By Jimmy Allinder
It would be unfair to expect the South River High School girls’ basketball team to continue winning like it did the past three seasons.
The Rams were 68-17 overall and captured the Greater Middlesex Conference’s (GMC) Gold Division championship each year, fueled by some of the most talented players in school history, including all-time leading scorer Gabrielle Harris.
South River’s performance merited a promotion to the larger-school Blue Division — along with a more challenging schedule. However, that hasn’t fazed the Rams much. They are 12-4 overall and 9-2 in the division.
South River is tied with Middlesex High School (10-5 overall) for first-place and host the Blue Jays Feb. 3 in a game that could determine the Blue Division champion. The Rams first needed to win at Dunellen High School (8-6 overall, 5-5 division) Feb. 1.
Both division losses have been to Metuchen High School (9-7 overall, 9-3 division), which is a game behind South River and Middlesex. Following the Rams’ Feb. 6 home contest with Carteret High School (8-9 overall, 4-7 division), they close out the regular season with games against Keansburg High School Feb. 8 and Perth Amboy Technical High School the next day.
Senior Aleah Bass is the leading scorer with 12.2 points and 9.8 rebounds per game and surpassed the millennium mark for her career two weeks ago. Sophomore Tara Beachem averages 10.3 points and is having an all-division-type season because of her court leadership, scoring and ball skills, Feaster said.
It’s no secret South River reaped the benefits of playing a lesser schedule as a Gold Division member, but the coach deserves recognition for implementing an aggressive offensive and defensive philosophy when he arrived.
Feaster can no longer count on Harris and her 20-plus points every game, but he has tailored the offense to take advantage of Bass’ dominance in the paint and Beachem’s skills. The Rams are averaging 50 points a game, which is 14 points fewer than last year’s scoring machine. However, a defense predicated on forcing turnovers has compensated for the gap in point production.
Juniors Sera and Sonia Guiste have contributed key buckets and exceptional shot-blocking and rebounding near the basket. Seniors Mackenzie Garrick and Victoria Gil are experienced players and natural leaders.
Depending on where South River is seeded in the GMC Tournament, its first game could be Feb. 11 in the play-in round. If the Rams’ initial game is in the preliminary round, they play Feb. 13, and the first round is Feb. 15. Those contests will be at the court of the highest-seeded team.
The quarterfinals are Feb. 18 at New Brunswick High School, the semifinals are Feb. 21 at South Brunswick High School and the finals are Feb. 24 at Kean University. The girls will play the first game of a doubleheader, with the boys’ game to follow.
South River has also been elevated to Group II and will be among a host of teams hoping to compete for the NJSIAA Central Jersey, Group II sectional title. Included among those is Manasquan High School, which was ranked No. 1 in New Jersey until a loss to Rutgers Preparatory School Jan. 29.
Higher-seeded teams host the first round Feb. 27, quarterfinals March 1, semifinals March 3 and finals March 6.