No. 7 South Plainfield overcomes slow start to win at Woodbridge, inch closer to GMC White crown

The first quarter may not have been they best they’d played all year.

South Plainfield and Woodbridge were tied 7-7 after one, but the Tigers were able to pull way after that.

The Tigers slowly grew the lead, then got a spark at the end of the half from senior guard Brandon Dean, who swished a pair of shots from downtown back-to-back, to close the half with South Plainfield ahead 28-13.

It would get as close as nine in the second half, as the Barrons made a bit of a run in the final eight minutes, but no closer. Final score: 54-38 Tigers.

Dean finished with those two triples and 15 points, but game high honors went to Tareak Williams, a fellow senior guard who has picked up the slack while Dean has been dealing with an injury to his shooting hand that’s been enough to slow him down, but not enough to keep him off the court.

For the Barrons, no one cracked double figures, as senior Kendall Pala and junior Nardino Joseph each finished with eight points. The trouble was the South Plainfield D did a number on Micah Eason, the team’s leading scorer. Coming in averaging nearly 15 points a game, he was held scoreless until the third quarter, and finished with just four points on a field goal and 2-of-3 shooting at the line.