St. Thomas Aquinas boys win back-and-forth GMC Tournament final to complete the three-peat

In a game that saw 18 lead changes – ten in the third quarter – and neither team lead by more than six, No. 1 seed St. Thomas Aquinas got by No. 7 seed South Brunswick 53-50 to win the GMC Tournament Boys’ Championship, as heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio Friday night from Monroe Township High School, presented by Dayton Toyota Service and Dayton Collision.

South Brunswick (17-6) had been vying to be the lowest seeded team to win the title, which has never been won by any lower than a sixth-seed.

Instead, the Trojans (24-3) now have won three full GMC Tournament Championships in a row, and – coupled with their girls’ 49-42 win over Colonia earlier in the evening – you can make it three straight sweeps by the Aquinas girls’ and boys. No other school has done that.

Deuce Jones led Aquinas with 21 points; the Trenton Catholic transfer had two thunderous jams that brought Monroe’s gym to its feet.

South Brunswick led after each of the first three quarters, even though the third was back and forth. St. Thomas Aquinas – which only led by as many as two until taking the lead late in the fourth quarter, was up two with 34.9 seconds to go when Jones – shooting only 5 of 10 from the line at that point, strode to the foul line and hit two free throws to put Aquinas up by four.

South Brunswick senior Harmehar Chhabra scored on a drive to cut it to two, and after an Arshvir Singh foul sent Jaden Kelly to the line and he split a pair, the Vikings had it with 14.9 seconds to go, down 53-50.

South called time out, and on the ensuing inbound, Chhabra got the ball up the floor, but the play designed in the huddle by head coach Joe Hoehman seemed to not materialize. Stuck, Chhabra threw up a three from right of the key with just one foot on the hardwood. It hit the back iron, the rebound tipped around, time expired, and the Trojans had their championship.

Kalani Antoine of South Brunswick had game-high honores, with 23, including three treys, and two big ones in the third quarter when the game was back-and-forth.