It was only two years ago that the Manasquan boys basketball team was in the Shore Conference Tournament semifinals with one of the top teams in Monmouth County, but current junior Jimmy Walsh is the only player left from the 2010-11 team that had any tournament experience, and he played only occasionally as a freshman.
After a rebuilding year last season and an up-and-down start to this season, Walsh and Manasquan are starting to feel like winners again.
Walsh scored 26 and grabbed 15 rebounds Saturday and led the Warriors past Holmdel, 67-58, for their third straight win and fourth in five games. Walsh also had five blocks.
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Holmdel entered the game on a two-game skid but the Hornets’ 13-4 record was one of the top marks in the Shore Conference. The win was the second straight for Manasquan over teams that will play in the Shore Conference Tournament, with the Warriors edging Southern Regionals on the road Thursday, 62-60.
“We’re starting to play with a lot of confidence,” Walsh said. “I feel like we were close to where we needed to be heading into this week and then we beat Southern, which is one of the better teams in Ocean County and has (sophomore Mike) Gesicki, who is an absolute beast. Then today, we get by a Holmdel team that was 13-2 a few days ago, so when you can beat teams like that, you can’t help but get a boost of confidence as a team and I think that’s going to help us.”
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Walsh and junior teammate R.J. Hobbie – who finished with 23 points – combined for 49 points, but the Warriors got contributions from the other players. Alex Waga scored eight points and had eight rebounds, while Jack Fay added five points, six rebounds and three assists and sophomore Tommy Toole had five points and five assists.
“We’re fortunate to have two really good scorers so usually our job is to do the little things on offense and play good defense, but I know I can score if we need it and other guys like Jack Fay and Tommy Toole, they feel the same way,” Waga said.
Waga was particularly active on the glass and the defensive end for the Warriors. The senior is a natural shooting guard, but he has played more power forward to better compliment Manasquan’s personnel.
“Alex was unbelievable,” Manasquan coach Andrew Bilodeau said. “Most people don’t realize that he’s been playing out of position all year and he’s our second-leading rebounder at eight per game. He’s been so instrumental to what we’ve been able to do.”
Manasquan took control of the game with a 13-0 run over a three-minute span of the third and fourth quarters that turned a 47-47 deadlock into a 60-47 Manasquan lead. Fay drilled a three to break tie late in the third quarter and the Warriors went into the fourth quarter with a 50-47 edge.
Walsh started the fourth-quarter portion of the run with a three-pointer of his own, followed by a fast-break basket by Waga. Hobbie capped the run with a lay-up and a three on consecutive possessions.
Holmdel made a push to get back within five with a 9-1 run that consisted of two threes by Christian Vikse and another by Sean O’Neill. Walsh went 3-for-9 from the free-throw line in the final 2:30 to help keep Holmdel alive, but Holmdel missed its last six three-point attempts before Hobbie went 4-for-4 at the line to cap the win.
“I thought Holmdel was a very good team,” Bilodeau said. “I have a lot of respect for Coach (Sean) Devaney and what he has been able to accomplish and he’s got a tough team. They’re big, physical and they can shoot the ball. Even with a double-digit lead, we didn’t feel too comfortable because they can shoot the ball and we kept giving them second and third shots.”
Manasquan will cap their week with games against Jackson Liberty on Thursday and rival St. Rose Saturday before the Shore Conference Tournament is seeded on Sunday.
“We don’t have playoff experience on this team, other than the few minutes that Jimmy played two years ago,” Bilodeau said. “It’s important for us, as young as we are, to play teams like we did today and learn to win them. I knew it would be a process and right now, we’re still going through the process. This week was a nice step.”
