No. 2 Mighty Oaks make it six in a row, back home over Ocean; Salem women play first game in two weeks, fall at Mercer
MENS BASKETBALL
Salem CC 113, Ocean 90
WOMENS BASKETBALL
Mercer 88, Salem CC 39
By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News
CARNEYS POINT – One of the biggest keys to Salem CC’s deep run to the national tournament last year was its ability to get contributions from throughout the roster. The starters were the engine, but when the reserves went in the game the Mighty Oaks could count on getting something from them to keep the train rolling.
The new group of starters still make the Mighty Oaks go this year, but the new group of reserves are still trying to find their niche.
Second-ranked Salem won its sixth straight Tuesday night, returning home from a weekend away to beat Ocean 113-90.
All five starters scored in double figures (82 points) for the second time this season and had the Mighty Oaks (6-0) on pace to break the scoreboard, but when coach Mike Green gave the second group a chance to show their stuff with a comfortable lead, the Vikings kept it from getting further out of hand.
They hadn’t given up that many points in a game since a 102-93 loss at Camden in the eighth game last season.
“We gave those guys who don’t play as much … some game reps so they can help us later on down the road,” Green explained. “A few of them didn’t appreciate those minutes, so we might have to pull them back.
“We were good offensively, we were good defensive with our first five, six guys. Those guys seven, eight, nine, ten, they’ve got to give us something. If they think they’re going to outscore those starters, they got it all wrong. They’ve got to come guard, they’ve got to make that extra pass, they’ve got to come get a rebound because those five who start are going to score the ball – all year long. Last year we were good from one to 11. We’ve got to get that again.”
“Any team shouldn’t be scoring 90 points on us,” freshman guard Jarrell Little said. “Ninety points is way too much for a team like that, especially if we’re blowing them out.”
It’s not that they’re down on the non-starters, the group just didn’t deliver on this particular night.
“They’ve got it, they’ve just got to come show it,” Green said. “If they come in with the wrong mindset they’re going to struggle more and more and more. But we recruited them for a reason. They have to understand their role on the team.”
The Mighty Oaks’ shooting stroke came around. They were 38-of-132 from 3-point range coming into the game, but hit a season-high 14-of-29 against the Vikings (2-3), tying for third-most in Green’s 58-game tenure as coach. Seven players hit at least one; the starters were 11-for-16. The reason they had a 22-point halftime lead is because they had seven more 3s than the Vikings in the half.
“We want to be around double-digit 3s and we got 14 of them today – and a good percentage, too,” Green said. “We were shooting 28 percent from 3, that’s why teams were zoning us.”
“We were just shooting the ball today,” Little said. “It’s our home gym, we’re supposed to be lighting it up.”
Little was 0-for-10 from beyond the arc the last time the Mighty Oaks played at home, but he nailed the first 3 of the game from the right corner and had three on the night en route to a game-high 23 points. In the three games since that cold home debut, he’s averaging just under 22 points a game and is 8-of-21 from behind the arc.
“My coach always gave me the confidence to shoot the ball; either way, I’m just going to keep shooting,” Little said. “That’s all he put in my brain, just keep shooting, and I worked on it the next day at practice. I was just focusing on being consistent, taking better shots and working on my game.”
He wasn’t the one who’s shot came around. Zyaire Gibson was 2-of-12 from behind the arc in the Mighty Oaks’ two wins at Penn Highlands last weekend, but he hit 4-of-5 in the first half and finished with 14 points.
“He can shoot the ball; we’re just trying to get those guys confident in the shot they’re taking,” Green said. “Saving face when you miss is when you make. You can’t go out there feeling sorry for yourself, the basketball gods don’t care. You can go 0-for-10, they don’t care.”
The Mighty Oaks also got big games from starters Nasseem Wright and Saaid Lee. Wright had 20 points, five rebounds and four assists. Lee, the point guard, bounced back from fouling out Sunday seven minutes into the second half with 15 points and eight assists
“I just wanted to make up for this week; it made me want to be there for my team,” Lee said. “I left them on the water by themselves last game, so I wanted to make sure I was there to do what I’ve got to do and be there for them.”
