Cougars edge out Camden 56-52

The Cougars defeated Camden at Camden 56-52 on Thursday. The game was extremely tight but the Cougars pulled out the win in the end as Marc Schlessel ('12) sank his free throws after grabbing an offensive rebound with ten seconds left to put the game away. He had 29 points on the night and 12 in the fourth quarter alone. Jake Gurkin ('12) had 11 points, Hank Davis ('13) scored 8 and so did Gary Hettinger ('13) to round out the scoring for the Cougars.

Buzzer beater lifts Cougars over Eastern!

Jake Gurkin ('12) gathers the rebound with four seconds left, passes to Jesse Gold ('12), Gold gives the outlet pass to Marc Schlessel ('12) who lays it in as time expires! The scoreboard reads 60-58 in overtime as the Countrymen storm the court! Down goes number-one ranked Eastern!

This is all a Cougars fan needs see to remember one of the all-time great games when East took down top-ranked Eastern at Eastern in overtime, 60-58. This was one of those games that could be labeled an instant classic.

The first quarter was evenly matched for both teams. Gary Hettinger ('13) started the scoring with two free throws. Eastern scored down five straight points, but their run was halted by a Schlessel three which tied the game. The Cougars were down 11-8 towards the end of the quarter, but Hank Davis ('13) hit a three to tie the game at 11 to end the scoring in the quarter.

The second quarter started with a Gurkin bucket on which he was fouled and made the free throw to give the Cougars a three-point lead. Schlessel heated up in the second, as he hit two threes, the second of which put the Cougars a 22-15 lead. The Cougars led 24-19 as they went into their last possession in the half. Jake Silpe ('15) handled the ball as the Cougars readied to take the shot when he encountered some tough defense and momentarily lost control of the ball on the ground. However, with about two seconds remaining he regained control of the ball on the floor and passed it to Davis who drained a three to give the Cougars the 27-19 lead heading into the locker room.

The Cougars picked right up where they left off to start the third, scoring the first five points of the quarter on two Schlessel free throws and a Schlessel three. However, Eastern refused to go away despite the Cougars' strongest efforts. After a Davis layup gave the Cougars a 38-27 lead, the Vikings scored four straight points. Then, Gurkin scored on a nice feed from Silpe to give the Cougars a nine-point lead. The Vikings answered mightily as they pressured the Cougar offense which caused troubles. Eastern scored six straight points to end the quarter as the Cougars held a slim three-point lead heading into the fourth.

Gurkin started the fourth quarter with a bang as he rejected an Eastern player which led to a Schlessel layup on the other end to give the Cougars a 42-37 lead. With 5:50 left and the Cougars leading 42-39, Gurkin hit a beautiful hook which elicited an electric reaction from the crowd. After another Eastern bucket, Schlessel hit a floater to keep the lead at five. After yet another Eastern basket, Schlessel hit another floater to give East the four-point lead at 48-44. Eastern then went on a 5-0 run to take a 49-48 lead. With 1:06 left, Eastern hit a free throw to extend the lead to two. The Cougars answered back, as Silpe took it to the hole himself, hitting a leaner to tie the game at 50. However, Eastern scored on their next possession, making the Cougars' hopes look dim. With only about 10 seconds left, Silpe had the ball in his hands to determine the outcome of the game. As he drove into the lane and put the ball up to the basket, his shot missed. However, Gurkin made a spectacular play to tie the game up at 52 by tipping the ball into the basket on the rebound with only two seconds left. It appeared as though the clock had run out during regulation and the game would be going to overtime. However, Eastern was granted one last chance by the officials as two seconds were added onto the clock. Eastern missed the last-second desperation heave, so the game went into overtime.

If it seemed as though the game could not get any more exciting, it did in overtime. The extra session started off slow, but an Eastern travel with 3:18 left allowed Schlessel to hit a three for the Cougars on the ensuing possession to give the Cougars the 55-52 advantage. Eastern responded by knocking down two free throws on the next possession to cut the lead to one. Eastern hit another layup to take the late lead at 56-55. Then, Gurkin responded right away by hitting a huge three from the top of the key to give the Cougars a 58-56 lead. Eastern responded once again by hitting a shot from a very close distance after a mad scramble for the basketball to tie the game at 58. The Cougars failed to take the lead on the ensuing possession, so Eastern had the opportunity to win the game as they inbounded the ball with 20.3 seconds left. The Vikings missed a wide open three which would have given them the late lead with about seven seconds left. It looks as though the game will head into double overtime. Well, Jake Gurkin, Jesse Gold and Marc Schlessel had something different to say about that. Gurkin gathered in the rebound off the miss with four seconds remaining. He passed the ball quickly to Gold who displayed the vision of a true quarterback in gunning the ball downcourt into the arms of a streaking Schlessel who was open heading towards the basket. Schlessel caught the ball gracefully as he laid it in the net to give the Cougars the win. A sea of red flooded onto the court to celebrate. Game. Set. Match. 60-58. Cougars win one of the greatest high school basketball games anyone in attendance has ever seen.

Player of the Game: The whole game was unreal, a case could be made for everyone. Schlessel with his 27 points and the heads-up play on the winning basket by speeding downcourt and having the discipline to still hit the shot, Gurkin for his 17 points and 10 rebounds, Gold for his unbelievable pass on the winning play and Davis for his huge eight points off the bench and the buzzer-beater to end the first half.

Bottom Line: Everyone wins.

Key Stats

Schlessel-27 points

Gurkin-17 points, 10 rebounds

Davis-8 points

Cougars fall to Shawnee 64-49

The Cougars lost their second game in a row on Saturday as Shawnee defeated them 64-49. This game was rough as a whole for the Cougars as they fell to 10-2 on the season.

