The Bordentown boys’ basketball team was all about making a statement in the opening round of the state tournament.
Bordentown was sharp at both ends of the floor and rolled to a 79-48 victory over Piscataway Technical High School when the NJSIAA Central Jersey, Group 2 sectional tournament began on Feb. 25 in Bordentown.
A strong defensive effort forced numerous turnovers that resulted in easy scoring opportunities for the Scotties.
For Bordentown head coach, John Myers, he made his intentions clear as to how he planned to come after state playoff opponents.
“This who we are – we pressure the ball,” Myers said. “I don’t care if [opponents] know. This is what we’re going to do.”
While the defense limited Piscataway Tech’s scoring opportunities and helped the Scotties secure a 21-point at halftime, the Scotties were led on the offensive side of the ball yet again by their leader throughout this season, Jordan Martin, who connected on 23 points.
Martin found himself as the benefactor of multiple turnovers from Piscataway Tech as he secured the ball to then drive toward the rim.
One particular turnover for Martin even led to a thrilling slam dunk score late in the second quarter that erupted his teammates and hometown crowd into a standing ovation.
“This win proves that we can go on great runs and play as a team, and play energetic,” Martin said.
While Martin’s scoring efforts have helped carry the team this season with opponents having their work cut out in trying to contain the Bordentown forward, Martin pointed out that it was defense this time that helped secure the opening playoff round win.
“In practice before the game, we just worked on defense for an hour and a half,” he said. “We worked on defense and talked about helping defense out for a majority of the game, so [Piscataway] couldn’t handle our press.”
Alongside Martin, Bordentown’s Gavin Shiver helped contribute with 14 points and Christian Burnett came through with 12 points.
Following the state tournament victory, Myers reflected on his team’s approach to opponents throughout the season. Myers noted that his team had a tendency of “playing down” to their competition this year, but said he was proud to see his Scotties assert themselves in their state tournament victory.
“This time, we did not take anything for doubt,” Myers said. “We came in and said that we’re going to defend, we’re going to get out and run, and this what we’re going to do – and took care of the rest.”
The Scotties played in the Central Jersey, Group 2 state quarterfinals against Rumson Fair-Haven on Feb. 27. A victory will send Bordentown to the state sectional semifinals next week.
