TCA repeats as county champion
TRENTON >> The way the Trenton Catholic Academy girls basketball players go from defense to offense, any of them could be the Most Valuable Player in a tournament.
As it was six-foot junior guard/ forward Giana Boulden walked away with the Colonial Valley Conference Coaches Association MVP award in the Mercer County Tournament at the CURE Insurance Arena Thursday night, but it could have just as easily been at least three other players as the top-seeded Mikes ran to their second consecutive county crown with a 64-45 win over secondseeded Pennington.
Boulden had 14 points in the championship game with eight of those coming in the fourth quarter as TCA locked up the Gary Bushelli Award as the county’s best team.
Junior guard Maniya Custis scored 10, in a row, all over the final four minutes of the third quarter when the Mikes turned a single-digit game into a 47-31 lead.
Then there was Habiba Elgizawy, one of just two seniors on head coach Bob Fusik’s roster.
Elgizawy had two of her best games of the season in the semifinals and final. After scoring eight points with eight steals, six rebounds and four assists in TCA’s 93-41 semifinal win over Ewing, Elgizawy kept her confidence up in the title game, leading the team with 15 points and more good defense over the first three quarters to help the Mikes turn around a game in which the Red Raiders jumped to a 7-2 lead.
“We had to play defense better,” Elgizawy said. “Coach always tells us, ‘If we play defense the way we can, we’ll get easy baskets.”
Elgizawy sparked a first-quarter turnaround with seven points as TCA rallied to take a 15-10 lead. Elgizawy and Co. went on to force Pennington into 29 turnovers, stretching their lead to 31-24 at intermission.
In the third quarter, Elgizawy took on two defenders and scored, then came up with a steal and hit two free throws to keep the Mikes ahead, 37-29, after the Red Raiders had drawn as close as 31-27 on Mary Kathryn Kramli’s 3-point field goal at the start of the second half.
“It doesn’t matter if I start or come off the bench,” Elgizawy said. “You have to be ready whenever your chance comes.”
“Anybody can be the leading scorer on this team on any given day,” said Fusik, who praised Elgizawy’s improved play over the last six weeks. “But if you want to play at TCA, you’ve got to play defense.”
Pennington, which also lost to the Mikes’ 59-54 in last year’s MCT final, had trouble getting Trenton Catholic’s Jasmin Boyd, left, Ciara Bailey, center, and Habiba Elgizawy, right, celebrate their MCT victory over Pennington at Cure Insurance Arena on Thursday night.
into its offensive sets after its early burst.
Head coach Jeff Eckerson’s squad stayed with TCA in the second quarter, but six missed free throws kept them from tightening the gap closer than their sevenpoint halftime deficit.
“We had all the motivation in the world to win this game because everyone expected us to lose,” said Red Raiders 5-10 senior forward Gianna Lucchesi, who
was awarded the CVC Coaches Association Sportsmanship Award after the game. “We always come together in tough moments, but their press really tired us out.”
Kramli, a 5-7 freshman guard, led all scorers in the game with 16 points. Junior guard/forward Taylor Blunt added 13 points before fouling out in the fourth quarter. But with 6-2 senior forward Leah Johnson limited to one point and senior guard Diamond Christian sidelined until this weekend’s National Independent Schools Championship in Mooresville, N.C., Pennington did not have enough answers for the Mikes and their numerous MVP candidates.
PENNINGTON (45)
LJohnson 0-1-1, Lucchesi 1-2-4, EGarry 1-0-2, Blunt 4-3-13, Makela 1-1-3, Kiefer 2-0-6, SKavulich 0-0-0, Kramli 6-2-16.
Totals — 15-9-45.
TCA (64)
Elgizawy 6-2-15, Shorts 2-2-7, Boulden 6-2-14, Massenat 3-0-6, Saunders 0-0-0, Maddox 1-0-2, MAromando 2-0-4, Custis 5-0-10, Bailey 1-0-2, Boyd 1-2-4.
Totals — 27-8-64.
Pningtn (21-5) 10 14 7 14 — 45
TCA (22-3) 15161617—64
3-point goals — Blunt 2, Kiefer 2, Kramli 2 (P), Elgizawy, Shorts (TCA).