Local teams hope to be this year's Cinderella
Bears lead group of teams with dreams of glory
BY DOUG McKENZIE
Staff Writer

You hear the phrase "must-win games" all too often over the course of a season.

Coaches like to use the label as a motivational tool, hoping the added significance will help instill a sense of desperation in their teams, who may have displayed some effort issues at times during the regular season.

But once you reach this week in the high school basketball season, the cliché phrase finally fits the billing. From here on out, they're all must-win games for the teams entering the postseason.

There are several local hoops teams in the must-win predicament this week, as the Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament reaches the third round.

In the boys' tournament, the top 10 seeds were anxious to hit the courts last night, but the inclement weather postponed most contests to today.

While South Brunswick, St. Joseph and Colonia are the top three seeds, respectively, the East Brunswick boys got the fourth seed, primarily due to their recent win over fifth-seeded Cardinal McCarrick. If the Bears can get past 20th-seeded J.P. Stevens today, they will likely see the Cardinals once again on Sunday in the quarterfinals. McCarrick takes on 12th-seeded Edison, a 67-66 winner over St. Peter in the second round, later today in their tourney opener.

Stevens upset 13th-seeded Carteret on Monday, 56-48, and is playing well of late. The Bears will need to be careful in this one.

The Sayreville Bombers posted an impressive 68-42 win over Spotswood on Monday to reach the third round. Kofi Genfi led the way with 19 points and 14 rebounds, while Ricky Harding added 19 points as well, as the 16th-seeded Bombers held off the 17th-seeded Chargers. Sayreville will need a similar effort (and then some) today if they hope to knock off top-seeded South Brunswick. The Vikings have been the conference's top team from the opening tip this season, and are the overwhelming favorite to claim the GMCT title.

Old Bridge also has its work cut out for it today, as the Knights, 48-43 winners over Monroe on Monday, take on second-seeded St. Joseph. Old Bridge needed overtime to dispatch the Falcons, with senior forward Elvis Obi scoring the first six points in the extra session to finish with 17 points and eight rebounds on the night. Lance Rogers also played well for the Knights, hitting a clutch foul shot with 2.2 seconds left in regulation to send the game into overtime.

That's it for the local boys, while just two local girls' teams remain in the hunt for the GMCT crown.

With Monroe, South River and Old Bridge all losing first-round games on Saturday, and East Brunswick dropping out on Monday, only Spotswood and Sayreville are still alive entering today's action.

The Chargers (12-12) used an impressive come-from-behind effort to upset 13th-seeded East Brunswick, 41-36, on Monday, behind freshman guard Colleen Duffy's game-high 17 points. Beyond Duffy's exploits, the Bears got a balanced scoring effort and played inspired defense to claim the lead early in the fourth quarter and never look back. Their reward - a third-round match-up with fourth-seeded Cardinal McCarrick tonight.

Sayreville, the 14th seed, held off 19th-seeded Dunellen, 59-45, on Monday as senior guard Erica Latz posted a triple-double (11 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists) to lead the Bombers into the third round. Sayreville, who faces third-seeded South Plainfield tonight, jumped ahead early on Monday, as Keira Williams (14 points) and Holly Miara (13 points, eight rebounds) helped pace a balanced offensive attack.

The GMCT will resume next week, with the boys' quarterfinal games being held at Middlesex County College on Sunday, starting at noon, while the girls' quarterfinals will be held Monday at South Brunswick High School, also starting at noon.

The semifinals are set for Tuesday night for the boys (again at MCC, starting at 5:30 p.m.), and Wednesday night for the girls (at South Brunswick, starting at 5:30 p.m.)

Both finals will take place at Rutgers University Saturday, Feb. 24, with the girls tipping off first at noon and the boys following at 2 p.m.