The Shore Daily, 1/10/15

Follow Scott Stump on Twitter for news and notes from around the Shore.

Only four columns in and we already have a sponsor! Big thanks to Jersey Mike's for coming aboard to support The Shore Daily. Now all I need is a lifetime pass for free subs to get half a No. 7, Mike's Way with pickles instead of tomatoes, plus some salt-and-vinegar chips.

Friday night was all about heavyweight battles across multiple sports, which is a theme that continues on Saturday.

In wrestling, No. 1 Howell sent a message that the Class A North title still runs through the Rebels, all but wrapping up their 10th straight division title with a 42-14 win over No. 4 Christian Brothers Academy, which already had a big win over Brick on its resume. Bob Badders has the story and video highlights. The big weekend continues for Howell when it faces No. 3 Southern in a huge nondivisional home match tonight at 5 after losing to the Rams in the Group IV semifinals and during a regular-season dual last season.

In girls basketball, St. John Vianney took down the No. 1 team in the state, Manasquan, with a 58-51 victory in the first of two meetings between the top-five state powers in Class A Central. Junior guard Kelly Campbell did her John Wall impression with 19 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists to lead the way.

The most interesting nugget was having ninth-year St. John Vianney coach Dawn Karpell tell Matt Manley that this was the first time she could remember the Lancers ever playing the No. 1 team in the state in their home gym. Part of that is probably because many times St. John Vianney itself was the No. 1 team in the state, but that is surprising to me given the powerhouse stature of girls basketball in the Shore Conference, although Shabazz has often held that No. 1 distinction in recent years so it makes sense in that regard.

On the boys basketball side, the main action was in Class A North. Marlboro nearly stunned the No. 1 team in the Shore, CBA, before losing by eight. It could certainly have been a case of a trap game given that CBA has a big one against St. Anthony today, but the Colts needed Jack Laffey to drop 31 just to get them out alive. That's Laffey's second 30-point game already during this young season.

The big win in the division was Middletown North's 41-37 takedown of No. 6 Manalapan, whose only loss this season had been to CBA. Jules Calhoun scored 16 points to lead the way for the Lions, who were 2-5 coming into the game. Manalapan has been a low-scoring, defensive-centric team this season, and Middletown North kept it close before making the big plays down the stretch to end a four-game losing streak. A freshman, Dave Campbell (9 points, 5 assists) also made an impact, so keep an eye on him.

Also, Middletown South has now quietly won four out of five under coach Kevin Cullen after an 0-3 start that included a few lop-sided losses in the WOBM Christmas Classic. The Eagles beat Freehold Boro to get back to the .500 mark, thanks to 13 points by junior Alex Mrusek. They could make the A North race, particularly for the public title, a lot more interesting if they continue to improve.

The monster scoring line of the night belonged to Lacey center Chris Iapicco, one of the Shore's most underrated big men, who poured in 36 and also had 12 boards and 5 blocks in a four-point win over Jackson Memorial. Also in Ocean County, Barnegat beat Mater Dei Prep 55-33 to improve to 3-5 and quietly tie its win total from all of last season.

More on Saturday: 

• My two cents on Patrick School getting banned from the NJSIAA Tournament. While the video shows it wasn't any sort of wild melee at all, the rule is the rule. While I could see maybe adding some concessions and nuance to the rule, it was just nice to see the NJSIAA enforce something. There has to come a point where the rules are actually applied and teams aren't always getting out of things with a lawyer or a protest. One thing is for sure, it's made today's showdown against the state's No. 1 team, Roselle Catholic, a lot more interesting because if Patrick School stuns them and then can go the rest of the regular season and its county tournament without losing, that creates a heck of a debate for No. 1 since they can't play in the playoffs.
• North Carolina tight end Jack Tabb (Red Bank Catholic) will play in the Medal of Honor Bowl today at 2:30 p.m. at The Citadel in Charleston, South Carolina. I don't believe it's streaming anywhere, but there will be live stat updates. The game, which benefits multiple military organizations, certainly has some extra meaning to Tabb, who was raised by a single mother, Julie, who is a retired U.S. Army major. Of the 97 players in last year's Medal of Honor Bowl, 76 ended up in NFL camps this past summer, which is the goal for Tabb.

• Another inspiring story in the game is University of Texas long-snapper Nate Boyer, a Green Beret who was nearly killed by sniper fire in Afghanistan this past summer. His journey to this point is remarkable. A must-read story.

•  Wall/Rutgers grad Tim Wright, a tight end for the New England Patriots, will be in action today in the NFL playoffs against the Ravens at 4:35. As a Jets fan, I am predisposed to hate the Patriots, but I hope Wright has 10 catches and two touchdowns to please beat Baltimore. I don't want to hear on ESPN 100 times about how the Ravens overcame the "distraction" of Ray Rice. Barf.

On tap for today:

It's all about the Boardwalk Showcase in boys basketball, which is now in its 15th season. Tickets are $13 at the door to watch all five games at Long Branch High School starting at noon, and $6 for students. While basketball dominates at Long Branch today, the Green Wave wrestling team also has a huge match this morning against Wall in B North.

I've covered almost every Boardwalk event, starting back in the days when it was at Convention Hall in Asbury Park. There were some great games in that old gym despite the fact that the heat never worked and you practically had to wear gloves and a hat while sitting and typing at the media table. I remember CBA nearly toppling a great St. Pat's team as the Colt Crazies filled the building and went nuts. I remember a great back-and-forth duel with Raritan start Qa'rraan Calhoun, who now plays professionally overseas, and St. Pat's Derrick Caracter, who got drafted by the Lakers in 2010. I remember Cavs guard J.R. Smith coming back with St. Benedict's after he had transferred from Lakewood and putting on a show with 30-plus points and 3-pointers from the parking lot.

Another memorable one was when Neptune star Marques Alston announced before the game that he was staying home and committing to Monmouth University and then hit a game-winning 3-pointer at the buzzer to beat CBA. Alston is now a police officer in Neptune.

When it was moved to Monmouth University, we got to see CBA stun a St. Anthony team with seven Division I players in the old Boylan Gymnasium in 2009, and in 2010 at the gleaming new MAC at Monmouth, it was a chance to see Kyrie Irving light it up for St. Pat's before he became the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft a year later. Since it's been moved to Long Branch, there hasn't really been that classic game yet, so hopefully today that will change.

Finally, I'll once again end the post with the Manasquan student section. They have really brought it up a notch this season. Check out this awesome tribute to Stuart Scott plus just a great scene in general from Friday night's win over St. John Vianney.

Shore Daily Archive