Team also qualifies for state tourney
by Rudy Brandl, Sports Editor
NORTH PLAINFIELD The Hillsborough High boys’ basketball team made an emphatic statement in Saturday afternoon’s Somerset County Tournament game at North Plainfield.
Mysteriously seeded 10th in the 16-team field, the Raiders continued to steamroll their way through the county bracket with a 75-47 rout over the seventh-ranked Canucks.
The HHS boys, who opened the tourney with a 75-38 blowout of Manville, haven’t been bothered by the lack of respect shown by the county coaches. They’ve used it as motivation to keep winning on Saturday afternoons in February.
”This was definitely a statement game for us,” said HHS senior forward Dennis McGill, who celebrated his 18th birthday with a 14-point game. “We feel like we’re better than a 10 seed. We’re proving to people we’re better than that.”
North Plainfield (10-5) scored the first basket of the game but the Raiders went on a 14-0 run in a span of 4:48 to take control in the opening quarter. McGill scored six points and Frank Mitchell and Jason Smartt added four apiece during the spurt. The Raiders were running the floor and getting transition baskets and easy layups. All nine HHS baskets in the 20-13 first quarter surge came in the paint.
”The first quarter set the tone,” HHS head coach Ian Progin said. “We got out in transition and ran the floor. The key to the game was getting off to a good start.”
Hillsborough (11-8) shot the ball extremely well, both from the field and at the free throw line. The Raiders made 25-of-45 field goal attempts (56 percent) and hit 23-of-30 (77 percent) from the line. Mitchell scored a game-high 19 points and 10 different HHS players contributed to the total.
”We’re gelling right now,” Mitchell said. “We’re finding our stride at the right time. We’re getting the ball inside and the perimeter guys are starting to hit shots.”
The Raiders were tested in the second quarter, both mentally and physically. North Plainfield went on a 7-0 spurt to cut the deficit to two points and hung with the Raiders until the final three minutes of the half. The Canucks still trailed by only three late in the half but the Raiders closed with a 12-0 tear to take a 40-25 lead at the break.
”They (North Plainfield) really battled back in the second quarter and their kids were really aggressive and did a great job coming back,” Progin said. “We responded after the game got close and we were able to get some more separation.”
The Raider bench, which made a huge contribution with 25 points in the game, came up big late in the second quarter. Junior forward Kyle Banfield came off the bench to toss in six of his eight points to ignite the surge. Backup guard Steve Hydzik hit two free throws and buried a jumper from the middle of the lane to score four of his nine points and Mitchell added two free throws.
”We’ve been getting really good bench play lately,” Progin said. “Obviously, that makes us much tougher. Steve Hydzik played very well today.”
North Plainfield never got any closer than 13 points in the second half. The Raiders kept pouring it on late in the third quarter, finishing with a 13-3 spurt to take a 23-point lead into the final period. North Plainfield went almost five minutes without a field goal between the third and fourth quarters and never threatened again.
The Raiders put on quite a show for the fans and the Ridge coaches who were in attendance to scout the game. Hillsborough will challenge a very tough Ridge team on the road in the SCT quarterfinals Saturday at 2 p.m.
”It’s a major challenge,” Progin said. “Ridge and Immaculata are the class of the county and it’s going to take another great effort to beat them. If we continue to run and rebound, we’ll be there.”
”Some of our guys have seen them and we know they’re good,” Mitchell added. “If we go out and play our best, we feel like we can beat anybody.”
The Raiders also qualified for the Central Jersey Group 4 playoffs last week, clinching the berth with Thursday’s 60-47 triumph at Montgomery. That victory came 24 hours after Hillsborough saw its six-game win streak end with a loss at Franklin.
”I was really pleased with the way they responded the very next day,” Progin said. “We had a little klunker against Franklin but the kids really bounced back well against Montgomery. The defense was key in that game.”
The Raiders held James Loupos, who had been averaging over 20 points in his last six games, to only six points. HHS senior Jason Smartt led all scorers with 16 points, while Mitchell (15) and freshman Jason Joliffe (11) also hit double figures for the winners.
Back in the middle of January, it didn’t look like the Raiders were going anywhere. Now winners of eight of their last nine games, the HHS boys are going to the county quarterfinals Saturday and returning to the state playoffs later this month.
”The kids are playing so well recently,” Progin said. “We’ve become a more consistent team. That’s what you’re always looking for as a coach. That’s what it takes to win.”
”You go through all the summer workouts just to make a run at states and in the county tournament,” McGill said. “It feels great to finally do it.”