Middletown South Holds Off Long Branch For Fourth Win In A Row

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MIDDLETOWN – On the same day Middletown South climbed to No. 7 in the most recent APP Boys Basketball Top 10, they beat another hot team in division rival Long Branch 51-45 for their fourth win in a row, including wins against No. 9 Matawan and No. 10 Marlboro.

Middletown South (7-3, 3-1) entered the season without much fanfare after graduating a strong senior class and returned just one player, James Anderson, who saw meaningful minutes last year. However, this year’s junior-laden team has exceeded expectations and now sits in third place in the rugged Class A North behind No. 5 Freehold Township and No. 6 CBA.

“Absolutely,” said junior guard Jack Sheridan when asked if the team was underestimated and if they use it as motivation. “We’ve all been playing together forever. We had a great J.V. season last year – I think we were 22-5 or something like that – and it's pretty much all the same guys that are starting now. So, we all know how we play and we do a good job of getting each other open and playing together. Part of our game plane was staying low key and shocking some people along the way.”

Even with the big turnover in personnel, head coach Jim Anderson knew this team had the potential to be a very good team.

“These guys were blocked out by a load of seniors last year but you could see in practice that they were going to be solid,” Anderson said of this year’s team. “We had a good off season and played well wherever we went.

“A lot of people did underestimate us but even though we’re young we think we can be pretty good,” added Anderson. “Maybe our time has come a little early but this was a tough win in a trap type of a game. Long Branch we knew was solid and had three straight wins and they have a load of guys that are coming off that state championship football team. Those guys are winners and gave us a good battle and we’re fortunate to have won.”

Yesterday’s win sets up a huge out of division contest against No. 4 Red Bank Catholic, who just picked up a statement win knocking off No. 2 Manasquan 62-50 Thursday on its home court, in Saturday’s elite Hoop Group Boardwalk Showcase.

Sheridan and sophomore Luke Albrecht each had a game-high 12 points with Sheridan adding a team-high five assists, three steals and two rebounds while Abrecht had three assists and two boards along with his 12 points.

After a disappointing start to the season, Long Branch had won three in row including wins over a tough Ewing squad and an eight-point win over Marlboro.

“They (Long Branch) had a big win over Marlboro who we had played earlier in the week and we beat them, but they were a good team,” said Sheridan. “So, we knew Long Branch was going to come in and give us a game and they did, but we stuck it out, stuck to our game plan and pulled out the win.”

The Eagles never trailed in the first half and led at halftime 20-17 but Long Branch came out hot and scored the first two buckets of the second half to take their first lead of the game 21-20 at 6:17 of the third quarter.

An offensive rebound and put-back by 6-foot-4 senior center Dan Mitchinson gave the lead back to the Eagles but Tyrone Hastings then nailed a three-pointer for a 24-22 Long Branch lead four minutes into the third quarter.

Sheridan’s three-pointer gave the advantage back to the Eagles and he followed that up with a short jumper and Middletown South led 27-24 with 3:23 left in the third quarter.

“We just stick to our game plan to find the open guys and that just happened to be me,” said Sheridan. “So, knocking down big shots is part of our game plan.”

However, with 1:39 left in the quarter Devyn Blount scored underneath to tie the game 29-29. Anderson then sparked an 8-0 Eagles run dropping a three-pointer enroute a 37-29 lead with 22 seconds left in the third. Albrecht followed Anderson’s three with one of his own and junior guard Richie Boyko added two during the run.

Long Branch senior guard Marc Dennis, star quarterback of the Green Waves state championship team, got two back as the quarter ended with the Eagles up by six, 37-31.

Middletown South pulled out to a 10-point advantage, 45-35, on a Sheridan three with 4:51 left in the game, but Dennis cut the Eagles lead to six, 47-41, hitting a jumper just inside the three-point arc at the 2:44 mark.

After a Mitchinson layup, Albrecht hit one of two free throws to go up 50-41 with 1:27 left but here’s where things got a little dicey for the Eagles.

A free throw and a Hastings three-pointer cut the Eagles lead to five, 50-45, with 50 seconds left. South then turned the ball over on their ensuing possession giving Long Branch a chance to cut the lead to two, but a Dennis three-pointer was off the mark and junior forward Mike Dabas grabbed the rebound for the Eagles to seal the win. Albrecht was then fouled at the other end and he hit one of two for the final score, 51-45.

As usual, without an established star on the team per se, the Eagles scoring was spread out. Aside from Sheridan and Albrecht’s 12 points: Mitchinson added eight points, five rebounds and a steal, Dabas had five points, eight boards and a blocked shot, Anderson knocked down two big three-pointers for six points along with four rebounds and three assists and Bobby Pirie scored all of his six points in the fourth quarter helping the Eagles get over the hump.

“The kids are great about it. There’s no ego, no selfishness, they know the more the ball moves the better off we’re going to be,” said Anderson. “Jack’s a solid two-guard and at times a point guard for us and play’s well off a James (Anderson). Bobby (Pirie) hit some big shots for us in the second half, he’s a real nice basketball player. It was a total team effort."

It was also a quality win for the Eagles who could’ve easily fell into a trap and looked past Long Branch with their big game against RBC looming Saturday. But they stayed focused as a team throughout and got the job done against a tough opponent.

“This gives us a ton of confidence going into our game with RBC,” Sheridan said. “We’re definitely going to use this little win streak to motivate us to get a big win Saturday.”

Saturday’s Middletown South and Red Bank Catholic game will tipoff at 5:00 p.m. at Brookdale’s Collins Arena.

“We have the RBC game on Saturday but I don’t think the guys looked ahead to it, it was just a matter of we didn’t make as many shots as we normally do,” said Anderson. “When we make shots, we’re really a tough team to play.

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