Teaneck rallies to win in overtime at TOC by Greg Mattura of The Record
TOMS RIVER – Ja’Quaye James began the overtime with a three-pointer from the top of the key and Teaneck was on its way.
The Highwaymen fought back in regulation and emerged with a 70-62 victory over Newark West Side in Friday night’s quarterfinals of the 29th annual Tournament of Champions.
“I knew that would be big just to set it off,” James said.
Teaneck rallied to give Bergen County a quarterfinal sweep, following Don Bosco’s victory over Verona in the first game at Pine Belt Arena on the campus of Toms River North.
“To win a game like that says a lot,” Teaneck coach Jerome Smart said, “because we really didn’t play well at all.”
Fourth-seeded Teaneck (27-6) returns to Pine Belt Arena to face top-seeded Patrick School in Sunday’s 7 p.m. semifinal. In last year’s quarterfinals, Teaneck also defeated West Side, 71-62, and lost in the semifinals to top-seeded St. Anthony.
The Highwaymen led 63-61 after senior guard Leondre Washington (14 points) made the first of two free throws, and extended the margin to 65-61 after 7-foot senior center Pierre Sow scored on a putback of his own miss.
“This was a tough one, we had to grind it out,” Washington said. “We were down the whole game, just like last game, but we knew we were never out of the game.”
Teaneck senior swingman Adrian Baucom missed a hurried three-pointer from the right corner at the fourth-quarter buzzer. West Side missed three of its last four free throws in regulation.
The Highwaymen led 59-58 with 30 seconds left in the fourth after Washington turned a driving banker into a three-point play.
Teaneck was slowed by West Side’s pressure in the first half and trailed, 32-25. James (team-high 21 points) was scoreless in the first half and Washington was held scoreless in the second quarter after scoring five in the first.
Teaneck arrived late for the game, Smart said, because the bus “was caught in traffic,” and the 7:30 start was delayed by more than 20 minutes.
“We got down here at the last minute,” Smart said, “guys weren’t dressed properly, all kinds of things started happening. But to persevere, and find a way to win, to come back after being down [seven points] going into the fourth quarter, that says a lot about the heart of these kids have in them, and the desire to win.”