Cougars stumble against Washington Township

The Cougars fell to 10-1 on the season on Thursday with a 43-34 loss to Washington Township. The game was very sloppy, as the Cougars committed too many turnovers. Hank Davis ('13) was the only player to reach double digits in points for the Cougars as he scored 13.

Cougars beat Triton to reach 10-0

On Tuesday, the Cougars beat Triton 65-60 to improve to 10-0 on the season. Although the final score was close, the Cougars maintained a consistent lead throughout the game and never relinquished control.

The Cougars led by 12 at the half and after three quarters, but things got dicey in the fourth as Jake Gurkin ('12) got into a little bit of foul trouble. However, Marc Schlessel ('12) scored the Cougars' final five points to close out the game.

Player of the Game: Schlessel, He closed out strong for the Cougars and led the team with 22 points.

Key Stats

Schlessel-22 points

Gurkin-16 points, 15 rebounds

Hank Davis ('13)- 13 points

Jesse Gold ('12)-9 assists

Gary Hettinger ('13)-10 points

Cougars stay perfect, beat Woodrow Wilson

On Saturday, the Cougars knocked off previously undefeated by a score of 69-57. Marc Schlessel ('12) led the way for the Cougars by scoring 30 as the Cougars coasted to a relatively easy victory. Jake Gurkin ('12) contributed 13 points and 15 rebounds as well. Although the final score was somewhat close, the Cougars maintained a steady lead throughout as bench players received a good deal of playing time. Austin Wetzler ('14) scored nine to lead the scoring off the bench.

Cougars Move to 8-0 as they defeat Cherokee 56-44

After coming off a huge win against 7th ranked Lenape, the Cougars moved to 8-0 with a convincing 56-44 win over conference rival Cherokee Thursday afternoon. The game seemed much closer than it should've been, with the Cougars running away with it in the end.

The first half was a close one, as the Cougars led 11-10 after the first quarter. It seemed as though this would be another one of those games where it would be close until the fourth quarter, and then hopefully East would pull away in the end. The half ended with the Cougars leading 29-24, as Marc Schlessel ('12) and Jake Gurkin ('12) led the team with 8 points apiece, while Jesse Gold ('12) chipped in with 6 points in the half.

Both teams struggled to get any offense going in the third quarter, as East led 39-34. The fourth quarter would be an interesting one, as big man Jake Gurkin fouled out on a questionable referee decision with 6:41 left in the game. That prompted coach David Allen to bring in junior Andrew Brown for a big man presence on defense. With the Cougars leading 46-42 with 1:32 to go in the game, freshman Jake Silpe nailed a huge 3 to make it 49-42, and virtually put the game out of reach. Silpe ('15) scored 7 of his 13 points in the fourth quarter alone, with East putting Cheroke away 56-44.

Stats:

CHE: 14/17 from the FT line

Hank Davis : 3 points

Jesse Gold : 7 points

Jake Gurkin : 9 points

Garry Hettinger : 3 points

Marc Schlessel : 21 points

Jake Silpe : 13 points, 4 assists, 4 steals

Cougars beat Lenape for huge conference win

The Cougars once again showed the South Jersey basketball world that they are indeed for real by defeating Lenape 57-46. In their first game after being placed in the top ten in South Jersey, the Cougars showed they are here to stay.

The Cougars jumped out to a 5-0 lead with a basket from Marc Schlessel ('12) and a three from Jake Silpe ('15). Lenape immediately struck bacj in a big way, going on an 8-0 run. However, the Cougars managed to control the damage as they took a 15-14 lead going into the second quarter via two jumpers by Jesse Gold ('12), a Silpe layup, two free throws from Gary Hettinger ('13) and a Schlessel three.

The Cougars fell behind by two as Lenape capitalized on early opportunities in the second. However, they went on an 8-0 run as Jake Gurkin ('12), Schlessel and Silpe provided the scoring to give the Cougars a 28-24 lead at the half.

The Cougars once again expanded their lead in the third quarter as Silpe started the half with a layup, followed by a Schlessel three to give the Cougars a 33-24 lead. Lenape cut the lead back down to five before Hettinger hit a layup for the Cougars. Then, Schlessel threw up an alley-oop for Gurkin which he laid in to give the Cougars a 37-28 lead. Gurkin hit two free throws to end the scoring for the Cougars in the third as they held a 39-32 lead heading into the final quarter.

Hettinger scored four points to start the quarter for the Cougars, the first two off of a tip-in and the last two on a layup after a beautiful pass from Gold. Lenape managed to cut the lead down to 49-44 but Silpe hit two clutch free throws for the Cougars and the team never looked back on its way to a 57-46 victory.

Player of the Game: Gurkin. He recorded a triple-double as he recorded 16 points, 16 rebounds and 10 block shots for an outstanding all-around performance.

Key Stats

Gurkin-16 points, 16 rebounds, 10 blocks

Schlessel-16 points, 5 rebounds

Gold-4 points, 6 assists

Silpe-11 points

Hettinger-10 points

Cougars finish Virginia B. Whitaker Invitational with 3-0 record

The Cougars defeated Williamstown 45-41 and Gloucester Catholic 69-34 to improve to 6-0 on the season as they finished off the Virginia B. Whitaker Invitational with a 3-0 record.

The Cougars maintained control of the Williamstown game throughout, but Williamstown made a late run to make the score close. Marc Schlessel ('12) led the Cougars in scoring with 18 points and Jake Gurkin ('12) hit two late free throws to seal the win for the Cougars.

The Gloucester Catholic game was a complete rout, as the Cougars were able to clear the bench out in the fourth quarter. Schlessel led the way once again with 22 points and reserve Tyler Berlinsky ('12) chipped in eight points off the bench.