East demolishes Princeton Day School 84-46

East extended their win streak to eight games after this blowout happened in the DiBart gym on Monday January 24, 2011.

Things started off unusually, as there was a pre-game technical foul on Princeton's star player, Davon Reed ('13). During warmups, he grabbed and hanged on the rim after a dunk, which results in an automatic technical foul. So instead of the usual tipoff, the game started with two Chris Santo free throws along with a Cougar inbound.

Dan Melleby ('11) threw it down court to Marc Schlessel ('12) for a quick layup and after that basket, East never looked back. Reed made a three pointer cutting the lead to one point, but that would be the closest the Panthers would get to taking a lead. Over the next four minutes, East went on an 11-0 run which followed with a Melleby layup and a Schlessel three pointer making the score 20-3 with three minutes left in the first. After his three pointer, Schlessel hustled down the court to block a shot for the first time in his career. Sam Rose ('11) then fed the ball to Jake Gurkin ('12) who made a three to put the Cougars up by 20 points. Reed then made his second three pointer to give the Panthers their six points in the quarter. East finished the quarter with 28 points shooting 8-12 for two and 3-5 from three.

The second quarter was almost as exciting as the first for East fans as the Cougars continued to embarrass Princeton Day School. The Panthers did score 15 points but the Cougars had a comfortable enough lead after the first. East scored 21 points putting the halftime score at 49-21. Santo alone had more points than Princeton with 24, shooting 8-11 with one tree pointer and two rebounds at the half. Rose was on his way to a career night with six points and six assists. Schlessel was shooting 4-6 from the field with 12 points and grabbed six rebounds. Gurkin had three blocks at the half and Melleby had four points with four rebounds.

The second half was almost the same as the first as East scored 25 points in the third quarter to Princeton's 12 and this would be the last few minutes of playing time for the Cougars' starters.

In the fourth quarter, Coach Valore sent in the deeper part of their bench with Alex Kauth ('11) Justin DeJesus ('11) Edou Zaken ('11) and Steve Spiegler ('11). The garbage minutes didn't keep East from playing aggressively as DeJesus grabbed a career high seven rebounds along with a layup. Spiegler right away intercepted a pass that led to East scoring two of their 10 fourth quarter points. Kauth helped East making both of his two pointers giving him four points and Zaken added in a layup of his own rounding out all of the points for the quarter. At the four minute mark, Valore pulled Jesse Gold ('12) from the game to put in sophomore sensation Hank Davis ('13) who within the first 30 seconds of playing time recorded a block. Valore seemed to have enough time to put in one final player for the game in Kevin Barry ('13) who got his first bit of varsity play time and he used it wisely as he grabbed an offensive rebound earning him his varsity letter.

Player of the game: Sam Rose. He had the best night in his career scoring eight points on 3-4 shooting along with nine assists, 4 rebounds and three steals

Other stats of the game:
Santo- 37 points on 15-21 (5-5 free throws), nine rebounds and two blocks
Schlessel- 17 points 6-9 from field, eight rebounds and a blocked shot
Gurkin- 4 rebounds, four blocks and three assists
Melleby- 12 points on 5-8 from field, five rebounds and five assists
DeJesus- 7 rebounds, two points and a block
Kauth- 2-2 from the field with four points two rebounds and two assists

East will go on to play 10-3 Camden Catholic on Thursday January 27 at 7 pm to extend their winning streak to nine games.

Cougars dispatch Camden 68-44 to improve to 9-3

On Thursday, the Cougars defeated an uncharacteristically weak Camden team, 68-44. A usually strong program, Camden is in the midst of a down year.

Camden stayed close with the Cougars for the first quarter as East struggled shooting the ball a little bit. Marc Schlessel ('12) opened the game with a three-pointer. Then a Dan Melleby ('11) basket gave East the 5-0 lead. After a Camden score, Chris Santo ('11) answered to give East the 7-2 lead. Santo added two more points later in the quarter as Jake Gurkin ('12) scored five to give the Cougars a 14-9 lead going into the second.

The Cougars widened the lead in the second. Santo added seven more in the quarter to lead the team. Schlessel hit another three and two of two foul shots in the quarter and Gurkin continued to play well as he entered the half with ten points, three blocks and three steals. The Cougars took a 31-20 lead into the locker room.

The Cougars absolutely dominated the third quarter. Santo opened the quarter with the first six Cougar points to open the lead to 16. A Gurkin layup and the foul shot after extended the lead further. A Schlessel three opened the lead to 20. The Cougars controlled the game from here as a Schlessel three-point buzzerbeater ended the third to give the Cougars a 49-25 lead.

Player of the Game-Gurkin. Although a modest scoring game compared to Santo's, he scored a solid 14 points. However, he made a huge impact on the defensive end, grabbing 10 boards, a career-high four steals and five blocks.

