Sunday,
March 3, 2014
By Rich Barton
NJS.com Staff Writer
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Shekinah Suber gets a hug after her clutch play down the stretch helped Lincoln to a 46-45 win over Bayonne and a third straight Hudson County championship, all in dramatic fashion. |
UNION CITY – She'Kinah Suber does not see herself as a dramatic person nor is she a big fan of roller-coaster rides. But when it comes time for the Hudson County Tournament, Lincoln's guard not only has a flair for drama but will also take her team on a wild ride of spurts in which her play often dictates how well her team is playing. She had a major hand in victories in both the semifinals and the finals last year. But in Saturday's Hudson County Tournament final against Bayonne, she could not get anything going throughout the first three quarters as her Lions were in danger of giving up their status as the county's best team.
As usual though, Suber did her best Vanessa Williams impression and saved the best for last with a virtuoso fourth-quarter surge.
After having just two points through the first three quarters, Suber erupted for 12 points in the fourth quarter as No. 2 seed Lincoln rallied to take the lead and then held on in a wild final few minutes to earn the Lions their third straight Hudson County title with a 46-45 triumph over top-seeded Bayonne at Union City High School.
“We needed not just someone but for her specifically to step up her game and she did that,” said Lincoln head coach Tommie Best. “Even though she had the worst game I've seen her play to that point. I know what she can do when she attacks the basket and plays with confidence. Even though she had three bad quarters, I felt like our best chance to win was to have the ball in her hands in the fourth quarter. That was our goal every possession was for her to touch the ball and make something happen.”
Bayonne got off to a hot start with Madison McGlone canning a pair of 3-point shots during an 8-2 run to open the game. The lead was still six going into the second quarter before Lincoln started to pound the ball inside to junior center Kiante Johnson. She scored seven points in the second quarter as the Lions regained the lead by halftime, 18-16.
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Aneia Williams led the way for Bayonne (21-4) with 16 points. |
Lincoln got some offensive production from someone other than Johnson in the third quarter when senior Jadela Gaston hit a jumper and then a 3-pointer to put the Lions ahead 25-18.
There was no quit on Bayonne's side as it too showed that it is capable of scoring points in bunches. Jesenia Montalvo followed a rainbow jumper with an even higher rainbow 3-pointer that capped a 10-0 run to close the third quarter and give Bayonne a 28-25 lead.
Suber was settling for jump shots throughout the first three quarters and they simply were not falling. Instead of showing her frustration, she took it out by driving hard to the basket or posting up in the fourth quarter to devastating effect.
Bayonne held a one-point lead when Suber drove into the paint and converted a conventional 3-point play to put Lincoln ahead, 36-34, with just over four minutes remaining. Another 3-point play by Suber made it 41-36 with 2:27 to go, but the Bees kept clawing their way back. Megan Semeniak drilled a 3-pointer over Johnson and Aneia Williams followed with a short baseline jumper to knot the score at 41.
The Lady Lions responded as Suber lobbed a picture-perfect pass over the double-team and into Johnson's hands for a layup and a 43-41 lead. Gaston nailed a pair of free throws to make it a five-point lead with 27 seconds left only for the Bees to make one last comeback. McGlone nailed another 3-pointer and the Lions turned the ball over twice late to give Bayonne one last shot to win the game, down one with the ball underneath the Lincoln basket and 5.1 seconds remaining. Johnson was able to contest the shot from in close and Bayonne did not get off another shot as the Lions celebrated a third straight county title, all of them coming with big fourth-quarter performances from Suber and all of them coming in thrilling fashion.
“This feels so good right now. I can't even describe how we keep winning like this,” said Johnson, who cracked the 1,000-point barrier earlier this season. “We wanted this since the season started. Bayonne is a really good team. They hit shots and they play really good defense. We knew it wasn't going to be easy. I'm so happy for our team and Coach Best for leading us to another county title.”
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Kiante Johnson had a double double (12 points, 13 rebounds) for Lincoln. |
Suber and Johnson both had double-doubles for Lincoln (23-3). Suber had a team-high 14 points to go with 11 rebounds. Johnson led all players with 12 rebounds along with her 13 points. Williams led the way for Bayonne (21-4) with 16 points. All of McGlone's 9 points came from beyond the 3-point line and Semeniak added seven points, four rebounds, and two steals off the bench. Montalvo also filled up the stat sheet with six points, seven rebounds and a game-high six assists.
With a third Hudson County championship now secured, Suber can finally take a deep breath and realize just what she has accomplished throughout her career in a Lincoln uniform.
“It's been a crazy ride, but winning three county titles like we have has made all the hard work worth it,” said Suber, who has scored in double-digits in each of the past three Hudson County championship games. “I was having a terrible game, but I had to fight through it for my teammates. We wanted this, we needed this, and we earned this. It's great for me and the other seniors to go out with another county championship and I hope these girls coming back get another one next year.”
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