Summit beat Governor Livingston 54-53 in an instant classic at the Hilltopper gym! Wes Hellings won it with a driving bucket as time expired, falling into the student section. Teammates and fans mobbed him.
Summit had a characteristically slow start, but didn’t fall behind much as neither team could find much offense in the first – 9-5 GL after 1. Myles Blackley came alive in the second, ending the half with 12 of his game-high 23 to narrow the gap to 20-18 at halftime.
GL held a commanding 34-27 lead after 3 and threatened to pull away. Jake Easton was huge for Summit down the stretch, making clutch bucket after clutch bucket. A 13-6 4th pulled the HIlltoppers even and sent the game into OT. Summit narrowly escaped defeat in the first OT, as Blackley made 1 of 2 free throws in the closing seconds to even it up.
Summit trailed by 1 with under 10 seconds left in 2OT. GL picked up full court and Hellings received the inbounds. He looked to dish, but the GL defense was smothering and he had to option but to take it himself. He drove with the right hand and put it away at the rim, falling into the stands as time expired. Despite their best efforts, they couldn’t keep the fans off the court. Great video here: https://twitter.com/TCinNJ/status/1607917852534927361
The HIlltoppers will take on Millburn for the Tierney Memorial Tournament title.