Tag: Kris Grundy

by justinsontupe

Balanced Montgomery attack looking for good start to New Year at Hillsborough tonight

As the calendar turns from 2022 to 2023, Montgomery boys basketball finds itself in an unfamiliar position: below .500. It has been six years since the Cougars (3-4) last finished with a losing record, and almost a decade-and-a-half since they finished December in such an unenviable position.

With a Skyland Conference road game against 4-1 Hillsborough up next tonight, the road does not get any easier.

But pay no attention to the record for now, urges head coach Kris Grundy, in his 18th season. The Cougars have held fourth quarter leads in six of their first seven games, including narrow losses to still unbeaten Immaculata and Watchung Hills, and are still overcoming the preseason injury to junior guard Steve Donahue. Freshman Ethan Lin was forced into action earlier than anticipated, and seniors Luke Smith, Matt Levy, and JT Simborski are adjusting to shouldering a heavier load.

The Cougars have absorbed their fair share of punches during the first few weeks of the season, but that should only make them stronger as they enter the meat of the schedule ahead of February’s postseason. Four players — Lin, Levy, Smith, and junior point guard Josh Moore — average at least nine points per game. As a team, Montgomery, which often spreads the floor with five guards, makes more than eight three-pointers per game.

Montgomery’s last loss to Hillsborough came in 2017, and the Cougars will look to get back on track against the familiar foe Tuesday night. Led by second-year head coach Tim Palek, Hillsborough has started 4-1 after finishing last season by winning 8-of-13 and are looking to keep it rolling. 

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You can hear Tuesday night’s game live on Central Jersey Sports Radio, with pregame set for 6:40 pm and tip-off at 7 in Hillsborough. Mike Pavlichko and Justin Sontupe will have the call; click here to listen to the broadcast.

Click below to listen to Justin Sontupe talk with Montgomery head coach Kris Grundy ahead of Tuesday’s game.

by Mike Pavlichko

Montgomery playing great basketball as Cougars visit Gill St. Bernard’s with trip to SCT final on the line

Montgomery has never made a Somerset County Tournament final.

And while that would be a huge achievement for the Cougars under their excellent head coach Kris Grundy, if it happens this year, it would actually only be the second biggest in the program’s history.

That’s because to get there, fourth-seeded Montgomery (13-10) would have to knock off top-seed Gill St. Bernard’s (16-6), only the No. 4 team in the entire state of New Jersey.

Central Jersey Sports Radio will have live play-by-play of tonight’s game, which is scheduled for 7 pm, immediately following the Gill girls’ semifinal game against Hillsborough, set for 5 pm.

Mike Pavlichko will have all the play-by-play; click here to listen.

Montgomery may look like it has had an up-and-down season at 13-10, but they have won 12 of their last 9 games, and their last two may be the most impressive.

Head coach Kris Grundy believes his team found its way in a 54-39 win over Moorestown on February 17th, and it set the Cougars up perfectly for an SCT quarterfinal win over Bound Brook two nights ago.

The Crusaders went undefeated last year (14-0) and had a long winning streak to start this season. They can get up and down the floor, and can shoot it from downtown, just like Gill St. Bernard’s can.

Click below to hear Mike Pavlichko chat with Cougars’ head coach Kris Grundy about Montgomery’s season, and tonight’s matchup:

by Mike Pavlichko

Curry’s 22 lead Montgomery’s 3rd quarter charge to upend Immaculata, sweep season series

In the first quarter in Somerville Tuesday night, it looked like Montgomery and Immaculata might be locked into a see-saw battle. After all, the game saw seven lead changes in the first seven minutes.

Immaculata settled in, though, got to a six-point lead a few times, and led until the halftime break, 30-27.

But Ryan Curry took over on offense, and the scoring seemed to fuel the Cougars’ defense. Their work on one end of the floor feeding it on the other allowed Montgomery to outscore the Spartans 25-5 over the next eight minutes, build a lead that was as big as 28, and win going away, 65-47 in a hard-fought Skyland Conference Raritan Division road game heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio.

Curry – who his coach says is only at about 85-percent after suffering a high ankle sprain earlier in the season – looked like he was at about 185-percent the entire game, not content to dish it out – though he did – but also slashing through the lane and finishing with a soft touch.

He had nine points – including a trey, his 17th of the year – in the decisive third quarter, while Aryan Gorty cleaned the offensive glass well; the senior center had several putbacks and finished with 14 for Montgomery, now 8-7, 5-3 in the division, still in second-place behind leader Rutgers Prep.

Immaculata drops to 6-10, 3-7 in the Raritan.

Click below to hear Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko with postgame reaction:

Senior point guard Ryan Curry
Head coach Kris Grundy
by Mike Pavlichko

One point guard out, one back, as Montgomery and Immaculata square off in Somerville tonight

Montgomery and Immaculata both have lost their starting point guards this season, and it’s a big reason why both teams are where they are right now in the 2021-22 boys’ basketball season.

The Cougars are 7-7, and graduated a ton from last year. The Spartans are 6-9, despite having much experience back.

Montgomery lost senior point guard and co-captain Ryan Curry with a high ankle sprain early on, but he’s been able to return, helping the Cougars to wins in their last three games, and five of their last seven.

Immaculata hasn’t been as lucky. The Spartans lost senior point-guard Isaiah Honis early on, too, with a broken wrist. But he won’t be back for another two weeks or so. It should come in time for the Somerset County Tournament, at the very least.

That’s no consolation Tuesday night, however, when the Spartans host the Cougars in Somerville, in a game that can be heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio. Tip-off time is at 7:00, with pregame set for approximately 6:45, as Mike Pavlichko has the call. Click here to listen live, and for free.

Click below to hear a preview of tonight’s game with both head coaches:

Immaculata head coach Ryan McKeever
Montgomery head coach Kris Grundy
by Mike Pavlichko

Montgomery’s 6-0 start hasn’t taken a single Cougar by surprise

Not a single player or coach in the Montgomery boys’ basketball locker room – even if they can’t use the locker room – is surprised by a 6-0 start that has them No. 7 in the Central Jersey Sports Radio rankings, and the only six-win undefeated team in the Greater Middlesex or Skyland Conferences.

Only Bound Brook (4-0) and Bernards (2-0) remain unbeaten in the CJSR coverage area.

To a man,the Cougars say the ground work was laid in the off-season with a lot of hard work. But having a solid core back – led by 6-9 Lafayette-bound senior Chirs Rubayo and junior point guard Ryan Curry, and a host of key starters and off-the-bench players – doesn’t hurt either.

Montgomery coach Kris Grundy is in his 16th season. This one might rival the team he had in 2014 that made it all the way to the Central Jersey Group 4 title game. Unfortunately, there’s no state tournament for Rubayo and this group of seniors. But they have their sights set on making the Top 8 pod of the one-off Skyland Conference Tournament this year.

Click below to listen to Montgomery coach Chris Grundy, senior Chris Rubayo and junior Ryan Curry talk about the Cougars’ red-hot 6-0 start: