March 4, 2012

Hudson Catholic's Mike Young is fouled, but completes the basket in the fourth. (Photo: Jason Bernstein)

Hudson Catholic at Morristown-Beard Basketball Photo Gallery

MORRISTOWN – Fresh off his team’s 21st-straight victory, the disappointment in Hudson Catholic head coach Nick Mariniello’s voice was clear.

Yes, his team had just disposed a feisty Morristown-Beard squad 76-58 in the NJSIAA Non-Public, North B semifinals. But with undefeated St. Anthony looming on Thursday night, the coach knows a similar performance will result in a significantly different outcome.

“I saw some things over the course of the game that didn’t seem like we were playing together and I didn’t necessarily like that,” Mariniello said. “We have three days to clean this up and get ready for the top team in the country. We’re going to do our best to get ready, but we can’t play the way we did today. We’ve got to be firing on all cylinders.”

Despite a clear advantage in size and athleticism, the visiting Hawks (25-2) found themselves in a tight battle in a hostile environment. Leading by as many as 19 early, Hudson Catholic saw its lead cut to six after a transition layup to Brian Bartner with 1:04 left in the third quarter.

“You got to give them credit,” said Mariniello about a Morristown-Beard offense which hit eight 3-pointers in the first three quarters. “Anytime you have a team that can make shots like they made shots and they made some big 3’s, they’re going to keep it close.”

“When they started hitting 3’s we were expecting it, we weren’t surprised or frustrated,” said forward Mike Young. “We just needed to weather the storm and keep playing.”

The third-seeded Hawks did just that with Reggie Cameron draining a 3-pointer with 35 seconds left in the frame and Kavon Stewart scoring off an offensive rebound at the buzzer to make it 54-43.

“Those were huge baskets,” Cameron said. “You always like those buzzer-beating baskets and then starting the new quarter with the ball. It helped us a lot and gave us confidence.”

Young opened up the fourth with consecutive baskets down low to jump-start a 12-3 run over the period’s first 3:39. The towering 6-foot-9 junior had eight of his game-high 24 points in the fourth quarter and also finished with 11 rebounds. He scored eight-straight points, two on a thunderous one-handed slam, in a two-minute span to make it 25-6 in the opening minute of the second quarter.

Cameron connected on four 3-pointers as he finished with 22 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Stewart flirted with a triple-double as he had 11 points, nine rebounds, eight assists and four steals. Grant Ellis added 11 points off the bench.

The second-seeded Crimson (22-5) were paced by Harrison Rosemand’s 19 points. His 3-pointer (one of four he had) ignited a 13-4 run to cut the Hudson Catholic lead down to 10 at the half.

Chris Jenkins hit a trio of 3-pointers to finish with 13 points. Tyler Terrens added 11 points and five assists.

Now Hudson Catholic turns its attention to Thursday night at Rutgers and a shot against St. Anthony. Last year the Hawks had their season end at the hands of the Hawks in a convincing 68-35 defeat.

“We got to play hard. They play harder than anybody we’ve played this year,” Cameron said of their Jersey City opponent. “They’re really talented. But I think we’re ready this year to give a run for their money.”

Reggie Cameron (right) contests the shot of Morristown-Beard's Harrison Rosemond. (Photo: Jason Bernstein)

Hudson Catholic at Morristown-Beard Basketball Photo Gallery