Green Wave back in contention
Long Branch boys play their way to share of division lead
BY VIN RAPOLLA
Staff Writer

JEFFGRANIT staff Above, Long Branch’s Maurice Turpin drives to the hoop during the Green Wave’s win over Matawan on Jan. 20 in Matawan.

After taking over a team that went 7-15 last year playing in the Shore’s competitive A North division, Long Branch boys basketball coach Joe Whalen faced immediate expectations.

“With 11 seniors on the team, we were looking to be successful,” the first-year coach said.

Thus far, the Green Wave has not disappointed, putting together an 8-4 mark overall and a 5-2 mark in their new division, Class B North, which is good enough for a share of the division lead.

And more importantly, with one more win in the next two weeks, the Wave will clinch a berth in the state playoffs, where Whalen’s squad will look to make a solid run, and prove that their play this regular season is no fluke.

Long Branch is currently ranked sixth in the Shore Conference and is gaining confidence with each passing week.

Senior guard Maurice Turpin has been the spark plug for the Wave, scoring just under 20 points per game, and coming up big time after time in the clutch.

Last week the Wave solidified its place in the division with three quality wins over Colts Neck, Matawan and Red Bank, with Turpin setting the tone each night.

After scoring 22 points and adding eight assists in the 62-53 win over Colts Neck on Tuesday, Turpin came back with 23 points in a 66-61 win over a good Matawan team. He finished his stellar week by scoring 21 points and adding eight assists in the Wave’s 61-60 win over Red Bank on Friday.

Friday night’s game will rank up there with the most exciting games played in the Shore this year, as Long Branch senior Amal Blaine ripped a 3-pointer at the buzzer (off a pass from the triple-teamed Turpin) to beat the Bucs, and give the Wave a share of the division lead, along with RBR and Colts Neck.

But it did more than that. It gave further credence to the idea that Long Branch is a force to be reckoned with from here on out this season.

Along with Turpin in the backcourt is senior Ricky Sisco at the point, while junior Darius Morris and senior Jeremy Coleman play at center and small forward, respectively.

At the other forward position is the perfect complement to Turpin — senior James Harper. Harper is currently fifth in the Shore in scoring, at about 19 per game, and leads the conference in rebounding at more than 13 boards a game.

The starting five have really started coming on strong for Whalen, and they’ve begun to learn how to finish games — something they struggled a bit with early on.

“Our starters have played hard and right to the end of every game,” said Whalen. “We’ve had a couple of games with some big comebacks, and that really shows that they don’t give up.”

Long Branch has also received some solid play off the bench from players like seniors Kurrell Law and Antwan Tucker, along with Cleveland Cannon. But Whalen said their biggest contribution to the team may come between games.

“These bench guys really make everyone work hard in practice,” said the coach. “When you have a deep team, you can really replicate game-like conditions.”

After a relatively slow start in regular-season play, the Green Wave came back strong in tournament play over the holiday break, and has been on a run ever since.

The team is well on its way to matching its preseason goal of being at .500 at the state cutoff (Feb. 5), and is looking forward to the stretch run, and taking a shot at the division title.

“The team has been playing better, but they really haven’t reached their plateau,” said Whalen. “They’re working hard and practicing hard, which is making a lot of our games easier.”

Long Branch was scheduled to be back in action Tuesday in another important divisional tilt with Monmouth Regional, a team desperate for some wins at 4-7 with the state playoff deadline looming next weekend (teams must be at .500 or better at the end of play on Feb. 5 to qualify).

From there, the Wave will take on Freehold Borough on Friday at home (6:30 p.m. tip-off), and nondivisional foe Southern on Monday. That leaves just three divisional games on the regular-

season schedule, including Wall, who is just a game back of the three leaders at 4-3 in the division (8-5 overall) on Tuesday, Neptune (4-9, 2-5) on Feb. 4, and what may be the game to decide the B North title on Feb. 11 at Colts Neck.

Regardless of how they finish the regular season, the Long Branch boys have made their mark this season, and have rapidly become one of those teams you don’t want to face in the postseason. They’re athletic, have multiple options in the offensive set, and are capable of playing stifling, in-your-face defense.

Long Branch is dangerous once again.

Notes... While the Green Wave is on the verge of securing its first berth in the postseason in three years, the Red Bank (8-4), Ocean Township (10-3) and Shore Regional (8-6) boys all appear to be postseason-bound as well.

The Bucs were set to square off against Colts Neck on Tuesday in another crucial B North contest, also needing just one more win before the cutoff to earn a state bid.

Coming up for Scott Martin’s Bucs are Rumson-Fair Haven (today in Rumson at 6:30 p.m.), Red Bank Catholic on Saturday (1:30 p.m. at RBC), Monmouth Regional on Tuesday (7 p.m. in Tinton Falls) and a home game against Freehold Borough on Feb. 4.

With four games against sub-.500 teams, the Bucs appear a lock to get in.

Ocean Township is in the midst of a wild Class A North division race, and finds itself in the driver’s seat of a three-team race.

With the second half of the season now under way, three teams are in contention for the public schools championship, and a fourth could still steal it.

Ocean made its statement last week, beating Marlboro, 55-49, to finish the first half of the season in first place at 5-2 and improved to 6-2 with its 49-33 win over Howell Friday night.

Freehold Township and Manalapan are both trailing Ocean in the division race at 4-3 apiece, meaning the Spartans are well on their way to capturing the divisional crown.

Ocean is already in the state playoffs at 10-3 overall, and is now playing for a low seed in both the Shore Conference and state tournaments.

Shore Regional has a bit more work ahead of it these next two weeks. The Blue Devils were home to a struggling Keyport team (1-11) on Tuesday, and face another struggling team in Point Pleasant Beach (0-13) tomorrow. With two wins, the Blue Devils secure their state playoff berth.

Next week, Shore faces Matawan on Monday, Keansburg on Tuesday and Asbury Park on Friday.

At 6-2 in the division, Shore is also in good shape to capture the public school title in B Central. St. Rose is the top team at 8-0, while Mater Dei, another parochial team, is at 6-2.

That leaves Red Bank Catholic at 6-5, and in dire need of some wins these next two weeks.

The Caseys, who hosted 11-3 Manasquan on Tuesday, need to get hot fast. With St. John Vianney (4-8) coming to town today, and RBR looming ahead for the Caseys on Saturday, RBC could secure a postseason berth with two wins this week. Should they lose two, next Friday’s match-up against Matawan could be a win-and-you’re-in situation for Mike Feerst’s crew.