PISCATAWAY— With an ending score of 54-38 on Thursday night, the Colonia Patriots played with diligence in their game against the St. Joseph Falcons for the Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament final.
Stands at the RAC were filled to the brim with Colonia students, teachers, and local residents to support the underdogs of the night, the Patriots. The Patriots went in with confidence, led by J.J. Corbett, Chase Barneys, and Jodrell Thompson, with a season record of 19-4, ready to face off against the 20-4 Falcons.
The Patriots played like never before; they set a tone of intimidation early in the first quarter with an opening three-pointer. While the Patriots and Falcons remained neck and neck, it was evident that the Patriots were there to win. The starting players flawlessly performed in the half court, scoring consistently, forcing turnovers, and blocking St. Joseph’s shots whenever they had the opportunity.
At the end of the first quarter, the Patriot’s offense ran the court, scoring as the buzzer buzzed, giving them a marginal lead of 15-12.
As the second quarter started, the Patriots still faced a power struggle with their worthy opponents. Shooting once again simultaneously with the buzzer, Colonia increased their lead to 24-19.
During half-time, Colonia Coach Christopher Chiera recalls thinking, “As we approached the locker room at halftime, just have taken a small lead, my focus shifted to keep playing hard, continue executing the game plan, and keep focusing on one another. We wanted to keep taking the game one possession at a time. With an experienced team, I knew we had a chance to be in position to win this game. The players were focused and responded in a passionate manner in the second half.”
With their adrenaline rushing and the refreshing encouragement from their Coach, the Colonia Patriots showed no mercy as the third quarter began. Colonia’s lead went from a slim 6 points to a 10 point lead quickly within the quarter. Corbett managed to score six points himself, as the rest of the team fought off their rivals. Defense in this quarter was especially impressive, as the team was able to limit St. Joseph’s offense to scoring only three 2-point shots.
In the fourth quarter, the Colonia Patriots entered in with the lead. The Patriots played relentlessly, scoring an additional 19 points and restricting the Falcons to scoring a mere 13 points. The Tournament’s MVP, Colonia Senior J.J. Corbett stated that, in regards to winning, “It was exciting because we haven’t beaten St. Joes since I’ve been in high school.”
While this was a hard loss for the St. Joseph Falcons, it is obvious that the Colonia Patriots caught them off guard. According to mycentraljersey, St. Joseph Coach Dave Turco told reporters, “They [Colonia] were the better team today… They didn’t let us do some things that we wanted to, but they just took it to a whole other level and we never had a response for them.”
The Colonia Patriots advanced into the New Jersey State Boys’ Basketball Tournament, and have home-court advantage in the first round, Tuesday, March 3rd at 7 P.M. at Colonia High School against West Morris High School. Tickets will be sold at the door for two dollars for students and three dollars for adults.
