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MONTGOMERY: Cougars upset Colts Neck in states

MHS boys win at sixth seed

By Bob Nuse, Sports Editor
   COLTS NECK — The Montgomery High boys basketball team is making a habit of winning state tournament games on the road.
   Now the Cougars would like to take another step forward.
   Montgomery, the No. 11 seed, opened play in the Central Jersey Group IV tournament with a 38-36 win at sixth-seeded Colts Neck on Tuesday. The next night, the Cougars were eliminated from the tournament with a 57-49 loss at third-seeded Monroe.
   ”As a program and a young coach you want to keep moving forward,” said Montgomery coach Kris Grundy, whose team pulled off a first-round upset of North Brunswick last year before falling to top-seeded Rancocas Valley. “We had graduated four of five starters and people didn’t think much of this team coming into the season. But we made the state tournament and to get a win against Colts Neck was a big win.
   ”But the focus now is on winning enough games to get home games in the state tournament. We have to use the off-season to get bigger and stronger.”
   Montgomery finished the season with an 11-15 record. But the win over Colts Neck was certainly a highlight. In a defensive struggle, no team led by more than four points as Colts Neck built a 19-18 halftime lead.
   It was 24-24 when the Cougars went on an 8-3 run to close out the third quarter and build a 32-27 lead. Montgomery then scored the first five points of the fourth quarter to go up, 37-27, before Colts Neck rallied and got within two with the ball and less than two seconds left.
   And even though Montgomery missed some foul shots down the stretch, the Cougars made some big defensive plays in the win.
   ”We have been playing well on the road all season,” said Brian Testa, who made a big defensive play down the stretch when Colts Neck was looking to tie the game. “But we have confidence wherever we play. We’re a defensive-minded team and I see that as my role, being a defensive player.
   ”At the end, I knew that when they set the screen for (Sean O’Reilly) that I wasn’t going to let him get it because he’s a shooter. I just told myself on that last possession, no 3s.”
   Colts Neck didn’t score and the Cougars had another first round upset.
   ”We’re a confident team, even though we had some tough losses,” Testa said after the win. “We had a streak earlier where we had all the confidence in the world and we’re starting to get that back. I was just hoping we could get a win. This was a good game for us.”
   Against Monroe, the Cougars dug a hole for themselves and trailed by 21 points before getting it back to within four in the closing minutes.
   ”I liked the way we battled back,” Grundy said. “I thought our guys showed a lot of heart. Our three seniors — Andy Singley, Misha Miljanic and A.J. Shadrach — have been great leaders for us all season. We’ll miss those guys.
   ”We got down early, but we came out in the second half and we imposed our will on them. We were able to get back into the game.”
   James Loupos and Shadrach led the Cougars with eight points apiece in the win over Colts Neck. In the loss to Monroe, Ryan McCoy led the Cougars with 12 points, Shadrach had 11 and Loupos added 10.