Salem CC 113, Ocean 90
OCEAN (2-3): A.J. Lemons 6-12 5-6 18, Myles Marabuto 2-4 2-2 7, Jamari Smith 7-10 8-10 22, Aiden Sosinov 4-6 0-0 8, James Gibbons 3-3 0-0 6, Jack Malek 2-3 0-0 4, Kai Barckley 3-5 0-0 6, Omar Hadid 1-2 0-0 2, Aiden Falduto 0-0 0-0 0, Jeremy Grospe 1-5 0-1 2, Mattox Watson 1-1 1-3 4, Tristan Ulrich 0-1 0-0 0, Mason Krye 2-6 0-0 5, Liam Yefet 2-2 0-6 4, Joseph Witter 1-3 0-0 2. Totals 35-63 16-28 90.
SALEM CC (6-0): Jarrell Little 9-15 2-2 23, Saaid Lee 7-10 0-0 15, Zyaire Gibson 5-7 0-1 14, Nasseem Wright 8-15 3-5 20, Stefan Phillips 4-4 0-0 10, Jahseir Sayles 0-3 0-0 0, Jaiayre Wright 1-3 1-2 3, Qua Smith 1-4 5-8 7, Lenar Anderson 3-7 0-1 7, Idris Rines 4-9 4-4 14, Michael Goodwin 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 42-78 15-23 113.
| Ocean | 41 | 49- | 90 |
| Salem | 63 | 50- | 113 |
3-point goals: Ocean 4-18 (Lemons 1-4, Marabuto 1-2, Sosinov 0-1, Barckley 0-2, Grospe 0-4, Watson 1-1, Ulrich 0-1, Krey 1-3); Salem 14-29 (Little 3-6, Lee 1-1, Gibson 4-5, N. Wright 1-2, Phillips 2-2, Sayles 0-3, Smith 0-1, Anderson 1-4, Rines 2-5). Rebounds: Ocean 32 (Yefet 8); Salem 38 (N. Wright 5, Smith 5, Rines 5). Technical fouls: Gibbons. Fouled out: J. Smith. Total fouls: Ocean 20, Salem 19.
Region XIX Standings
| DIVISION III | R19 | ALL | GSAC |
| Union | 5-0 | 5-0 | 4-0 |
| SALEM CC | 4-0 | 6-0 | 2-0 |
| Camden | 4-0 | 4-0 | 2-0 |
| Northampton | 3-0 | 5-0 | |
| Montgomery | 2-0 | 2-1 | |
| Brookdale | 3-2 | 3-4 | 1-2 |
| Atlantic Cape | 2-2 | 2-2 | 1-2 |
| RCSJ-Gloucester | 2-2 | 2-3 | 1-2 |
| Bergen | 2-3 | 2-3 | 1-1 |
| Ocean | 2-3 | 2-3 | 1-2 |
| RCSJ-Cumberland | 1-2 | 1-2 | 1-1 |
| Delaware County | 1-3 | 1-3 | |
| Passaic | 1-3 | 1-3 | 1-2 |
| Sussex | 1-3 | 1-4 | 0-2 |
| Thaddeus Stevens | 0-2 | 2-3 | |
| Luzerne | 0-2 | 1-3 | |
| Harrisburg Area | 0-2 | 0-5 | |
| Philadelphia | 0-4 | 1-4 |
TUESDAY’S GAMES
Salem 113, Ocean 90
Prince George’s 105, Essex 94
Union 84, Atlantic Cape 66
Sussex 68, Luzerne 64
Allegany (Md.) 103, Harrisburg Area 66
Delaware County at Thaddeus Stevens
Brookdale 63, Philadelphia 54
Morris 88, Lackawanna 76
RCSJ-Cumberland at Northampton
Montgomery 67, Camden 65
Passaic 89, Bergen 80
WEDNESDAY’S GAMES
CCBC Dundalk at Delaware Tech
Harcum at Cecil
THURSDAY’S GAMES
Salem at Passaic
Miseracordia JV at Luzerne
SUNY-Broome at Northampton
Bucks at Middlesex
Raritan Valley at Mercer
Philadelphia at Georgian Court JV
Atlantic Cape at Brookdale
Ocean at RCSJ-Gloucester
Sussex at Bergen
Women’s game
WEST WINDSOR – The Salem CC women were playing just their second game of the season and first game in two weeks, and the layoff was evident.