Key Stats

Santo-27 points, 5 rebounds, 4 steals, 3 assists, 2 blocks

Schlessel-14 points,, 5 rebounds, three steals, 5 assists

Gurkin-14 points, 10 rebounds, 4 steals, 5 blocks

Rose-4 steals, 3 assists

Melleby-8 rebounds (career high), 3 assists

Gold-6 assists (career high)

Kauth-2-2 from three, 6 points

DeJesus-3 rebounds

Cougars add on to win streak by defeating Eastern

In a crucial conference game, the Cougars battled on their way to a 58-52 victory over Eastern. The DiBart Gym felt like the playoffs once again as East faithful stood the entire game as they watched the Cougars win. Much of the critical action happened in the second half of the game.

The first quarter was dominated by Marc Schlessel ('12). He had ten points in the quarter, on his way to 15 in the game. He also had three rebounds and two steals in the quarter. Chris Santo ('11) contributed nine points, while him and Schlessel both shot four of five from the field. Dan Melleby ('11) had three assists in the quarter and Jake Gurkin ('12) had the other two Cougar points as East led 21-17 at the end of the quarter.

East managed to tie the game by halftime via although Santo and Gurkin had four points apiece in the second quarter. Jesse Gold ('12) also had two assists in the quarter.

Santo scored the first nine Cougar points in the third by way of two two-point field goals, a three-pointer and two Free throws. Eastern managed to stay close as they held a 40-38 lead near the end of the quarter. However, Melleby ended the Cougar scoring for the quarter with a three to take a 41-40 Cougar lead.

Eastern scored the first four points of the fourth. Then Schlessel hit a runner to pull East within one. With about 4:30 left, East had a chance to take a one-point lead but Santo missed a layup, something that almost never happens. However, he made up for it by pulling East to within one by hitting two free throws after another Eastern basket. After an Eastern three, Santo hit two more free throws to put the Cougars within two points. Santo's magic was not nearly done for the game as he came right back to tie the game with a jump shot that banked-in off the backboard. Even though they say bank shots don't count, any Cougars fan would take it on this day. Another Santo turnaround jump shot gave the Cougars a two point advantage. However, Eastern refused to go away as they hit a three-pointer for another lead. Then, Schlessel hit the shot of the day, a three-pointer from the corner to give East the two-point, 54-52 lead which it would never relinquish. Eastern went right back down the court and missed their opportunity to tie the game with 30 seconds left. Usually, teams foul right away when they are down with little time left without a shot clock. But Eastern waited and the Cougars got sneaky as they passed the ball inside after avoiding the foul for ten seconds and Gurkin capitalized on the layup to give the Cougars a four-point lead. Santo hit two more foul shots to close out the game for the 58-52 win.

Player of the Game-Santo. His 32 points led the way but what really stood out was his intelligence not to foul out after gaining his fourth foul late in the third quarter. If Santo had fouled out, Eastern likely would have won. Also, Santo did amazingly well from the line, an area in which he has struggled this season as he went eight for eight.

Key Stats

Santo-32 points, 8/8FT, 9/18 two-point FG, 2/2 three-point FG, 7 rebounds

Schlessel-15 points, 7 rebounds, 3/8 three-point FG, 3/5 two-point FG, 3 assists

Gurkin-8 points, 5 rebounds, 3 blocks, 4 assists

Melleby-3 points, 5 assists, 5 rebounds

Gold-5 assists

Cougars win huge game against Shawnee 58-53

In a game against a 2nd-ranked Shawnee team languishing in a two-game losing streak, the Cougars came up big to earn a 58-53 victory. The game had a playoff-type atmosphere, with Shawnee bringing a large group of fans to cheer on their team. The players on the court played with the same intensity felt in the stands as the teams scrapped for every loose ball and had to work for every positive outcome.

The first quarter was back-and-and forth. the Cougars jumped out to an 8-2 lead via baskets by Chris Santo ('11), Sam Rose ('11) and Marc Schlessel ('12). Shawnee came right back on an 8-0 run to take the 10-8 lead. However, Santo scored the next six Cougar points to take a 14-11 Cougar lead into the break at the end of the quarter.

Shawnee scored seven straight to open the second. Then, Jesse Gold ('12) stole the ball from a Shawnee player and capitalized on an open layup. Two Dan Melleby ('11) threes and a Jake Gurkin layup ('12) kept East close at the half, down 24-30.

Schlessel opened up the second half with a three and East took a lead after subsequent scores from Santo and Gurkin. Santo scored five more points in the quarter to keep East within two going into the final seconds of the half. Then, Gold made the play of the game as the time dwindled in the quarter. He drove hard to the hoop and put up a fancy layup to tie the score with two seconds left in the quarter.

