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12.30.04 DAYS 4,5
 I'm writing this last entry from the Charleston Airport about to depart home on New Years Eve day. Last night, we played our championship game against
East Hall from Gainesville, Georgia.
As we all knew beforehand, the game would be a very challenging one due to their athleticism and unrelenting full court pressure. During our
walk-through before the game yesterday, we specifically focused on breaking their press and attempting to make them guard our offense in the half-court.
When the game began, the we started off with a nice rhythm. We were efficiently breaking their pressure with swift ball movement and unselfish
play, and then making smart decisions in the open court that lead to numerous easy layups. Other than a few defensive lapses, for the most part, we played solid defense and did not allow them that many easy
looks. We headed into the locker room up eight points, [although at one point in the first half we had extended our lead to fifteen points.] More importantly, we felt that we had control of the game, knew
that we could win, and knew what we had to do to finish off the victory.
The second half began similar to the first half; crisp ball-movement and smart play. Then, slowly, the
momentum started to shift towards East Hall's direction. They started deflecting our passes and disrupting our offense, leading to many turnovers on our part. On the defensive end, they started to
break down our defenders, get easy run-outs, and find kick-outs to good three-point shooters. One of their players, who eventually ended up winning the most valuable player award, caught fire hitting a
number of three pointers. They chipped away at the lead towards the end of the third quarter and  beginning of the fourth. With five minutes left in the fourth, the game was
tied. From this point on, the game became an all-out war, the lead changing hands many times.
With ten seconds left, East Hall had managed to gain a three point lead. It
was our ball, and we designed a play to get Brandon a three point shot at the top of the key. Brandon's shot barely missed, but we were able to come away
with the rebound. Somehow, the ball ended up in Darryl's hands in the corner. Another 3-point shot, off the rim; they rebound and throw a pass up court
towards the scorer's table, where Chris Andrew intercepted it with 6.4 seconds remaining. He hoists up a 28 footer which finds the bottom of the net. [Can you say Don Bosco?]
The ball was in the air [photos later show] for two full seconds. They call timeout with three remaining, but get the refs to put one more second up. They set up; we call time out; then they call another. Setting
up opposite our bench, 70 feet from the basket, their guy fires a long downcourt pass from out of bounds, Davis grabs it, one or two dribbles, and he gets off a 3-point chuck from about 20 feet, fading
away towards the stands in the far right corner. The horn sounds as the ball goes cleanly through the basket. It was the worst sight we've all ever seen, the most devastating loss in our careers.
Brandon Costner [23 points, 33 in the semi-final] was voted the tournament's Most Outstanding
Player, while East Hall's Frank Davis [28 points last night] was named MVP.
We'll be back at Newark Liberty around 1:15, ready to re-group for our Iron Hills schedule and a run at
the county and state championships.
Happy New Year to all. |
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12.28.04 DAY 3
Chris Andrews starts off Drew's Blog tonight; Drew takes over someplace in the middle:
Our third day in Charleston was a long and very eventful one. The team
gathered at twelve thirty to go to the Citadel for a walk through. At the Citadel Coach Farrell went over the keys to victory for our game later in the day. We worked on attacking zone defenses, a zone press, and
getting back on defense. The walk through would play an integral part in our success later on that day as we'd be able to cleverly attack the St. John's zone and force them to play man defense sater in the game.
After the walk through we proceeded to a hospital for lunch. The lunch at the hospital was good and plentiful. Back at the hotel, the players parted ways and everyone went back to their rooms. Andrew  ignored me completely and talked on his phone while I iced my hurt ankle. A
little while later we both fell asleep and then awoke to get ready for our game.
