It happened against Linden last time, too.
An auspicious Westfield first half. A surge of energy. A halftime lead. And then, in the third quarter, an implacable Linden onslaught that left Westfield scrambling to pick up the broken pieces of its earlier slim advantage.
Linden (14-3, 8-1 UCC Watchung) muscled past Westfield (10-6, 3-6 UCC Watchung), 59–46, at WHS on Tuesday. The Tigers used much the same blueprint they did in their Jan. 3 victory over Westfield: weather Westfield’s opening salvo and then blitz in the third quarter.
“That hurts,” head coach James McKeon said of Linden’s game-changing third quarter. “It’s what they do. They sped us up a little bit.”
Linden, ranked No. 14 in New Jersey by nj.com, closed the quarter on an 11-0 run to take a lead it would never relinquish. Linden had 22 points at halftime; it had doubled that output by the time the buzzer signaled the end of the third quarter.
“They got really hot,” TJ Halloran said. “They didn’t miss.”
Westfield subsisted on a diet of hard buckets and tenacious defense, clawing to within 4 points with three minutes to play. But Linden shook off the clinging Westfield hands. Linden’s Nas Robinson, a dazzling guard who pranced through and around the Westfield defense for 20 points, drilled a corner three with two minutes left that effectively doused Westfield’s hope.
There were, though, plenty of positives for the Blue Devils, even as they scratched their heads at a second lost opportunity to dethrone the putative best team in the UCC (excepting Roselle Catholic, which exists in a different sphere altogether).
“It’s a learning process,” McKeon said. “We showed bright moments. That’s been our MO, really. We play really, really good basketball. We just have these lapses. We’re trying to figure it out as a staff. The players are doing their best. We compete for four quarters, and that’s all I can ask for.”
Westfield also will anticipate the imminent return of Peter Meixner, a four-year varsity player and three-year starter who has been sidelined by injury this season. Meixner warmed up before the Linden game, though without any intention of playing. His recovery is day-to-day, and McKeon stressed that his health is the priority. The Blue Devils hope to have Meixner back for Thursday, when the Blue Devils host Plainfield at 6 p.m. (which also is senior night).
“Next game is a big one just for county seeding,” Theo Sica said. “It’s senior night, so we really just gotta stay focused, block out the distractions for senior night and get a win.”
On Tuesday, Sica led Westfield in scoring with 14 points, and Zach Epp followed with 12. Tyshawn Pearson and Shane Sheehan each scored 8 points, Sheehan tacking on 6 rebounds.
Epp and Pearson, two sophomores Westfield has called upon this season, shone.
Epp hit critical threes to prod Westfield late. He also hit a couple pull-up jumpers, a weapon he seldom has deployed this season but one that could threaten opposing defenses.
Pearson’s kineticism propelled Westfield. “Tyshawn is the Energizer Bunny,” McKeon said. He had 6 steals Tuesday. On one of them, he appeared as if an apparition, lunging into a passing lane, slapping the ball away and scoring at the other end—a defensive back jumping a route and taking an interception to the house.
Then there was Halloran, a constant presence on the court who scored only 4 points but thrived exercising the less-glamorous side of basketball—he had 7 assists, 4 steals and 1 block. He also displayed a newfound aggression, frequently getting downhill and charging into the thicket of Linden arms protecting the basket.
That aggression is something McKeon has for months been begging for.
“I’ve been yelling it for four months,” he said. “So hopefully he starts to listen. TJ is a captain and a leader. He’s a college basketball player, and we want him to shine. He has all the skills to do so. He’s a pass-first guy, which is a great teammate. He’s playing his tail off the entire game.”
Has Halloran received the message?
“It’s something that everyone’s talked to me about,” he said. “My parents, the coaches.”
Those parents and coaches were pretty happy after the first half, after which Westfield led, 26–22. Westfield outscored Linden 16–6 in the second quarter, Theo Sica hitting a corner three just before the half.
Robinson was Westfield’s bane, hitting marvelous floaters and operating an offense that finished with three other double-figure scorers: Elijah Butler, who scored 12 points; Jaylen Hodge, who had 11; and Elijah Motley, with 10.
After trailing 13–4 early, Westfield came back partly by turning defense into offense, racking up steals courtesy of Halloran and Pearson. Both teams feasted in the paint in the opening minutes.
That physicality inside perhaps hinted at the game that was to come. Because this was one of those games. The ones where fans hunt fouls on every drive, every shot, every play. Where a shouted “booooooom” from the stands greets every 3-pointer. Where hands slap and bodies collide. Where sometimes the coaches yell and gesticulate and pace, and sometimes they just stand or crouch, like rocks embedded in a river bank.