Santo scored the first four Cougar points in the fourth. Then Schlessel hit a key three-pointer to put the Cougars up by three. Three Chris Santo points later, the Cougars gained the lead they would not lose at 51-49. They hit their foul shots at the end of the game to win, 58-53.

Player of the Game: Santo carried the team on his back this game with his 29 points and 10 rebounds. Jesse Gold also deserves credit for his solid play once Rose got into serious foul trouble early on in the game. His layup to end the third quarter was one of the great plays of the season to this point.

Key Stats

Santo-29 points, 10 rebounds, 4 steals

Schlessel-11 points, 3 rebounds

Gurkin-4 points, 10 rebounds, 5 blocks

Rose-2 points, 3 assists

Melleby-6 points, 4 assists

Gold-6 points, 5 assists

Cougars brush aside Washington Township

Athletes always say last season doesn't matter. The Cougars proved it on Thursday by destroying a Washington Township team they lost twice to last year. Even though Township lost a Division I player in Matt Lopez and a star point guard in Nick Favatella, the Cougars proved they weren't intimidated by the school they lost to last year on the way to a 58-31 victory.

The first quarter was a display of absolute domination by East. East started off with an 11-0 run and withheld Township from scoring for the first 5 minutes of the game. Marc Schlessel ('12) contributed seven points in the quarter, highlighted by a three and an offensive rebound put-back. Chris Santo ('11) had six points in the quarter along with the play of the quarter. Santo blocked a Township shot on defense then went the length of the court for an amazing reverse layup and was fouled on the play. Jake Gurkin ('12) and Sam Rose ('11) also contributed offensively in the quarter to give East the 18-2 lead heading into the second quarter.

The second quarter was low-scoring for both teams. The Cougars put up eight puts, but Township also scored eight so the lead remained comfortable. Gurkin led the scoring charge with five in the quarter but he also made some great plays on the defensive end. At one point, when Township threatened to score, Gurkin blocked a shot and then proceeded to catch the ball and throw it off of a Township player as he fell out of bounds to gain the Cougars possession. The Cougars took a 26-10 lead at the half.

Against this clearly inferior opponent, it was obvious the Cougars would take home the win. the second half opened with scores from Dan Melleby ('11) and Gurkin to widen the gap to 20. The game was effectively over as the Cougars cruised to a 58-31 victory.

Player of the Game-Santo. He not only scored 21 points but contributed 12 rebounds, four blocks and six steals.

Key Stats

Santo-21 points, 12 rebounds, four blocks, six steals

Schlessel-9 points, five assists

Gurkin-11 points, 10 rebounds, four blocks

Rose-6 points, 6 steals

Gold-five assists

Santo reaches 2000 points as Cougars beat Triton 77-57

In a game that the Cougars were in control of from the tip off, Chris Santo ('11) reached two milestones. With four minutes left in the first half, Santo scored his 2000th career point off of a jump shot assisted by Jesse Gold ('12). He went on to score 30 points for the game along with eight rebounds.

His other great accomplishment for the game was stealing the ball nine times during the game, breaking the 10 month old single game steals record of eight, set by Ben Gerstein ('10).

A small ceremony was held after the game where the whole team gathered together for a picture congratulating Santo on this amazing achievement that places him in the top 35 all-time scorers in South Jersey history.

A game that was pushed up a full hour due to an impending snow storm only had a few fans to witness such an amazing accomplishment as East won their third straight game.

Other key stats: Marc Schlessel ('12) 19 points eight rebounds five assists and four steals, Sam Rose ('11) career high 10 assists with four rebounds and three points, Dan Melleby ('11) had 12 points, Jake Gurkin ('12) blocked five shots and Jesse Gold dished out seven assists.

Valore turned to his deeper bench in this game to rest his players for their upcoming tough schedule. Washington Twp. on January 13, Shawnee on January 15,

Edou Zaken ('11) came in to score six points shooting 3-4 on the night, Alex Kauth ('11) came in for a few minutes where he grabbed a rebound, Steve Spiegler ('11) got in his first game of the year getting a rebound and one steal, Hank Davis ('13) checked in the game and Justin DeJesus ('11) came in making his only attempted shot along with two free throws. He has still yet to miss a shot in his two year varsity career.

Player of the game goes out to none other than Chris Santo for achieving an accomplishment that may never be reached by an East student ever again. Congratulations Chris!

Cougars defeats Cherokee 74-55 for the first time since January 2008

In a game where East needed to win, they did not disappoint. From the tipoff to the final seconds of the game, the Cougars dominated the ball on both sides of the court. Things did look a bit iffy to start of the game, however. Jake Gurkin ('12) and Dan Melleby ('11) were benched in the first quarter on a coach's decision, but East still managed to outscore the Chiefs 15-12 without either starter. Edou Zaken ('11) and Jesse Gold ('12) started for East.