Around seven o'clock, we all headed over to the Citadel. Once in the
locker room, Coach Farrell emphasized the importance of using ball fakes when attacking their zone, making smart decisions, and controlling their
talented guards. Once the game began, the team and everyone in the gym could tell that they were in for a treat. Brandon Costner, who we all know has
one of the most impressive array of skills in the state and country, put on quite a show, starting with a first trip down court jumper for three. He used his body, his dribble, and
his footwork to free himself for numerous three-point bombs that hit nothing but net. But he didn't stop there, but he continued to use aggressive inside play to grab many rebounds and rise over the opponent
for easy put-backs. The team as a whole played probably the most complete game all year. Everyone seemed to contribute in a positive manner. As Coach Farrell stated as an example after the game, Darryl
Harvey did an unbelievable number of good things both defensively and offensively to help us win. The final product was a twenty-point victory against a very strong opponent. Our focus now turns toward
tomorrow for the final versus East Hall , a talented team from Gainesville, Georgia. [who came back from plenty to win in OT against White Station TN]. Wish us luck!
[note: Chris and Andrew lingered in the lobby afer midnight following their team's win over St. John's College HS to work on this blog. [photo] In the background, also lingering, over their post-game pizza,
were the St. John's players and staff, who now had to prepare to bounce back in the consolation game against White Station TN].12.27.04 DAY 2
Welcome everyone to day two of our trip to Charleston for the Rotary Roundball Classic. Today's focus was around our first game versus West Ashely, a local team
from Charleston. We began the morning with some breakfast, then to a brief walkthrough in preparation for the game. The walkthrough consisted mainly of getting
breaking a sweat, getting in some shots, and mentally focusing for the task ahead. Afterwards, the team went for a nice lunch at a nearby hospital, and finally went back to the hotel for some pre-game rest.
We left for the Citadel at 5:30 for our seven o'clock game. The game before ours was Porter-Gaud (a local team that we had played and beaten last year) versus White
Station who is a national power that consists of many college level players. White Station, who eventually won the game despite a feisty and determined Porter-Gaud effort, demonstrated a very impressive mix
of athleticism, skill, and good coaching. Our team was certainly given a little wake-up call by the level of play before our game.
Once in the locker room, Coach Farrell began to describe our opponent and the game plan we needed
to utilize in order to be successful. West Ashley is a team that consisted of big, athletic players that like
to penetrate, get in the lane, and dish off for easy layups. They also focused on using their athleticism to  get offensive rebounds for easy baskets. Coach Farrell warned us about their
size advantage and emphasized that everyone, including the guards, must box out both offensively and defensively. Coach also stressed that coming out
from the tip-off and making smart decisions while still maintaining energy (unlike our previous four games where we needed a little while to find our rhythm) was vital.
<<< Two of Pusar's 30 vs W. Ashley
Finally, we came out and played more to our potential than any previous game thus far. Our defensive intensity lead to many turnovers and transition
baskets which we took advantage of by making smart decisions on fastbreaks. Many players really boosted the team in this area and enabled these turnovers: Mark Solomon did a great job of locking down whoever his
man was and wreaked havoc on the fluidity of the Ashley's offense. Furthermore, during one of the huddles, Coach Farrell smartly told us that if we took our time when running our set offenses, we would
wear down their defense and eventually get an easy shot. I think we responded well to his advice and it seemed as if we scored a majority of our points from high-percentage areas. In the end, we won the
game by about twenty points and came away feeling very encouraged by our effort and performance.
I'm currently writing this second entry while watching the game that is taking place after ours. The
teams include Riverdale versus St. Johns from Washington, D.C. (We play the winner of this game on Wednesday) I know that as good as the team feels by our win tonight, watching this game now has
certainly heightened our perspective. Both teams are similar to White Station; talented, skilled, and well-coached national programs that feature marquee players. Both teams have come for the same
reason we have; to win the tournament. We certainly have an exciting challenge and test ahead of us. Nothing but our best play will allow us to move one, and we know we didn't come all the way to
Charleston from New Jersey to just compete.
We have tomorrow off which I think is very important especially since there were many bumps and
bruises sustained in tonight's game. Hopefully the day of rest will allow everyone to come back strong on Wednesday. So far, I know that we have a ten thirty practice tomorrow morning, then we will look
forward to a fun team activity (bowling was mentioned as a likely possibility) and a barbeque at night. Again, I hope everyone is doing well back home and please wish us luck for the coming battle Wednesday night.
