If you fail to execute fundamentals in basketball, it will cost you wins, Chatham High School (N.J.) Boys’ hoops longtime coach Todd Ervin noted, as the Cougars dropped its game, 61-57, to New Providence at home Friday night in the final day of the Cougar Classic.
“In close games, you miss layups, and you miss free throws, it’s going to cost you,” Ervin explained. “They made all their free throws; we didn’t. I don’t know what they were from the line, but it was pretty good, and we weren’t. Like I said, layups and free throws, that’s been our Achille’s heel all year. When we win, we make them. When we lose, we don’t.”
Both teams played to a first quarter 8-8 stalemate. But it was the second period where things started to slip away from Chatham (2-5), as the Pioneers (4-3) outscored the opposition, 19-7, good for a 27-15 New Providence advantage at the break.
Not to be outdone, sophomore Michael MacAniff scored the Cougars’ first six points of the second half that sliced the deficit to 30-21 with 6:17 to go in the third period. Senior Remy deVerenne made good on an and-1 that narrowed the game’s margin to 30-24 with 5:16 left in the third quarter.
MacAniff cut the Pioneers’ lead to four points (34-30) with 4:05 to go in the third period. But New Providence answered with a three-pointer before the 6-foot-7 Quinn Burke came right back and nailed one of his own with 3:07 to go in the third.
Unfortunately for Chatham, the Pioneers went on an 8-3 run to make it 42-33 with 2:33 remaining in the quarter. Again, Burke took it upon himself and scored five straight points to narrow the gap at 42-38 with 1:34 left in the third period.
But New Providence closed out the quarter ahead by seven points (49-42).
Pioneer senior center Peyton Pazdera opened up the fourth period scoring by burying one from behind the arc that made it 51-42 with 7:13 remaining in the affair.
Cougar senior Micheal Tedesco sank two free throws and junior Will DesMarais drained a three to make it a three-point game with 6:26 to go in the tilt.
However, the Pioneers outscored Chatham, 5-0, over the next 3:01 before deVerenne connected on a three pointer to shrink the margin to 56-51 with 3:13 left in the game.
But New Providence made five of six shots from the charity stripe the rest of the way to lockdown the victory.
Before the season, Ervin said that youth and offensive pitfalls would be an issue for the Cougars. But it is still early in the campaign, and there is a measure of room and time for improvement.
“We’re just inexperienced,” Ervin said. “We’re young, and don’t have a lot of playing experience. We knew before the year that we were going to struggle to score points. And that’s what it has been. We have quarters where we struggle to get baskets. But it’s a long year, and we’re going to keep at working at it.”
MacAniff led Chatham with 17 points, while Burke contributed 13 in defeat. Pioneer senior forward Cory Rust scored a game-tying-high 17 points and Pazdera added 14 points and five rebounds in triumph.
— Jerry Del Priore
NY NJ Sports World/Brooklyn Sports World 