East started off the game with a Zaken layup just seconds into the game. They had a quick six-point lead, until Cherokee made two shots in a row to cut it to 6-4 in East's favor. Later in the quarter on a breakaway, Chris Santo ('11) missed a dunk, but grabbed the first of his 11 rebounds to put it back in for a layup.

The second quarter (now with Gurkin and Melleby in the game) started off with a Cherokee three pointer by their leading scorer, Bryan Cooper who had 17 for the game. After a few alternating shots and a Gurkin layup, East was up 25-19 when Cherokee called their first timeout. Melleby turned the ball over on the next drive and Cooper made two 3-pointers in a row tying the game up at 25. Gurkin single-handedly started to increase the lead with a offensive rebound turned into a hook shot followed up by another layup. Gurkin had six points in the quarter. After Cherokee made two free throws, Marc Schlessel ('12) started to make his shots (a three-pointer followed by two foul shots giving East their final point of the half with 34 to Cherokee's 29.

The third quarter is what really finalized the game for the Cougars. Schlessel threw a no look pass to Gold who made the three. Sam Rose ('11) dished it out to Gurkin for a layup making the score 41-31. Gold then made his second 3 pointer of the quarter and his eighth point of career high 14. Rose once again passed it to Gold for another three, which sent the crowd screaming. Gold not only showed up on offense, but sprinted back court to steal the ball passing it to Rose who assisted a Gurkin three making the score 50-35. Cherokee called a timeout to settle down their players as the score of this quarter was 16-6 only four minutes in. Following the timeout Cherokee made a three. On the next possession, Schlessel missed a three pointer in which Santo tipped in. Santo then had another put back shot giving East 54 points as of the 2:37 mark on the clock. Cherokee then made two foul shots which led to the third and final Rose to Gurkin three. Gurkin at this point had not missed a shot for the game. Cherokee then went on to make one of two from the line and on the next play, Gurkin missed his first shot on a jumper with 25 seconds remaining in the third with the score 59-46. Cherokee went on to miss two shots underneath the basket when Santo grabbed the rebound dribbling down court to take a final shot in which he made at the buzzer giving East 28 points in the third quarter with the score 62-46.

The fourth quarter was not a fun one to watch, as it resulted in East holding the ball for just under three minutes. East still managed to outscore Cherokee 12-9 in the final quarter beating them 74-55 after losing three straight to them dating back to the 2008-2009 season.

Stats of the game: Chris Santo- 7-13 from the field with 22 points 11 rebounds. Marc Schlessel- 15 points six rebounds and a career high 7 assists (leading the team). Jake Gurkin- 19 points in just three quarters of play shooting 8-10 from the field. Sam Rose had five assists, Jesse Gold had 14 points shooting 5-6 with two free throws also dishing out 5, and Justin DeJesus making his only shot of the game bringing his season total to 6-6 from the field.

Player of the game: The entire team. They showed up to play this game on both sides of the court and showed the fans what type of team they truly are.

Cougars lose close game to Lenape 30-29

Chris Santo ('11), who was not expected to start, let alone play because of a concussion suffered during practice was cleared by his doctor and he ended up leading East in scoring with 14 points along with 11 rebounds. However, the Cougars could not succumb the talent of Lenape's stellar team as they went on to lose a low-scoring game by one point.

Dan Melleby ('11) who also suffered a concussion, was not cleared to play so he sat out resulting in Jesse Gold ('12) starting at the three position moving Santo to the five and Jake Gurkin ('12) played the four spot.

The game had a slow start to it as both teams missed the majority of their very minimal shots taken. The score after one quarter was Lenape five to the Cougars' four points.

East was playing phenomenally on the defensive end, but could not seem to score any points. Half way through the second quarter Valore pulled Sam Rose ('11) from the game to put it future starting guard Hank Davis ('13) for his first varsity appearance. Davis showed his spectacular speed hustling up and down the court assisting a basket to Santo. Davis, known for his great shooting ability, only attempted 2-three pointers in the game. At the half East was down 16-9.

Once the third quarter started, East finally started to wake up holding the Indians to five points the whole quarter. East had only missed three shots in those eight minutes as they went on their way to score 13 points taking a one point lead after suffering a seven point deficit.

In the final quarter, the referees starting to call fouls that they failed to call in the first three quarters all which happened to be against East. So with 10 seconds to go in the game they were both tied when Gurkin got called for a shooting foul. Lenape made the first and missed the second with three seconds left. Gurkin grabbed one of his 10 rebounds tossing it pass half court to Mark Schlessel ('12) who attempted a three with 1.5 seconds left banking it off the backboard handing East their third loss for the season. Lenape moved on to 6-0 as East dropped to 2-3.

Player of the game: Chris Santo. Once again he led East in scoring in a game where he was not expected to play. He brought his career total to 1933 points. He also did not turn the ball over once for the first time this year.

East's next game is Thursday January 6 @ Cherokee at 7 pm.