Championship teams find a way to take advantage of mistakes and capitalize on opportunities.
The New Egypt High School boys’ basketball team used that philosophy to earn itself a berth in the NJSIAA Central Jersey Group I state sectional championship game.
Unfortunately, the Warriors’ dream of winning a state sectional title will have to wait another year, because Asbury Park High School was the team that seized a big opportunity in the second quarter on March 10 en route to a 51-34 victory in the Central Jersey Group I title tilt.
The game was played on a neutral court in Franklin Township.
When the first quarter ended in an 8-8 stalemate, New Egypt’s two big men, 6-8 senior center Kevin Janowski and 6-8 sophomore forward Desmond Hubert, found themselves in foul trouble. Both players were sent to the bench, and the Blue Bishops took control of the boards and used a 14-2 run to break the game open.
Asbury Park outscored New Egypt 19-7 in the second quarter.
“When we got in foul trouble I knew it was going to change the momentum of the game,” New Egypt coach Jay Corby said. “Asbury Park is a very athletic team. They have a swarming defense and they run the floor well. We were looking to slow the game down and not get into a track meet with them. Once we lost Janowski and Hubert, controlling the boards became an issue.”
New Egypt started in a zone defense and was able to regulate Asbury Park’s run-andgun style through the opening quarter. However, the aggressive play by Janowski and Hubert in the paint led to foul trouble. The Blue Bishops dominated the second quarter with full-court pressure.
“We did a nice job in the first quarter,” Corby said. “We held them in check and the tempo was to our liking. We weren’t giving up any second-chance opportunities for them to score and then set up their press. Once our presence inside was gone, our ability to dictate the pace of the game was lost.”
In the third quarter, Asbury Park outscored the Warriors 10-7, and in the fourth quarter the Blue Bishops outscored New Egypt 14-12, for the final score of 51- 34.
Hubert paced the Warriors with 11 points, while Janowski scored 6 points in his final game as a high school player. Corby praised the work of Janowski and all of the seniors who took this program to new heights.
“Since these guys were freshmen, we have come a long way as a program.” Corby said. “They have set the groundwork. They worked hard and improved with each season. This program is on the right track now. We need to continue to build, and eventually we’ll find ourselves with another opportunity to reach this goal.”
New Egypt finished the season with an overall record of 23-6, which included capturing its first Burlington County Athletic League Freedom Division title.
Corby cited noteworthy accomplishments like beating Palmyra for the first time in school history and sweeping Burlington City, along with knocking off St. John Vianney High School of Holmdel at the Sovereign Bank Arena in Trenton as building blocks for the future.
“We had a number of great wins this season,” the coach said. “We finally gave the school and the community something to be proud of and get excited about. The support we have received this year has been great. The fans were behind us the entire way and made this run very memorable for each player.”