Still Undefeated Bergen Community College Men’s Basketball Repeats as Region XIX Champion, Moves on to National Championship
By Mel Fabrikant Monday, March 08, 2010, 04:45 PM EST
The Bergen Community College men’s basketball team finished the 2009-10 regular season undefeated, poised for a Region XIX title and a national championship. But down 12 points with only six minutes remaining in the March 2 Region XIX championship game against rival Passaic County Community College at Lackawanna College in Scranton, P.A., the perfect season, the Region XIX title and a chance at a national championship were all in jeopardy. Yet, Bergen coach Sean Kelly stayed calm.
“We’ve had to come from behind before,” Kelly said. “We’re comfortable in that position.”
In the game’s final minutes, the Bulldogs went on a furious run, eventually taking a five point lead. In a contest filled with twists, however, Passaic added one last wrinkle: a late rally to tie the game and force overtime.
Bergen ultimately outlasted their rival, won 97-89 and secured a second consecutive Region XIX crown.
“Passaic played a really tremendous game,” Kelly said. “It was one of those games where no one should have lost.”
Preseason honorable mention All-American Elgin Brown (of Jersey City) powered the Bulldogs in the win, scoring 23 points and grabbing 14 rebounds. Bergen’s standout first-year guards from Paterson, Asmar Edwards and David West, both scored 20 points.
The undefeated 32-0 Bulldogs, ranked No. 1 in the National Junior Collegiate Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division III poll, reached the Region XIX championship game after receiving a first-round bye as the tournament’s No. 1 seed and subsequently defeating Middlesex County College 89-66 in the February 28 semifinals.
The attention now turns to the 2010 NJCAA Division III Men’s Basketball Championship, an eight-team tournament March 11-13 in Delhi, N.Y., where the Bulldogs receive an automatic bid as region champions. Bergen finished third in last year’s national tournament.
“This is where we have wanted to be all season long,” Coach Kelly said. “It’s not enough to just get to the championship, though. We want to make a run at the whole thing.”
The Bulldogs tip-off the tournament March 11 at 1 p.m. against the Mountain View College Lions from Dallas, T.X. The Lions are 22-11 for the season.
As Kelly readies his club for the national tournament, he said they will try to maintain the same focus they have kept throughout the year.
“You can’t look past anybody,” he said. “You have to take it one day, one opponent at a time. We’ve done a good job with that this season.”
Bergen Community College (www.bergen.edu) based in Paramus is a public two-year coeducational college, enrolling nearly 17,000 students at locations in Paramus, the Philip J. Ciarco Jr. Learning Center in Hackensack and Bergen Community College at the Meadowlands in Lyndhurst. The College offers associate degree, certificate and continuing education programs in a variety of fields.
Photo Caption: Forward Elgin Brown, a preseason honorable mention All-American, helped lead the Bulldogs to the Region XIX crown
“We’ve had to come from behind before,” Kelly said. “We’re comfortable in that position.”
In the game’s final minutes, the Bulldogs went on a furious run, eventually taking a five point lead. In a contest filled with twists, however, Passaic added one last wrinkle: a late rally to tie the game and force overtime.
Bergen ultimately outlasted their rival, won 97-89 and secured a second consecutive Region XIX crown.
“Passaic played a really tremendous game,” Kelly said. “It was one of those games where no one should have lost.”
Preseason honorable mention All-American Elgin Brown (of Jersey City) powered the Bulldogs in the win, scoring 23 points and grabbing 14 rebounds. Bergen’s standout first-year guards from Paterson, Asmar Edwards and David West, both scored 20 points.
The undefeated 32-0 Bulldogs, ranked No. 1 in the National Junior Collegiate Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division III poll, reached the Region XIX championship game after receiving a first-round bye as the tournament’s No. 1 seed and subsequently defeating Middlesex County College 89-66 in the February 28 semifinals.
The attention now turns to the 2010 NJCAA Division III Men’s Basketball Championship, an eight-team tournament March 11-13 in Delhi, N.Y., where the Bulldogs receive an automatic bid as region champions. Bergen finished third in last year’s national tournament.
“This is where we have wanted to be all season long,” Coach Kelly said. “It’s not enough to just get to the championship, though. We want to make a run at the whole thing.”
The Bulldogs tip-off the tournament March 11 at 1 p.m. against the Mountain View College Lions from Dallas, T.X. The Lions are 22-11 for the season.
As Kelly readies his club for the national tournament, he said they will try to maintain the same focus they have kept throughout the year.
“You can’t look past anybody,” he said. “You have to take it one day, one opponent at a time. We’ve done a good job with that this season.”
Bergen Community College (www.bergen.edu) based in Paramus is a public two-year coeducational college, enrolling nearly 17,000 students at locations in Paramus, the Philip J. Ciarco Jr. Learning Center in Hackensack and Bergen Community College at the Meadowlands in Lyndhurst. The College offers associate degree, certificate and continuing education programs in a variety of fields.
Photo Caption: Forward Elgin Brown, a preseason honorable mention All-American, helped lead the Bulldogs to the Region XIX crown
