Eastside holds on against Passaic Tech by Greg Mattura of The Record
WAYNE – Eastside continues to adjust to the absence of All-State senior guard Nhazir Smith.
The Ghosts lacked the leadership down the stretch that Smith brings and it almost cost them in a 77-69 victory over Passaic Tech on Tuesday in Big North Liberty Division boys basketball.
Eastside, No. 3 in The Record Top 25, allowed an 18-point lead to shrivel down to two points in the final minutes before sealing the win with four free throws in the final minute.
“He’s a top-20 player in the state,” Eastside coach Juan Griles said of Smith, “and it definitely affects your team.”
Smith averaged 17.6 points and 5.0 assists last season while leading Eastside to a third consecutive Passaic County title, and his experience was especially missed in the fourth quarter as the team lost some of its cohesiveness.
“He’s currently not with the team,” Griles said of Smith, explaining, “He’s going through some personal family issues.”
Griles said, “there’s a chance” Smith could return this season, “but I think it’s more important for him to be able to deal with the family issue first.”
Eastside allowed a 36-18 second-quarter lead to be cut to 67-65 with less than three minutes remaining. The Ghosts committed too many fouls and unforced turnovers and didn’t close out on Passaic Tech shooters.
In the final minute, Ghosts junior guard Yohely Ortiz made three of four free throws and senior swingman Felix Ramos made one of two to seal the win. Ramos had helped build a double-digit lead by shooting 5-for-6 on 3-pointers and sharing game-high scoring honors with 18 points.
“We had some mental lapses where we didn’t defend the ball,” Ramos said, “or grab some hustle plays that we could have, but thankfully we won.”
Passaic Tech (2-5) came as close as 67-65 after senior guard Derrick Cuavers hit an NBA-length 3-pointer from the left wing and senior guard Justin Wells followed with a steal and layup to trigger an Eastside timeout with 2:59 remaining. Senior guard Julian Briggs led the Bulldogs with 18 points.
“I thought we kept our composure for the most part,” said Passaic Tech coach Mike Boorman, whose team was hurt by foul trouble and trailed at halftime, 43-30. “At halftime, we talked about, ‘Hey, listen, if we get this under 10, we have an opportunity to win,’ and the kids really bought into that.”
Eastside will need to buy into better execution at both ends down the stretch if it wants to win a fourth consecutive Passaic crown and challenge for a North 1, Group 4 title. That means learning to play without Smith.
“In sports and in the game of basketball, it’s a team game, so that means different guys have to step up to try and compensate for some of the things that he brings to the table,” Griles said. “However, certain things that he brings you just don’t replace. His experience – he was a starter for three years – so you don’t get that. Late in games, he got a free throw or [drew] a foul. He never turns the ball over.
“So that you just can’t bring overnight. Some of our younger guards haven’t been in that position before, and even some of our guards that were here, they haven’t been in the position, because he was always in that position. So they have to go through that phase.”