12.26.04
Hello everyone. It's great to be back writing the blog to share our team's experiences at the Rotary
Roundball Classic in Charleston, South Carolina and the highlights that are sure to come this year. Currently, the team is sitting at the Citadel watching our two possible opponents for tomorrow's game on  Monday the 27th
. Our trip so far has been relatively smooth except for a few things. I think it's fair to say that many of us didn't particularly enjoy having
to be at Seton Hall Prep at six thirty in the morning in order to catch our flight. It also seemed as if it was possibly the coldest morning in the history
of the world [well, at least of this year]. Our second obstacle came after our flight when Mike, John, Darryl, and I did not find our luggage at the baggage
claim at the Charleston airport (it still hasn't arrived and all are waiting anxiously).
One of the funnier parts of the trip happened while checking in at the
Newark airport. Sophomore John Marciano, better known as "Big John," is seven feet tall and it became obvious that a great number of people in the airport found his height captivating to the eye. The result
was that about a hundred people asked him the simple question, "How tall are you?" While the team thoroughly enjoyed the regularity of this question, John responded nicely, but matter-of-factly, to every
curious person, "I am 84 inches tall."
The flight itself was bumpy at times, which was not so much fun. On a sad note, I was told today that
our legendary guide "Russ" from last year's trip, who amused us all with his wide assortment of funny hats, is very sick and cannot host us this year. We all hope and pray for our friend.
Once in Charleston, we settled into a different hotel from last year. But to our liking, the hotel is
situated nicely along the Ashley River, in a scenic environment surrounded by boats and water. It is also closer to The Citadel where our games are played. After unpacking and enjoying a very nice Mass
celebrated by Msgr. Kelly and Father Bill, who are accompanying us on the trip this year, the team headed over to a nearby restaurant for some lunch. (A rep from the local chapter of the Charleston Democratic
Party spotted the Seton Hall group and sent regards to our trainer Larry Baggit back in West Orange.) Lastly, the team had a brief practice at a secondary gym at The Citadel. Unfortunately, the practice was
a little less competitive than usual due to the four members who didn't have any basketball sneakers which were in their lost luggage. The team seems to be in good spirits and is excited to start our run tomorrow.
We enter this tournament having played four games thus far. Fortunately, we won all games despite
facing a plague of injuries to various members. I think all of us at one point or another were scared at the apparent
contagion of these injuries. However, the string of injuries has slowed and all those injured are returning to full strength.
The season opened against Morris Knolls. After a little bit of a rocky start, we picked us the pace and ran away with an easy victory. Next, we
faced Columbia, our cross-town rival, at Seton Hall University as part of the Tip-Off Classic. Again, after another shaky start, we were able to eventually
find a rhythm and come away with a victory. Our next two games against Roxbury and Morristown followed this theme. Although our slow starts are
discouraging, we know that once we fix this problem and begin every game at full strength we will be extremely tough to beat.
[While in the middle of writing these lines, Brian "Bam" Martin, wanted to me to give a shout out to his mom and dad. Bam says, "Hi mom and dad. I'm fine and hope you're
doing well!"]
Anyway, the team is watching the Bishop England play West Ashley, the winner of which game we'll
play tomorrow. They're both local teams. Both teams seem athletic and well-coached. However,their styles greatly differ. West Ashley Wildcats have played hardnosed man-to-man defense so far while
Bishop England Bishops have sunk back into a two-three zone. Tomorrow's focus for our pre-game practice will be dependent upon who wins. (The score of the game is 12-6 West Ashley, but there is still
three quarters to play). After we are done watching this game,  the team will return back to the hotel for
a nice sleep after a long and eventful travel day. Luckily, our game is late in the day tomorrow which will allow us to rest our bodies and play at full
strength. Well, I must depart to prepare for our last mission of the day; find a means of obtaining food back at the hotel (most likely through some sort of
delivery). I hope everyone back home is doing well and enjoying the break. Cya •
Drew's 2003 Roundball Classic Blog >>> |
