Group 3 Semifinals: Top Takeaways

<p>The Group 3 semifinals were full of excitement as two top seeds were eliminated, while Neptune won at the buzzer. Wall pulled away late from Allentown, while Irvington was in control of the game from the start. Here are some of the top takeaways from Group 3 semifinals.</p> <p><strong>Timber Creek’s senior leaders get the job done</strong></p> <p>The Chargers have been one of the top teams in Group 3 for most of the season and they proved that with a 59-47 victory over Westampton Tech. Forward <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="896657" first="Demetrius" last="Paynter"] </strong>was a load down low as he was able to use his size and frame to create space for himself down low. <strong>Eric Benjmain </strong>was solid on the perimeter, while <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="896688" first="Jalen" last="Bergen"] </strong>and <strong>Justin Bladen</strong> kept <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="929683" first="Tyrese" last="Myrick"] </strong>in check. Timber Creek is looking to win South Jersey Group 3 and the Chargers’ seniors will have to be at their best.</p> <p><strong>Cherry Hill West and Colonia’s upsets shake up the brackets</strong></p> <p>Moorestown and West Morris were both ranked in the top 20, but they were upset at home. Cherry Hill West controlled the pace of the game in the 63-54 upset as <strong>Hakim Melvin </strong>had a game-high 19 points. Senior <strong>Jimmy Frage </strong>lit up West Morris for 19 points in Colonia’s 42-41, which was down from his 24-point performance he had in the final last season. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="896686" first="Ryan" last="Hillier"] </strong>struggled with his offense for West Morris, while Moorestown’s <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="933734" first="Kevin" last="Muhic"] </strong>and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="929515" first="Logan" last="Jagodzinski"] </strong>was unable to get into an offensive rhythm. Cherry Hill West will travel to Timber Creek for the South Jersey final, while Colonia travels to Irvington to defend its North Jersey 2 Group 2 title.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="900360" first="Pat" last="Lacey"]’s big day powers Wall back to the final</strong></p> <p>The Crimson Knights are looking to defend their Central Jersey Group 3 title and they got one step closer with their 80-60 win over Allentown. Lacey was unstoppable for Wall as he had 33 points, nine rebounds and five assists in the game. The junior guard was able to get into the lane at will and made several tough layups through contact. His ability to score at will was needed as <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="896620" first="Quinn" last="Calabrese"]</strong> took a while to get going on offense. Wall gets an opportunity to repeat as Central Jersey Group 3 as the Crimson Knights host Neptune.</p> <p><strong>Irvington dominates Payne Tech to get to the final</strong></p> <p>The Blue Knights have been one of the top teams in Group 3 all season and they showcased that it in their 77-50 victory over Payne Tech. Senior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="896623" first="Moses" last="Pierre"] </strong>eclipsed the 1,000-point mark in the game as he has been stellar all season. Irvington’s defense kept <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="929688" first="Ibn" last="Everette"] </strong>and <strong>Pedro Miranda </strong>in check as they combined to score nine points. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="896627" first="Karriem" last="Thomas"]</strong> and <strong>Kymani Dunbar </strong>were solid complimentary scorers as they took some pressure off of Pierre on offense. Irvington has the opportunity to take home the North Jersey 2 Group 3 title as the Blue Knights take on defending champion Colonia.</p> <p><strong>Neptune gets revenge on Burlington Township at the buzzer</strong></p> <p>Last year, Burlington Township knocked off Neptune on the road and the Falcons were looking to do it again as they took a 30-20 lead into the fourth quarter. The Scarlet Fliers flipped the script in the fourth quarter as they outscored Burlington Township 24-12 to win 44-42. Junior <strong>Andre Harris </strong>scored the winning basket with 2.3 seconds left as he put-back a miss from <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="900292" first="Sam" last="Fagan"]</strong>. <strong>John Paul Oluwadare </strong>had an opportunity to win the game, but his shot was offline and the student section flooded the floor in the victory. Neptune is trying to win its first sectional title since 2012 and will have to get through B North rival Wall to accomplish the feat. </p>