Jags hope to rebound
in state tournament
SCT loss to Manchester still stinging
Jackson boys
BY MIKE WHITE
Staff Writer
JACKSON — Coach Mike Antenucci had a hunch this team was going to present problems for the Jackson High School boys basketball team

Billed as the unofficial championship of Ocean County, eighth-seeded Jackson and No. 9 Manchester squared off last Friday night in the second round of the Shore Conference Tournament.

Early foul trouble for Kenny Simms, the Jags’ 6-foot-8 center, combined with dismal shooting from the field proved a lethal combination as visiting Manchester rolled to a resounding 86-66 victory.

"It came down to they just wanted this game more than we did," Antenucci said. "We thought that we were a semifinal team coming into this event. We are extremely disappointed in the way this game turned out. We have no excuses. They shot better than we did, beat us on the glass and had more intensity."

Manchester junior Jaron Griffin proved without a doubt he is one of the top players in the Shore. Griffin poured in a career-high 40 points, including 15 in the second quarter as the Hawks swung the momentum in their favor.

Jackson started quickly, darting to a 10-2 lead, and built a comfortable 21-16 cushion after eight minutes.

But when Simms went to the sidelines with his second foul early in the second quarter, Manchester, led by Griffin’s inside-outside attack, went on a run to take a commanding 42-28 lead into halftime.

"No way did I expect that the game would turn as fast as it did," Antenucci said.

Manchester outscored the Jags by a 26-7 margin in the second quarter. Griffin scored 15 of his 40 points in that eight-minute stretch.

"In the first quarter everything was fine," Antenucci said. "We were playing well. Then all of a sudden things changed quickly. Griffin is a legitimate player. You can’t take that away from him. He proved tonight just how good he really is. He stepped up to the plate and gave us all sorts of problems. We had a very difficult time stopping him."

With Simms on the bench, junior forward Jed Marquez sparked the Jackson offense by scoring a team-high 18 points. Senior lead guard Ryan Mogila had 13 points, while Simms finished with 10. Tony Boone chipped in with nine points for the Jags, who fell to 16-5 overall.

Jackson added St. John Vianney and Point Boro to its schedule this week in preparation for the Central Jersey Group IV tournament that starts in March.

The Jags meet the winner of the Sayreville-Manalapan game at home on March 3. Antenucci believes his team has a chance to make a run through this event.

"We need to re-group at this point," he said. "We are a very good team that didn’t play very well in the SCT. We’ll address a few areas where we need to improve and go out and play hard. Anything can happen. We believe we are headed in the right direction as a program."