By Tim Morris
Finishing first is always nice.
However, for Brookdale Community College’s men’s basketball coach Paul Cisek, his main goal for the young Jersey Blues was finishing in the top four in Region 19.
“The whole key is home court,” the veteran coach, now in his 24th year at Brookdale, said. “You always want the home-court advantage to get to the Final Four.”
That is just what Cisek’s Jersey Blues did. They finished the regular season 18-10 overall and 14-7 in region play, which was good enough for the No. 4 seed and home-court advantage through the semifinals.
The Collins Arena has been very friendly to Brookdale basketball since opening for the 2013-14 season, and it was good to the Jersey Blues in the first few rounds of the region tournament to advance to the Final Four, where the Jersey Blues played their way to the championship game Feb. 28.
There would be no trip to the National Junior College Athletic Association National Championships, though. Brookdale, the No. 4 seed, fell to the second-seeded Community College of Philadelphia in Region 19 finals, 55-54, on a three-point shot by Jeff Sterling in the final seven seconds. The region semifinals and finals were played in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, at Northampton Community College. It was the second straight championship for Community College of Philadelphia.
Mason Jones (Manchester) paced the Jersey Blues with a game-high 27 points. Dillon Salva (North Brunswick) had a double-double with 10 points and 15 rebounds as Brookdale finished the 2015-16 season with a 21-11 record.
Brookdale defeated top-seeded Camden County College, 74-72, in a thrilling semifinal Feb. 27. Salva had 23 points and 11 caroms. Terrel Cox (Long Branch) contributed a career-high 17 points in the win. Jones had another superb all-around game with 14 points, six rebounds and five assists.
Camden and Bookdale had split their two regular-season games with each winning on their home court.
Playing at home, Brookdale defeated Harrisburg Area Community College in the first round of the region tournament, 86-73. Forward Salva scored a co-team-high of 19 points and pulled down a game-high 20 rebounds to lead Brookdale to the win. Guard Cox matched Salva’s 19 points, and forward Jordan Little (Jersey City) had 16 points and 12 rebounds. Guard Aaron Trimble (Howell) chipped in with 11 points off the bench, and guard Kerry Kirkwood (Neptune) had nine points, seven rebounds and a game-high nine assists.
Next up for Brookdale was a quarterfinals game with Rowan College of Gloucester County Feb. 23. Brookdale trailed early but got its offense going late in the first half and never looked back, rolling to an 87-76 victory.
Jones pumped in 23 points and Little netted 22. Salva had another monster double-double with 20 points and 19 rebounds.
Brookdale picked up its 20th win of the season.
Sophomores Jones and Salva and freshman Little have been the Jersey Blues’ cornerstones. Jones is averaging a team-high 19 points and is Brookdale’s best 3-point shooter, averaging just under two a game.
Salva and Little are both averaging a double-double. Salva averages 15.4 points and 15.8 rebounds, and Little has 14.4 points and 15.2 rebounds per game.
The future is very bright for Cisek’s Jersey Blues. This year’s club had 10 freshmen who will return next year with valuable playoff experience.