CLARK, NJ- The Arthur L. Johnson High School Crusaders returned to their home floor to take on the Oratory Prep High School (Summit) Rams, looking to bounce back from their home opener loss on Friday. With a 23-point fourth quarter, the Crusaders rallied with key baskets in the fourth quarter and locking down on defense, defeating the Rams 50-45 Tuesday night in Clark.
They appeared to be in trouble of dropping their second straight game of the season, especially with what transpired in the final minutes of the first half.
Seniors Eric Bretz and Brandon Hund were issued technical fouls and the Rams managed to score on all four technical shots and grab a buzzer beating shot to take a 27-21 lead over the Crusaders going into halftime. To make matters worse, Hund had four fouls in the first half and couldn’t play in the third quarter to avoid picking up a fifth one.
“During halftime, Coach [Kennedy] really talked to us about getting together and playing five men as one,” Johnson junior Matt O’Connor said. “Knowing our only returning starter coming back is going to have to sit out the beginning of the third quarter, we had to band together as a team.”
As the third quarter went along, it appeared to be a tale of two portions in the quarter, with the scoring runs the teams exchanged. Sophomore Tino Puentes scored a basket, while Bretz added three points (one free throw, a basket) and junior Matt O’Connor added a shot to give Johnson a 28-27 lead with 4:33 left in the third quarter.
Oratory Prep responded with a 10-0 scoring run, fueled by Lucas Pavlouni and Peter Byrne, giving their team a 37-28 after the third quarter.
“It was hard sitting on the bench in the third quarter,” Hund said. “I realized I believe in my teammates and they all rallied together and they had a really strong third quarter. I knew I was going to be able to come in the fourth quarter and help them bring it back.”
The Crusaders would come together and it all showed in the final quarter of regulation.
Hund returned to the floor for the fourth quarter and the playing efforts of the Crusaders was a foreshadowing of what was to come. Hund buried four straight free throws, trimming the deficit down to 37-32 with 7:08 left in the fourth quarter. Puentes banked home a shot to cut the lead down to 37-34 with 5:58 left.
Within that run, Johnson did not allow any Oratory Prep baskets, showing the strong defense that carried them through parts of the game earlier on.
The distributing of scoring by Johnson showed greatly on the floor. O’Connor banked 1-of-2 free throws and senior Marcos Castro tied the game with a basket with 4:25 left in the fourth quarter, completing the 9-0 run and getting the Crusaders back in the game.
Oratory Prep fought back, getting back-to-back baskets from Chris Morrison and Tommy Conniff to take a 41-37 with 3:30 left in the fourth quarter, but Johnson was able to punch right back. Hund, who missed the third quarter, started the comeback. He scored a basket to trim the lead down to 41-39, before O’Connor tied the game at 41-41 with 2:21 left in the fourth quarter.
Overall, Johnson’s lockdown defense prevented any Oratory Prep baskets as they completed the comeback to tie the game heading into the final two minutes of the fourth quarter.
Hund, who scored 12 points in the fourth quarter, drained four more free throws, including the go-ahead baskets, as O’Connor added two more, giving Johnson a 45-41 lead with 1:34 left. Hund added another basket and two more free throws, completing the comeback and capturing the first win of the season for Johnson.
Full Coverage of Johnson Boys Varsity Basketball Comeback Win Over Oratory Prep HS Here