The Mighty Oaks were held to 14 points in the first half and fell on the road to Mercer, 88-39.
“It helped us in a way because our players got healthy,” Salem coach Brian Marsh said of the layoff, “but (it) affected our timing, for sure.”
The Mighty Oaks were shorthanded as it was, but they already were without injured point guard Justine Cardona and Neicy King fouled out in the first half.
“It definitely affected our press break and we had 41 turnovers,” Marsh said. “But they still played hard even very short-handed.”
Mercer’s Alexandra Galan-Garcia led all scorers with 29 points. Evangelina Fransisco had 20. Kasey Oliver and Tanya Shaw led Salem with 13 and 12 points, respectively.
SALEM CC (0-2): Ray’Nescia King 0-1 0-0 0, Tanijya Shaw 4-12 4-5 12, Kasey Oliver 5-11 3-9 13, Dani Gustin 4-9 0-2 8, Breanne Ruhl 0-0 0-0 0, Jayda Hunter 0-6 3-5 3, Paula Wilson 1-8 1-2 3. Totals 14-47 11-24 49.
MERCER (4-1): Evangelina Fransisco 7-14 1-2 20, Mayah Alford 6-10 0-2 12, Zaakirah Edwards 5-16 0-3 10, Gabriella Smith 3-8, 0-0 6, Qui-Mia Wilkins 2-9 1-4 5, Alexandra Galan-Garcia 13-22 2-4 29, Patricia Moore 2-5 0-0 4, Emma Wilke 1-6 0-0 2. Totals 39-91 4-12 88.
| Salem CC | 6 | 8 | 10 | 15- | 39 |
| Mercer | 22 | 20 | 18 | 28- | 88 |
3-point goals: Salem 0-7 (King 0-1, Shaw 0-1, Oliver 0-3, Hunter 0-2); Mercer 6-24 (Fransisco 5-9, Edwards 0-3, Smith 0-4, Wilkins 0-1, Galan-Garcia 1-2, Moore 0-1, Wilke 0-3). Rebounds: Salem 48 (Hunter 12, Oliver 6); Mercer 49 (Wilkins 10, Alford 7). Fouled out: King, Moore. Total fouls: Salem 13, Mercer 22.
Region XIX Standings
| WOMENS DIVISION II | R19 | ALL | GSAC |
| Union | 1-0 | 6-0 | 1-0 |
| Harcum | 1-0 | 4-1 | |
| Mercer | 1-0 | 4-1 | 0-0 |
| Lackawanna | 1-0 | 1-3 | |
| Essex | 0-0 | 3-0 | 0-0 |
| Delaware Tech | 0-0 | 1-6 | |
| Middlesex | 0-1 | 4-4 | 0-0 |
| Raritan Valley | 0-1 | 1-2 | 0-1 |
| Morris | 0-1 | 0-1 | 0-0 |
| SALEM CC | 0-1 | 0-2 | 0-1 |
TUESDAY’S GAMES
Mercer 88, Salem CC 39
Essex 53, Prince George’s 46
Harcum 113, Middlesex 45
Union 84, Raritan Valley 60
Montgomery 44, Camden 43
Passaic 82, Bergen 51
Philadelphia 74, Brookdale 67
Northampton 84, RCSJ-Cumberland 23
Lackawanna 69, Morris 56
Atlantic Cape 73, Sussex 41
THURSDAY’S GAMES
Palm Beach (Fla.) State at Salem CC
Ocean at RCSJ-Gloucester
Raritan Valley at Mercer
SUNY-Broome at Northampton
Sussex at Bergen
Atlantic Cape at Brookdale
RCSJ-Cumberland at Philadelphia
Middlesex at Bronx
Union at Essex
Lackawanna at Five Towns
Allegany (Md.) at Camden
Riverview Sports News 