Bulldogs fall just short in title game
BY SHAWN LAYTON
Staff Writer

Metuchen's Jon Brown goes strong to the hoop during the Bulldogs' CJGroup I final against Bordentown on March 7 in Franklin. Below, one look at the Metuchen bench says it all as the Bulldogs react to their heartbreaking loss.

METUCHEN - Sam McDuffie's 20-point performance in the fourth quarter proved too much to overcome for the borough high school boys basketball team, as the Bulldogs fell to McDuffie's Bordentown team, 75-73, in the NJSIAA Central Jersey Group I title game last week.

McDuffie led all scorers with 42 points, and senior Marqus Blakely led the Bulldogs with 27 points to go with his 13 rebounds, seven steals and seven assists. After coming back from an 11-point deficit in the fourth quarter, Bordentown sealed the win on a pair of free throws from Brandon Fraser with 1.6 seconds on the clock.

"We were in control for most of the game," Metuchen head coach Rich Stoner said. "We pretty much did what we wanted. For most of the game, we executed well and got some easy layups, but we couldn't stop McDuffie. He just went crazy in the fourth."

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For the Bulldogs, it was their second loss in the sectional finals in as many years. Last year, the team lost to Florence in the title game.

"Granted we didn't get to win a championship, but not too many teams get a chance to play for one," Stoner said. "It was still a very successful season and we really helped bring the Metuchen community together, and I guess sometimes that's more important than winning championships."

The Dogs finished the year with a record of 22-3 and the highest winning percentage in school history. Two of its three losses came in championship games with the first loss suffered at the hands of Colonia in the Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament.

"I said to a friend that we kind of feel like the Buffalo Bills of the early '90s" Stoner said. "We should have had the championship, but we just didn't make our free throws down the stretch."

In the loss to Bordentown, Metuchen went 14-for-25 from the foul line and made just six-of-12 attempts in the final quarter.

Despite coming up short in two title games, the Bulldogs finished the year division champions thanks in large part to its three seniors - Marqus Blakely, Nick Storts and Steve Thomas.

Blakely finished his basketball career by leading the team in scoring with 20 points per game. He also averaged just under 10 rebounds per game.

"Marqus had two great seasons under me," Stoner said. "A true floor leader is something we lacked last year, and this season Marqus really stepped up and filled that void. He's a tremendous talent with a great career ahead of him."

Storts will be missed for his deadly shooting from the perimeter that complimented the inside game of Blakely so well this season.

"Nick really emerged as an outside threat," Stoner said. "He made our offense more lethal because he could knock down the jump shot. He was a great defensive player as well."

For Stoner, Storts' performance against Cardinal McCarrick stands out as one of the many highlights this season.

"With the game on the line, Nick came through," Stoner said. "When we were in foul trouble, he carried the team and hit big shot after big shot."

Like Storts, Thomas gave the Bulldogs a lift on the defensive end of the floor with relentless tenacity.

"Steve was one of the hardest-working kids on this team," Stoner said. "While Marqus led by example, Steve was the vocal leader. He really set the tone for us defensively, and his accomplishments were based on hard work and conditioning. He was a big reason we played the way we did this season."

Despite the significant losses the team suffers with the departures of Blakely, Storts and Thomas, the return of Jon Brown, Dejuan Miller and Lamar Nichols to the lineup next season bodes well for future success.

"It was definitely a disappointing way to end the year, but I told the kids that this was something to learn from," Stoner said. "Hopefully, we will learn from it and get back in the title game next year."