February
7, 2005
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| Jimmy Taranto (1) survived a physical pounding to lead Ramapo past Demarest and into the Bergen County Tournament quarterfinals. | |
TENAFLY - Last month, Demarest played a solid game in defeating Ramapo in a regular season game by a 66-50 score. On Sunday in the opening game of the Jamboree quadruple header at Tenafly High School, the two teams met up again.
This time around, the Raiders played from in front from the beginning of the second quarter on, eventually burying the Norsemen in a sea of free throws in the fourth quarter on the way to a 60-43 win. Ramapo's victory earned them a return engagement with top-seeded St. Joseph (who defeated the Raiders 56-30 in the Indian Hills Christmas tourney) in the quarterfinals next week at 7:00 p.m. at Paramus High School.
Ramapo
went the family route the day before the game, bringing in sports psychologist
Dr. Robert Gilbert from Montclair State to spend an afternoon with team.
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| Christian Marghella's basket to start the fourth quarter had N/V Demarest within five points. |
"We just wanted to do something that would get us focused on how well we could play as a team," Ramapo head coach Joe Del Buono explained, 'We're not big, but we play hard. We're kind of like the little engine that could, and I'm excited about where we are."
The two areas where Ramapo excelled were rebounding and foul shots. The Raiders had a 36-22 advantage on the glass, consistently leaving the Norsemen with one shot. In fact, Demarest had only 6 second chance points in the game.
"We worked on boxing out and not leaving the shooters," Steven Hunt, who had 15 rebounds, offered. "We concentrated on not looking to block the shots but staying on the ground and grabbing the rebound, and it worked for us."
The fourth
quarter saw the Raiders break the game open at the free throw line. Owning
a 46-38 lead with 3:24 left, they converted 12 of 15 foul shots. They were
21 of 27 in the game, compared to just 2 of 4 for Demarest.
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| Shooter Hunt pulled down 15 rebounds to help Ramapo control the glass. |
"Foul shots put you in the game, foul shots keep you in the game, and foul shots win you the game," Del Buono said of his team's 21 of 27 free throw shooting.
The game saw enough contact to resemble a football game, appropriately enough on Super Bowl Sunday, as the referees allowed the teams to play aggressively. It worked for Ramapo, but the Norsemen never got fully untracked.
"They were scrappy," Demarest head coach Bob Rudolph admitted, "and their intensity level was higher than ours. Our team usually plays with a great deal of intensity, but we didn't have it today. This might have been our worst game of the season. No excuses. They outplayed us and outworked us.'
Both teams were cold in the 10:00 a.m. start, playing to an 8-8 tie after one period. Ramapo then got the first flurry, as Taylor Van Ordan drove for a basket to start the second period. Jim Taranto followed with a three-point field goal and Bill Bronander hit a layup to make it 15-8.
The Raiders
increased the margin to a high of nine before the half, but three-pointers
by Jarrett Solimando and Rich Guillod allowed Demarest to close it to 28-23
at halftime.
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| Demarest's Jarrett Solimando had 12 points to lead the Norsemen. |
Demarest was within four at 34-30 late in the third quarter, but Taranto hit two free throws and Hunt hit one on a foul at the buzzer to make it 37-30 entering the final quarter. Ramapo then opened the floor for Taranto, who must have hit the floor hard at least five times without a foul being called.
"We spread them out a bit and tried to use some of the clock," Del Buono added. "This was a real rough and tumble game, and we played bigger than we are."
"They're a big rival, and its always a physical game," Taranto, who must have felt like he was on the soccer field for Virginia in the ACC instead of the basketball court, said. "We knew we had to match their intensity for the whole game, because they have that ability to come back."
Christian Marghella scored a basket for Demarest to start the fourth quarter, but that spread offense got A.J. Pisarri open for a layup and Bronander alone for a three-pointer that gave Ramapo its first double digit lead and set the stage for the march to the foul line.
"We feel that Jimmy can take anybody with the ball," Hunt said, "so we'll spread the court out and let him take his shot or kick it out for the threes."
Demarest shot 18 of 52 from the field, including just 9 of 30 in the second half. Kellen Hayes and Solimando each had 12 points to pace the Norsemen, and Hayes added 13 rebounds and 4 blocked shots. Ramapo was 18 of 48 from the floor, a number they will definitely have to improve upon if they want to turn the tables on St. Joseph next weekend.
"We know we'll be the underdogs, but we'll come out and play hard and see what happens," Taranto said.
FOR MORE PHOTOS FROM THIS GAME OR TO BUY A COLLECTOR'S PRINT OF THIS STORY, CHECK OUT THE NJS.com SCHOOL STORE!
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