Despite foul trouble, Saif Saleh finished with 16 points and 13 rebounds for Clifton, which snapped a six game skid with a 41-36 win over Bergen Tech.

CLIFTON – Suffering one close loss after another will test the resolve of any basketball team, especially one that high expectations coming into the season. That sums up the first month for Clifton, which came into Thursday’s Big North-Liberty Division tilt against Bergen Tech on a six-game losing streak. Five of those losses came by seven points or less. Between the losses and being bitten by the injury bug, the Mustangs could have folded up their tent and figured this to be a lost season. But with a pair of seniors leading the way, they looked to right the ship and become a dangerous out come time for the Passaic County Tournament.

With standout forward Saif Saleh saddled with foul trouble all game, fellow senior Gabe Cruz stepped up while Saleh was on the bench. He hit 3-pointers to end the second and third quarters before Saleh’s free-throws in the waning seconds ices the game as Clifton its slide with a 41-36 triumph at Clifton High School.

“It feels good just to get a win especially over a team that plays a different style than the other teams we play,” said Clifton head coach Mike Cadmus. “We’ve lost a lot of close games this season but we’ve never stopped working. It’s a big morale boost for our team to be on the right side of one of these close games. Hopefully, we learn from this how to win at this level and tomorrow it’s right back to work.”

After an entertaining first quarter, both defenses dug in and started to make their imprint on the game. It looked like Bergen Tech could grab some momentum when Saleh picked up his third foul with 2:59 to play in the half. Clifton answered back with a three from the corner by Evan Ynoa and another from Cruz to end the half with a 28-21 lead.

“Saif does so much stuff for us inside, with him out I had to step up,” said Cruz. “Bergen Tech likes to slow the game down and they have tough guards. We had to stay patient and take good shots when we had the opportunity.”

Bergen Tech's Dean Aminyar finished with a game-high 19 points..

Bergen Tech went to a box-and-one on Saleh and was able to neutralize him in the second half. But turnovers were a problem as they turned the ball on five of its first six possessions to start the third quarter. The Mustangs took advantage and opened their lead to double-digits before five quick points off the bench from Aidan Napoleon trimmed their ten-point lead in half. The lead was still five when Saleh was called for his fourth foul with a minute remaining in the third quarter. Once again, the Mustangs needed a bucket and it was Cruz who provided it with a 3-pointer to bump the lead back up to eight at the end of the third quarter, 35-27.

“Every time we turn the ball over, it’s a chance to score that was wasted,” said Bergen Tech head coach Stephen Lastra. “We don’t have to go a hundred miles an hour, it’s about being composed and making the correct decision. I thought we played really hard the whole way and made a great adjustment on Saleh. In our league, you can’t play a good quarter or a good half, it has to be a full 32 minutes. But that’s a well-coached team over there and they made a few more plays than we did. It’s a tough loss, but there is nothing else we can do but learn from it.”

The Knights were unable to make any headway while Saleh sat for the first four minutes of the fourth quarter. But with Saleh back on the floor and the Knights desperate to give themselves a chance at the end, Dean Aminyar stepped up. He scored seven points in less than two points to make it a one-possession game.

It was a 3-point game and Bergen Tech had a chance to tie in the final minute, but the shot was off with Saleh pulling down the rebound and getting fouled. He stepped to the line with 20 seconds left and knocked down the clinching free-throws as the Mustangs breathed a collective sigh of relief as the final buzzer sounded.

Even with the foul trouble, Saleh finished with team-highs of 16 points and 13 rebounds. Evan Ynoa added 11 points, Cruz added 8 and Trumain Lawson had 7 rebounds and a made field goal for Clifton. Aminyar (19 points) scored more than half of his team’s total.

“We communicated a lot better today and I think that helped us get the win,” added Cruz. “Except for one game, we’ve been in every game. We know we have to take care of the ball and execute better. When the (Passaic) county tournament comes, we want to be the team nobody wants to play. This wasn’t the start we wanted for this season, but we hope this win gets us back on track.”

FOR MORE PHOTOS FROM THIS EVENT PLEASE CLICK HERE. TO BUY A COLLECTOR'S PRINT OF THIS STORY PLEASE VISIT 4-FeetGrafix.com.