Confusing call in final minute impacts Salem CC’s loss at Philadelphia; women get left behind by Union; includes region standings
By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News
PHILADELPHIA – For the second Tuesday in a row the Salem CC basketball team went on the road to face a team it was chasing in the Region XIX standings and had trouble handling the ball.
That was frustrating enough given the tightness of the standings, but there was something that didn’t sit right with coach Mike Green’s even more in the 62-59 loss to CC of Philadelphia.
The Mighty Oaks were trailing by two with a minute to play when CCP’s Tahjir Davis was fouled under the basket. The contact was hard enough that Davis was forced to leave the game.
The Mighty Oaks believed they would be able to choose Davis’ replacement shooter from the players remaining on the floor. Instead, the Lions sent Kristion Tiller into the game off the bench to take the shots.
Tiller, a 76-percent free throw shooter, hit both shots and the Lions (17-5) stayed ahead the rest of the game. The freshman made three more free throws in the final 30 seconds to keep the Mighty Oaks (17-6) at bay and was 8-for-9 from the line for the game.
“If you watched the live stream you see me arguing with the referees,” Green said. “The kid got hurt and we were supposed to pick a kid who was already in the game. Instead, they let them bring an 80-percent free throw shooter off the bench.
“He wasn’t in the game. We were supposed to be allowed to pick a guy who was already in the game. Of course, if they get to pick they’re going to bring the best shooter they’ve got in to the game.
“I don’t think they understand the rule. I was trying to go back and forth with them about that. They just didn’t understand the rules clearly. It’s a big deal to me. I know the rules. I played for a long time.”
Salem CC athletics director Bob Hughes, who was in attendance at the game, said he would seek clarification from the region office Wednesday.
“I was there and confused as to what happened,” said Hughes, a former college basketball coach. “I will be following up tomorrow.
“I want to get clarity because the rule has changed at least twice in the last 20 years, but my understanding is that as long as the foul is ruled a common foul the opposing coach can select between the four remaining players.”
The Mighty Oaks trailed by nine early in the second half, but rallied to tie it at 46 and held a 51-50 lead with 5:04 to go. But the Lions buried back-to-back 3s and Salem never led again.
Akeem Taylor’s bucket with 5.5 left got Salem to 62-59. Josh Ramos gave the Mighty Oaks a chance to force overtime when he stole the inbounds pass and got it to Taylor for what Green called a “good look” from the left side of the arc, but his 3 missed the mark.
Jyheim Spencer ran down the rebound in the right corner, but he could only redirect an off-balanced 3 towards the basket as time expired.
The Mighty Oaks were only 4-of-29 from 3-point range in the game. Green also lamented their number of turnovers, which he correctly surmised were more than their field goals (22-21).
Taylor led the Mighty Oaks with 14 points. Spencer cleared a career-high 20 rebounds, extending his season average to 15.8 per game. CCP’s Malachi Montgomery led all scorers with 19 points.
PHILADELPHIA 62, SALEM CC 59
SALEM CC (17-6): Dontarius Jones 0-1 0-0 0, Tamir Powell 1-12 2-2 4, A.J. Jones 3-6 0-2 7, Tyrese Fortune 1-7 1-2 3, Josh Ramos 2-7 0-0 6, Xavier Brewington 3-12 1-2 8, Tajee Jordan 0-0 0-0 0, Akeem Taylor 6-17 2-3 14, Jyheim Spencer 3-9 3-4 9, Stefan Phillips 2-6 3-4 7. Totals 21 13-22 59.
PHILADELPHIA (17-5): Regjon Knight 5-18 3-6 15, Malachi Montgomery 8-17 0-3 19, Kristion Tiller 1-2 8-9 11, Maki Pettigrew 0-7 0-1 0, Brince Shelton 2-7 0-0 4, Tahjir Davis 1-3 0-0 2, Jaques Aurel Silue 0-0 0-0 0, Kaleem Henderson 0-0 2-2 2, Devon Stanley 0-2 5-6 5, Dontae Bacon 2-3 0-0 4. Totals 19-59 18-27 62.
| Salem CC | 28 | 31- | 59 |
| Philadelphia | 30 | 32- | 62 |
Women’s game
PHILADELPHIA – The Salem CC women gave one of the best teams in the country a battle for two quarters, but Union showed in the second half why it is the undefeated fourth-ranked team in the country.
The Owls outscored the Mighty Oaks 56-27 in the second half on the strength of 10 3-pointers and pulled away to a 95-54 victory.
The Mighty Oaks had it to 19-15 early in the second quarter, then Union started pulling away. The Owls (21-0) led 39-27 at halftime, then put 34 on Salem in the third quarter. They hit seven of their 12 3-pointers in the quarter with Destiny Bynum Johnson hitting four.
Maggie St. Clair led Salem with 18 points. Union had four scorers in double figures.
