."
   The win not only puts the Pirates in the MCT final, but also puts an exclamation point on a turnaround from a season ago, when the team won just five games. Who could possibly see this type of change in the Pirates?
   "I have to say I did," Fitzgerald said. "Last year was a rough year for us. We just weren’t the team we are this year. We’ve really brought it together over the summer and became a cohesive unit."
   The kind of cohesive unit that was able to rally for a win against Trenton more than once this season.
   "I took the time out at 3:45 to go in the game today and we were down eight," Schurtz said. "I told them last time we were at 3:48 and we were down eight and we still have an opportunity and we can still win this game. They just had to believe they could do it and they did. They kept fighting and they responded. We had some big turnovers and stops.
   "It really helps that we have been in games like this before. It prepares you more and more. We’ve been fortunate that we’ve been able to find ways to win, with the two minor exceptions of the Bishop Eustace and Montgomery games. It’s a credit to them and their work ethic and the camaraderie among them. I couldn’t be happier."
   Nobody was happier than Jankoski, who could tell the shot was good the moment it left his hand, right?
   "I’m sure I can say that now," he said. "I do shoot threes in practice and in games, but not from that far. It was a little uncharted waters, but it felt good."