Caleb Berkowitz chipped in offensively and was a stalwart on defense as Tenafly advanced to the Jambo semis for the first time since 2012 with a 45-39 win over Don Bosco Prep.
HACKENSACK – At the cutoff for the Bergen County Jamboree Tenafly was undefeated and Don Bosco Prep was two games under .500, so the seeds made sense. Tenafly got the No. 2 behind Bergen Catholic and Bosco got the No. 7, which maybe could have been argued that was either a couple too high or a couple too low but certainly right in the ballpark.
Still, when both made it through to Sunday's quarterfinal round it was still hard to process that Tenafly, the suburban, one-town-sending-district public school, was indeed supposed to win, that it was five seeds better than the perennial non-public powerhouse whose point guard from two years ago is now in the running for Rookie of the Year in the NBA.
Shortly after allowing just six second half field goals in a 45-39 win over Bosco on Sunday at the Bogota Savings Center on the campus of Fairleigh Dickinson University, Tenafly senior Caleb Berkowitz asked a valid question: "Who is the Goliath now?"
It's Tenafly. The Tigers are 19-0, they are in the Jambo semifinals for the first time in 14 years and they are unafraid of any opponent that crosses their path. In terms of the Jambo, next up in No. 3 St. Mary, which eliminated No. 6 Hackensack in the first game of Sunday's quarterfinal quadruple header.
Tenafly earned a spot in the county semifinals for the first time since 2012 and for just the second time since 1955. Another stat that needs further investigation is that Tenafly's Jeff Koehler might be the first head coach ever to lead both the girls and boys programs from the same school to a Bergen County Tournament Final 4. If not (and Teaneck's Curtis March might be another) Koehler is the first this century to do it having led the Lady Tigers to the semis back in 2003.
"It's all about foul shots, making them, and taking care of the ball at the end. These guys did that, the six guys that played and the guys that worked the scouting report yesterday. It's a total program effort," said Koehler. "It's nice to be back in the Final 4. I haven't been there since 2003 with the girls and to do it with this group is such an awesome feeling. I wish you could just bottle it."
JP Skoric finished with a team-high 11 points for Don Bosco Prep..
Tenafly is not the kind of team that is going to out athlete every opponent it runs up against, especially as the stakes get higher in postseason. What the Tigers do so well is play to the strengths that they do have and rarely deviate from what works for them. They limit turnovers, share the ball, help defensively and knock down open shots and free throws.
The Tigers made three of their five 3-pointerss in the game in the third quarter when they turned a 5-point halftime deficit into a 34-31 lead after three periods and, after not attempting a free throw in the first half, they went 8-for-10 from the stripe in the second half and 6-for-7 in the fourth quarter.
It was a rock fight at the outset with Bosco leading 9-7 after the first quarter and by 17-12 at the intermission.
"We knew coming in that it was going to be a little sloppy because Bosco is one of the best defensive teams in the state. We knew we would be rushed a little and that is what happened in the first quarter," said Adin Goldschneider, Tenafly's junior guard. "We talked in the locker room about slowing down and playing our game because that is what gets us wins and that is what we did."
Tenafly's offense came around in the second half, but its defense was a constant from the opening tip. Berkowitz, a senior listed at 6-foot-2, drew the assignment of guarding Bosco's 6-foot-8 senior JP Skoric, who has committed to play at Division 1 Merrimack next season. Skoric led the Ironmen with 11 points, but he had to fight for every one of them. Berkowitz tried to move Skoric off the block and when he did catch the ball in the post Berkowitz chested up and looked for the charge. He drew a couple of them.
"Caleb is such a difference maker in getting the charge and that can neutralize even the best players," said Koehler. "They don't attack as much."
Berkowitz was looking forward to his assignment.
Adin Goldschneider scored 10 points for Tenafly, which is now 19-0 on the season..
"We know how talented they are. We did our scouting report, they told me I would be guarding No. 1, JP, and he is great, but that is a matchup that I wanted from the beginning," said Berkowitz. "It was just another challenge. Our little Tenafly team, we find a way every time and that is what I love about us so much."
Berkowitz chipped in on offense, too, as his lone field goal of the game, a 3-pointer from the corner with 5:40 left in the first half, tied the game at 22 and he was 4-for-4 from the free throw line in the final 16 seconds, which sealed the victory. His 7 points and the 6 Jase Harris scored, also all in the second half, meant that Tenafly pretty much played even in the frontcourt against the longer Don Bosco forwards.
"This was crazy. This was the first time that I have ever experienced something like this, in a stadium like this, the whole vibe," said Harris, a 6-foot-3 junior. "It was tough in the beginning. We were playing good defense, we just couldn't put the ball in the hoop. But we trust each other, we know that we can come back and we are a third quarter team. Koehler gave us confidence at halftime. He told us that he knew we could win this game. He told us we had the tools, we just had to utilize them."
Bosco took its last lead, 22-19, on a Carson Reynolds 3-pointer with 6:02 left in the third quarter and right before Berkowitz's 3. Tenafly led 34-31 heading into the final period and the last tie of the game came at 36 with Skoric hitting a 3 off a turnover right out of a Tenafly timeout with 5:25 left in the game.
Baldini put Tenafly back in front for good with a third-try opportunity with 4:40 left and Goldschneider made it a two-possession game with a step-back make. He also had a big steal with 24 seconds to go and Bosco trailing by two and Berkowitz then made the four straight attempts from the line to ice it.
Skoric was the lone Ironman to finish in double figures. Kaden Slade had 9, including a 4-for-4 at the line; Reynolds made two 3-pointers, the only other DBP player to make more than one field goal in the game.
Baldini (16 points), who scored 8 of Tenafly's 12 first half points, led all scorers and Goldschneider added 10. Berkowitz and Harris combined for 13, Nick Lewin added 5 and Alex Monalang made a fourth quarter free throw to push Tenafly into the semifinals against No. 3 St. Mary next Sunday.
"This is a great opportunity and I am so excited. St. Mary's is a great team with Matt Kennedy and all of those guys. They play so well together, but we are not backing down from anybody," said Goldschneider. "We are going to practice all week, we are going to be prepared for that game and we are looking forward to it."
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