#8 Bergen Catholic scored a statement victory with a 72-46 thumping of #9 Roselle Catholic in Oradell on Thursday in the JD Core Training North Jersey Game Of The Day.
Roselle won the opening tip and started quickly behind an Ethan Mgbako triple and jumper, but 6'7" Declan Wucherpfennig answered him on Bergen’s first two trips up the floor. After the teams traded misses, Wucherpfennig scored on a forceful drive and finish at the rim through contact to put the Crusaders up 6-5 midway through the first quarter. Wucherpfennig continued his hot play by hitting a triple, putting BC up 9-5. A pair of Jaylen Robinson free throws were the first non-Wucherpfennig points, but he fired right back off a turnover withanother layup and a dunk on back to back possessions, giving BC a 15-7 lead and prompting Eric Decker to take a timeout. BC continued to give the Lions fits throughout the remainder of the first quarter, but RC brought themselves within 17-12 after the opening stanza.
The second started slowly but by its midpoint, BC was able to restore a double digit lead after a trple by 5’11” junior Tyler McQuaid, who did an excellent job controlling the offensive flow for BC in the first half and earning solid minutes off the bench. An AJ Williams triple extended the lead and after another bucket, Bergen found themselves with a commanding 34-18 lead as the half approached. Wucherpfennig beat the clocked to give BC a 36-19 lead going to the lockers, culminating a statement half where he had 15 pts.
Roselle Catholic came out of the half hot behind Jalen Grant--They got the lead to a manageable 11 inside of the first half minute. Tyrease Hunter gave them another layup and RC got it down to 36-27. Williams restored the double digit lead with a layup on the next BC trip as the third approached the midway point. BC restored a 17 point lead at the 4:00 mark, up 44-27 after going on an 8-0 run.
Wucherpfennig threw down a drunk to make it a 12-0 run and a 48-29 lead late in the third and Decker called another timeout as Roselle, who had the lead to single digits, watched it balloon back up to nearly twenty inside of two minutes. McQuiad hit a layup and then Naiim Parrish dunked the ball of a strip to make it a 16-2 run and RC was chasing the game. The third quarter finished with the Crusaders holding a 60-37 lead as Parrish beat the buzzer.
Bergen pushed the lead to 30 at 67-37 early in the fourth and cruised from there to a dominant 72-46 win
Case Agency Player of the Game
Declan Wucherpfennig, Bergen Catholic
Who else? Wucherpfennig could blossom into a top tier prospect and had a very efficient 26 point performance tonight. He does it all and does it all very well.
