VIDEO: Cranford Boys Knocked Out of UCT Action By Rahway

Rahway battled back from a nine-point lead in the fourth to beat Cranford 51-49 in Union County Tournament play Wednesday night. Despite individual star performances, the Cougars lost the ball in too many turnovers to barely clinch the game.

With under two minutes to play, the Cougars seemed to be in good shape. But Rahway turned up the heat, forced several key turnovers and made the most of their offensive chances in the final minute to stun the Cougars at Roselle Catholic High School in Roselle.

Cranford, the division champions, held a 42-31 lead early in the fourth quarter, and was still up by three after a Sean Trotter free throw. But Rahway pushed it down the court and Kazim Smith, who struggled much of the night, hit a three-pointer to tie it at 49-49. The Indians then trapped on the inbounds pass, stole the ball and Smith banked home a layup with :05 left to take the lead.

After a Cougar timeout, Joey Papandrea heaved a long ball down the right flank to Nick Pace who tossed up a desperation shot which fell short, and the upset was official.

"We called time out, we told the kids they were going to come down and shoot a quick three," said Cranford head coach Ryan Huber. "We didn't step up and make a play right there. We told them it was coming, they knew it was coming, but we didn't step up and make a play."

Sixth-seeded Cranford had defeated 11-seed Rahway twice earlier this season, the most recent coming in a thrilling 68-67 overtime win. After a 0-5 start, Rahway has improved to 11-8, winning 10 of their last 13. Did the Indians have a better game plan this time around?

"I don't think so at all," said Huber. "At the end of the game, they needed to make a play and we didn't make a play. That's all it was."

"We had played them twice already, they beat us both times," said Rahway coach Kevin Conroy. "Last time we played them we were down seven with a minute to go, so I think the kids really believed they could do it. It's a tribute to these kids. They never gave up."

While Smith was the late-game star, budding sophomore Hareem Kornegay kept his team within striking distance by burying a game-high 20 points. Rahway finished the game with an 11-5 run.

"He's going to be a great, great player," said Conroy of Kornegay. "He's only a sophomore, but he's really become the leader of this team. They feed off him a lot. I thought he played fantastic."

The Cougars were led offensively by junior Sean Trotter, who stepped up with a game-high 22 points. Chris Gross and Will Green had 11 apiece, with Green bothered by a bad ankle throughout the game.

"I rolled it in the first quarter," said Green. "I battled through it."

Foul trouble also plagued the Cougars.

"Trotter got into foul trouble early and I think that kind of hurt us."

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