You don’t have to be a math major to determine that the prospect of East Brunswick High School qualifying for the Central Jersey Group IV playoffs is dismal, at best.
The Bears, coming off a 50-46 loss to Woodbridge Monday night, find themselves sporting a 5-10 record with only four regular season games remaining before the Feb. 6 cutoff date for qualifying. Teams need to be .500 or better to gain a spot in the state playoff bracket, which isn’t going to happen for East Brunswick.
However, there is a slight change in the rules for state playoff qualifying that went into effect this year that might enable the Bears to squeeze in. Let’s say there are an odd number of teams that meet the criteria for qualifying for the states. In the past, the highest seeded teams would earn byes into the next round where an even number of teams remained. Then the teams would play until champion is crowned. Now, a team with less than .500 record can petition theNJSIAA to gain a spot in the tournament.
As a result, East Brunswick could conceivably earn a place in the state tournament if the bracket needs at least one more team to fill out the bracket. However, this discussion becomes mute if the Bears don’t take care of their end of the business, and that is to win their next four games.
“I’m remaining optimistic,” said Katie Motusesky, Bears coach. “The reason why is that I’ve seen what we can accomplish when we put together four quarters. That’s happened only a few times and our goal is to become more consistent. The wins will take care of themselves.”
The defeat to Woodbridge, which entered the game with a 12-2 record, is a case in point as to how East Brunswick shows the potential to be competitive, no matter the quality of the opponent. The Barrons had managed to forge an 11-point halftime lead and were poised to vanquish the Bears in the second half. However, East Brunswick continued to chip away at the lead and was only down by a threepoint shot with less than a minute in the game. Only when the Bears resorted to fouling Woodbridge in the last minute were the Barrons able to convert five times from the charity stripe to secure the win.
Now, East Brunswick will focus on the remaining four regular season games. The Bears’ next opponent is Saturday as it entertains Moorestown, a South Jersey team with a losing record. On Monday, a quality Old Bridge provides the competition followed by games with Perth Amboy and South Brunswick, opponents the Bears have defeated this year.
“We have received excellent contributions from a number of players,” Motusesky said. “Linda Sollecito has been our top rebounder with about nine per game. Elise Roughan has averaged over 11 points a game scoring and Shannon Nulty is the team leader in assists with four.”
“Our focus will be on winning our next four games,” continued Motusesky. “We will need to continue to play good defense and stay positive. Hopefully, we’ll have the opportunity to redeem ourselves.”
The Bears will also participate in the GMC Tournament which begins next month.