The Hawks faced off against Ridgefield Park in their biggest game of the season so far. Needing a win to give them a better chance at making the county tournament, guard Liam Hickey had this to say about the county tournament, “I think we can win the BIT, and we can always make a run in the Jamboree.”
Going into the game River Dell had scouted The Scarlets well, “We knew they liked to spread the floor and get downhill, so we needed to communicate well on defense” Hickey said pregame.
One of River Dell’s top two players, Sean Golden, woke up the morning of the game with a 104-degree fever. He would play but his role would be limited, so others had to step up.
It was a rough first quarter. After an early Patrick Sweeny three, RD’s scoring slowed down. River Dell found themselves down 10 shortly after the second quarter started.
They would need to rally and that is what they did. The second period was a different story with the defense moving on a string and shots falling.
Hickey stated afterward, “The team knew they needed to stay together, and if they could do so, it’d be a major turning point in the game.” The Hawks clawed their way back and by halftime, the Ridgefield Park lead was no more.
The second half went back and forth. Sean Golden pulled up quickly answered with buckets on the other end each time RP scored. A David Nunez drive was responded to by a three pointer from Ridgefield Park. This back and forth action kept the game close going into the fourth quarter.
River Dell was down by five with just over a minute to go in the fourth when junior Ryan Rossig hit a huge three bringing the team within 2. River Dell made a big stand and then Golden made a strong layup from another great pass from Rossig tying the game up.
The Hawks then dug in for a 44 second defensive stop sending the game into OT.
In overtime, River Dell started off strong offensively with Nunez lay-up. Hickey would handle the rest of the scoring as he continued to get to the rim, giving River Dell the lead.
Ridgefield Park’s Jordan Impalli led them in overtime scoring with six and finished the game with 19, but his efforts were not enough as River Dell hung onto the lead for the last few minutes until Ridgefield Park was forced to foul.
Liam Hickey nailed both of his free throws and then junior Aditya Pandya stepped in for a huge rejection on defense adding a couple of free throws and sealing the win. This huge win brought the team back to 6-6 after a tough start to the season.
After the game Hickey said that, “The team played with grit. It was a huge win, and we need to retain momentum going into the BIT tournament. The next two games are very important, and we need to practice well and prep well in order to win.”
Hickey was the game’s leading scorer with 29, and Golden complimented him well 19 points. The Hawks will play Glen Rock in the NJ Challenge on Sunday 1/21 and their rivals Ramsey on Tuesday 1/23.