The loss didn’t really impact Salem’s road to the playoffs. The Mighty Oaks still need to find two wins among their final five games to earn a post-season berth.
UNION (21-0): Ore Ogunmolere 5-9 0-0 11, Yasmeen Brightwell 3-10 0-0 7, Destiny Bynum Johnson 9-18 2-4 26, Jalaiyah Smith 0-4 2-2 2, Hillary DeLosSantos 6-9 2-2 15, Nyla Williams 2-3 2-2 7, Amiyah Fulton 0-1 0-0 0, Saran Camara 0-1 1-2 1, Cynic Smith 0-2 0-0 0, Sumaya Judd 1-3 0-0 2, Maria Paula Urena Rojas 0-0 0-0 0, Isabellą Edwards 0-2 0-0 0, Ayva Tillmon 1-7 0-0 2, Jaslin Walker 5-7 0-0 14, Gianna Meclis 0-0 0-0 0, Aniya Brown 1-2 1-2 3, Harita Mehmedovic 2-8 1-2 5. Totals 35-86 11-16 95.
SALEM CC (10-9): Nyaijah Jackson 3-9 3-6 9, Caroline Zullo 3-8 0-0 7, Maggie St. Clair 6-14 4-5 18, Kathryn Laurence 2-11 1-2 5, Jakayla Jenkins 0-7 0-0 0, RayNescia King 0-6 1-2 1, Dani Gustin 2-4 0-0 4, Akira Chambers 2-5 0-0 4, Alexa Hopkins 2-2 0-0 6. Totals 20-66 9-15 54.
| Union | 19 | 20 | 34 | 22- | 95 |
| Salem CC | 13 | 14 | 12 | 15- | 54 |
Region XIX standings
| MEN DIVISION III | REGION | ALL |
| Union | 13-0 | 17-3 |
| Montgomery | 12-1 | 15-2 |
| Philadelphia | 12-2 | 17-5 |
| Camden | 11-3 | 13-9 |
| Salem | 10-4 | 17-6 |
| Northampton | 10-4 | 17-4 |
| Brookdale | 11-5 | 15-6 |
| Atlantic Cape | 8-6 | 11-9 |
| RCSJ-Gloucester | 8-6 | 10-12 |
| Passaic | 6-7 | 10-10 |
| Ocean | 5-6 | 9-7 |
| Sussex | 5-9 | 6-16 |
| Lehigh Carbon | 5-9 | 5-14 |
| Delaware County | 5-10 | 6-14 |
| Harrisburg Area | 3-11 | 4-17 |
| Luzerne | 3-11 | 4-12 |
| Thaddeus Stevens | 3-11 | 4-14 |
| Bergen | 2-13 | 3-17 |
| RCSJ-Cumberland | 0-14 | 0-20 |
TUESDAY’S GAMES
Philadelphia 62, Salem 59
Union 110, Lehigh Carbon 65
Brookdale 79, Northampton 73
Montgomery 74, Delaware County 73
Thaddeus Stevens 78, Harrisburg Area 65
RCSJ-Gloucester 94, RCSJ-Cumberland 44
Middlesex 76, Essex 74
Delaware Tech at Mercer
Raritan Valley 95, Lackawanna 90
Orange County 97, Sussex 38
THURSDAY’S GAMES
Brookdale at Ocean
Cecil at Delaware Tech
Essex at RCSJ-Cumberland
Williamson Trades at Harrisburg Area
Raritan Valley at Rockland
Luzerne at Miseracordia JV
Atlantic Cape at Mercer
Montgomery at Lehigh Carbon
Morris at Westchester CC
| WOMEN’S DIVISION II | REGION | ALL |
| Union | 13-0 | 21-0 |
| Harcum | 8-3 | 15-5 |
| Lackawanna | 9-4 | 14-6 |
| Raritan Valley | 7-4 | 13-8 |
| Mercer | 6-5 | 12-5 |
| Middlesex | 4-7 | 9-11 |
| Salem | 4-9 | 10-9 |
| Essex | 2-10 | 4-11 |
| Delaware Tech | 0-11 | 0-17 |
TUESDAY’S GAMES
Union 95, Salem 54
Middlesex 73, Essex 69 (OT)
Lackawanna 80, Raritan Valley 70
Delaware Tech at Mercer
RCSJ-Gloucester 67, RCSJ-Cumberland 27
Sussex 57, Orange County 46
Atlantic Cape 69, Bergen 50
Brookdale 65, Northampton 58
Philadelphia at Passaic
THURSDAY’S GAMES
Harcum at Middlesex
Brookdale at Ocean
Montgomery at Lehigh Carbon
Philadelphia at Bergen
Cecil at Delaware Tech
Raritan Valley at Monroe
Atlantic Cape at Mercer
RCSJ-Cumberland at Northampton
Sussex at Dutchess
RCSJ-Gloucester at Passaic
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