A Fanatic Summation of the Group 3 Section 2 Finals - Mendham vs Plainfield

Mendham 81
Plainfield 87


Plainfield scored 27 field goals below the arc while Mendham scored 18. This gave Plainfield an 18-point advantage. Mendham scored 8 3-pointers compared to Plainfield’s 5 3-pointers. This gave Mendham a 9-point advantage in the 3-point category. Mendham connected on 21 free throws compared to Plainfield’s 18. The long distance shooting gave another advantage for Mendham of 3 points but it was not enough to overcome the Cardinals huge advantage in the field goal department and thus giving the Cardinals the 6-point victory in double overtime.

Where did the Cardinals win this game? Rebounds, interior paint play, timely defense and clutch shooting by the unlikeliest of players. The Cardinals grabbed 35 rebounds compared to Mendham’s 24. The Cardinals 2nd point opportunities was the difference as the Cardinals grabbed 18 offensive rebounds. The Cardinals turned away 16 potential points with their 8 rejections. No doubt if these timely blocks were not made, the outcome would be much different. The harassing defense of Delano Mullings, Sekou Harris, Allen Brown, and Vaughn Anderson were crucial in disrupting the strategical offensive sets Mendham ran. Mendham sliced the Cardinals defense like a block of soft cheese but when it counted (4th period, 1st & 2nd overtime) the defense rose to the occasion. The Cards were able to get 12 steals and created an additional 10 unforced turnovers. Vaughn Anderson was pivotal as his 3-point shot let the air out of the hostile fans of Mendham in the 2nd overtime to create a breathable 5-point lead that Mendham never recovered from. Delano Mullings along with Vaughn put a stamp on the game by nailing 5 out of 6 free throws.

Cardinal Fanatic Efficient 5

1) Plainfield – Junior Justin Sears 6’8” {ER-47}**
WOW!!! That explains it all. In order to get a better efficiency rating than some one that put up 41 points (Mendham’s Tori Vicarisi) you must have done a whole lot of other things. Sears gave one of the greatest all-time performances since Kenny Fields (one of my top 5 all time Plainfield players) put up 21 points in 5 minutes against Atlantic City back in 1980! Sears carried the Cardinals Scoring 24 points on 69% shooting from the field. So you may say ho-hum but matched that with a 20-rebound effort (star ledger had him for 26) which 11 were offensive rebounds. This gave Sears his patented double-double performance (a 20 – 20 performance to be more specific) but much more would be needed for the Cardinals to pull this one out. Sears flirted with a triple double and missing it by 3 rejections. Justin smacked away 7 shots (should have been at least 8 – called for a questionable goal tending which sent Coach Lubreski through the ROOF)!!! Justin also picked up 3 steals (one for a coast to coast dunk AND ONE!) and dropped off 1 assist. All this activity and only 2 turnovers for the game – (Did not say he was perfect – LOL!!!).

2) Mendham – Senior Tori Vicarisi 6’4” {ER-35}
What a performance!! I though I was having a flash back of when Kelly Tripuka (Bloomfield) and Rodney Tucker (Plainfield) were battling in a Sectional playoff game back in 76! Tori gave his best Tripuka impersonation as he dropped an eye popping 41 points! With his dipsy doodle ambidextrous shooting ability, Tori connected for 53% shooting from the floor and 82% shooting from the free throw line. Tori also gave an impressive double-double performance by grabbing 13 rebounds. Tori V finished off his stat line with 3 assists that were beautifully executed back door passes that only Joe Montana could make. Tori’s offensive explosion was impressive! To appreciate his performance you must consider he was giving up nearly 4 inches. On any other opponent he may have hit the half-century mark in points! This is the most points scored against a Cardinal team in recent memory and needs to be verified. Thirst for Knowledge, please verify!

3) Mendham – Senior Drew Jacob 6’3” {ER-21}
The slick sharp shooting Jacob was deadly from the field. Jacob shot 71% from below the arc. This was accomplished because of his outside threat in which he shot 50% from behind the arc. His back door cutting was timely and even coach Pete Carril would have applauded on how efficiently it was accomplished. Drew also was perfect from the line to tally 18 points for the game and play the role of Robin to team mate Tori Vicarisi. Drew also dished out 3 assists of his own from the guard position and picked up 3 steals.

4) Plainfield – Junior Sekou Harris 6’0” {ER-16}
The Cardinals next in line inherent legendary guard provided the floor generalship that guided the Cardinals to one of the most exciting games of the 21st century. Harris shot at a 50% clip below the arc with his nifty drives and pull up jumper to tally 17 points. Sekou also picked 4 steals and dropped a game high 5 assists.

5) Plainfield – Junior Dii’Jon Allen-Jordan 6’6” {ER-13}
Dii’Jon “Past the Mustard Please!!” Allen-Jordan is turning heads around the state. The 6’6” junior is blossoming into a perimeter player with a down low presence when needed. Allen-Jordan displayed his versatility when it was needed most with his mid range jump shot or his rim rattling dunks. Dii’Jon dropped 19 points, had 1 rejection, and a game high 5 steals. Dii’Jon stat line might have been more impressive but he could not finish the last over time session due to an injury.


**This breaks the record {ER-40} set by Kyrie Irving against Plainfield in the 2010 Union County Finals


The efficiency rating is base on points scored, shooting accuracy, foul shooting accuracy, rebounds, assists, steals, defensive intensity, and assist – turnover ratio.