Tenafly Tosses Bergen Catholic Aside

MAHWAH— has made more appearances in the Bergen County Tournament than any other team, but you wouldn’t have known that from watching the opening minutes of their quarterfinal match-up with Tenafly at on Sunday.

The Crusaders found a house of horrors at the Bill Bradley Center, and their 43rd appearance in the Jamboree ended with a whimper. Tenafly blitzed BC for a 13-0 lead four minutes in and coasted to a 59-49 win. Don't let the final score fool you, for it was an outcome determined even before some of the fans had even settled into their seats. BC’s no-show performance was especially disappointing following their upset of (No. 4) Wood-Ridge last week.

Tenafly, No. 5, built a first-quarter lead of 23-8, and led 41-21 by the half.

“They played a near-perfect first half—every shot they took seemed to go in—and that combined with our lack of effort and intensity spelled disaster for us,” said first-year coach Billy Armstrong. “They came out with confidence and executed, and our reaction to everything they did was slow.”

Tenafly was led by senior Chris Orozco (17 points) and junior Steve Sobo (15), and will make its first appearance in the county semifinals since 1955 next Sunday.

“We did what we came to do,” said Tenafly coach Joe Finizio. “We always talk about starting strong, but the kids seemed focused at school and on the bus. A 5 o’clock game on a Sunday is something a little different, but the kids were ready, and they stepped up and performed. I’m really proud of them, and I’m just along for the ride.”

Perplexing as his team's start may have been, Armstrong had seen it before from his young squad.

“That’s been the toughest part of the season for me—our inconsistency,” he said. “We lost a four-point game to DePaul this week when we missed four or five lay-ups in the final minutes, and then we had a game against Hackensack where we played like we did tonight.”

BC managed to get untracked in the fourth quarter, outscoring Tenafly 21-8, to provide the illusion the game was much closer than it was. Having been behind 51-28 after three quarters, Armstrong said offensive production will dictate BC’s fortunes as they enter the homestretch of their season.

“With 28 points after three quarters—we aren’t going to beat many teams with that kind out output,” said Armstrong. “All season, I haven’t known who is going to show up [offensively] from game-to-game. If things had gone the way they were supposed to in the first quarter, I like to think we could have given Tenafly a game.”

BC now drops to 10-10 on the season, and has four regular-season games remaining before a state tournament date with Delbarton at home on Feb. 27. BC, the eighth seed, and Delbarton, No. 9, play for the right to square off against top-seeded top-seeded Seton Hall Prep.

“The kids have been pretty resilient all year long and it’ll be interesting to see which way we go,” said Armstrong. “I’ve got to think the kids will be ready.”