Playoffs

The result wasn’t what they hoped for but Monday was still a pretty good night for the Jackson Memorial boy’s basketball program. Fans came early to the Joe Perry Gym for the Jaguars Central Jersey Group 4 championship game against Rancocas Valley and it’s a good thing they did because before this one even tipped-off it was sold out with quite a few people remaining outside for most of the game. Inside the place was rocking as Jackson bid for its first-ever state sectional title. The Jags had only made it this far once before and that was 1971 when Greg Archer and Ronnie Brown helped them advance to the Central Jersey Group 2 finals where they lost to Lawrence. It took 40 years for them to get back and when Jackson jumped out to a quick 5-0 lead the old gym was deafening with fans in red, black and white envisioning a championship celebration. However that was clearly the highlight of the night as the visitors settled down, scored the next 11 points and ending up rolling to a 61-36 victory which clearly spoiled the party. I left early in the 4th quarter with the outcome all but decided but I don’t think Jaguar fans will have to wait four decades for another shot as head coach Joe Fagan clearly has the program pointed in the right direction.

Tonight Manchester will play for the South Jersey Group 3 title when the Hawks visit top-seed Kingsway while on the girl’s side Point Boro shoots for its second straight South Jersey Group 2 championships with a road game against Sterling.

Providence College held its 2011 Athletic Hall of Fame Induction ceremony this past weekend and the new class included basketball standout and 1994 graduate Lucie Fontanella of Toms River. Fontanella was a two-time Friars captain and is in the school’s all-time top ten for both scoring and rebounding. A 3-year starter and 1993 Honorable Mention All-America, she later played professionally for a brief period in Portugal and served as an assistant coach for one season at Providence. Fontanella had a tremendous high school career at Toms River East and won the Kerwin Award as the shore’s top female player in 1990. She is also a member of the Toms River School’s Athletic Hall of Fame.

Another example of how time flies. Today is the 40th anniversary of the first Joe Frazier-Muhammad Ali fight at Madison Square Garden. I remember staying up and listening to round by round recaps on the all-news radio station which was the only way to follow the fight.