NBC rallies to stun East Brunswick in first round
The first stunner of the NJSIAA boys basketball state tournament is in the books.
Sixth-seeded Northern Burlington rallied from 21 down in the second quarter to win a 56-53 thriller at home Monday evening against 11th-seeded East Brunswick.
These Greyhounds (189) are the fifth team in coach Gene Darling’s 14 seasons to win at least 18 games, and this also marked the program’s 11th state tournament win during that stretch.
Christian Naylor netted a game-high 20 points and Logan Gonzalez added 12 to lead an improbable comeback.
Northern Burlington trailed 15-0 less than six minutes into the game, by 17 at halftime and by eight going into the fourth quarter.
After early issues with turnovers, botched layups and missed free throws, the Greyhounds slowly chipped away against an East Brunswick (11-12) squad that had seven different players knock down a 3-pointer including Brett
Motusesky (14 points).
Northern Burlington, which won the Burlington County Scholastic League’s Patriot Division title with a 9-1 record, has won seven straight games going into the sectional semifinals.
The Greyhounds held East Brunswick to 29 points over the final three quarters, and East Brunswick became Northern
Burlington’s seventh straight opponent to finish with no more than 55 points.
EAST BRUNSWICK (53)
McCue 1-0-3, Black 2-3-8, Ajigbotosho 4-2-11, Mikulka 4-0-9, Motusesky 6-0-14, Nelson 2-0-5, Baldelli 1-0-3. Totals — 20-5-53.
NORTHERN BURLINGTON (56)
Gonzalez 4-4-12, Naylor 6-5-20, Wyers 1-3-6, Broach 3-4-11, Urban 3-0-7, Musoke 1-0-2. Totals — 18-16-56.
East Brunswick (11-12) 24 10 11 8 — 53 No. Burlington (18-9) 4 13 20 19 — 56 3-point goals: McCue, Black Ajigbotosho, Mikulka, Motusesky 2, Nelson, Baldelli (EB), Naylor, Wyers, Broach, Urban (NB).