A Fanatic Summation of the Group 3 State Championship - Plainfield vs Burlington Township

Burlington Twp. 48
Plainfield 57


Plainfield scored 17 field goals below the arc while Burlington Township scored 12. This gave Plainfield a 10 point advantage. Burlington Township made up some ground by connecting on 6 3-pointers compared to Plainfield’s 3. This gave Burlington a 9 point advantage in the 3-point category. This narrowed the field goal comparison from the field to a 1-point advantage for the Cardinals. The Cardinals were able to win the free throw comparison. Plainfield connected on 14 free throws compared to 6 free throws made for Burlington. This gave the Cardinals an 8 point advantage from the charity line and tallied up the final difference of the game of 9 points.

Where did the Cardinals win this game? The Cards won this game on rebounds, interior paint defense, zone defense and getting to the basket on the offensive end for the 2nd consecutive game. The Cardinals grabbed 38 rebounds compared to Burlington Twp 30. The triple towers of Justin Sears, Dii’Jon Allen-Jordan, and Denzel Christian combined to grab 30 rebounds. Multiple offensive rebounds gave the Cardinals 2nd opportunities to score. On the defensive side, the rebounding battle limited Burlington Township to 1 field goal attempt each time down court. Again the Cardinals had another game with double digit rejections (12). This turned away a potential 24 points for Burlington. The zone defense forced Burlington Township to a perimeter game. Burlington was having some success nailing the deep shot, but the Cardinals adjusted by putting Dii’Jon out on top of zone defense and then matched him up with the hot shooting Danny Rodriguez. Rodriquez was limited in the final period while Sears and Christian controlled the paint. Burlington lived on the perimeter which proved to be costly. Burlington shot a sizzling 86% from the free throw line but only took 7 attempts. The Cardinals took more than 3 times as many free throws which help the Cardinals ultimately win the game.

CONGRATS – PLAINFIELD 2011 STATE GROUP 3 CHAMPIONS!!!!

Cardinal Fanatic Efficient 5

1) Plainfield – Junior Justin Sears 6’8” {ER-32}
After a sub-par performance for Sears’s standards, Justin returned with determination to help the Cardinals win their first state championship in 28 years. Sears gave one of his patented double-double performances as Justin scored 16 points and grabbed a game high 17 rebounds of which 11 were offensive rebounds. Sears shot an impressive 80% from the free throw line to lead the Cardinals on the charity line. Sears also picked up 2 steals, dropped 1 assist, and rejected a game high 5 shots.

2) Plainfield – Junior Dii’Jon Allen-Jordan 6’6” {ER-18}
Dii’Jon continues to have an excellent playoff run by displaying the total repertoire of his game on both the defensive and offensive end of the floor. Dii’Jon scored 12 points, had a team high tying 3 steals (Delano Mullings also with 3 steals), grabbed 7 rebounds, dropped 2 assists, and rejected 3 shots. Dii’Jon completed a very efficient day by only committing 1 turnover for the entire game.

3) Plainfield – Junior Sekou Harris 6’0” {ER-14}
Sekou is continuing the long legacy of outstanding guards out of the queen city. The smooth shooting Curly Neal like dribbling guard is making recruiting experts take a closer look at Harris. Sekou dropped a game high 21 points shooting a blazing 71% from below the arc. The off season work outs has improved his leaping ability as the 6’0” guard also grabbed 4 rebounds to help the big men on the boards. Sekou finished the day by grabbing MVP honors.

4) Burlington Township – Senior Danny Rodriguez 6’5” {ER-12}
Danny also earned MVP honors for Burlington Township by dropping a team high 17 points. His high arching jump shots impressed the 5,000 fans in attendance. The 6’5” sharp shooter also grabbed 4 rebounds and rejected a team high 2 shots

5) Burlington Township – Senior Avery Holiday 6’3” {ER-12}
Holiday just missed getting a double-double. Avery shot 50% from the field to score 7 points and grabbed 7 rebounds to have Burlington on the edge of pulling out the victory.

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