High School Basketball: LEAP Wins the Fast Pace Battle Against Bordentown Thursday, March 9, 2006 By Art Redd SJSports Staff Writer The coaches usually can tell at the start of a basketball season when the roster has been finalized on which players have made the team. Only in their second year in the league, LEAP Academy's coach Macro Marcos knew he had a very talented team that had a good chance of making it to the state finals. The Lancers will get their chance to prove their coach right as their 106-75 rout over Bordentown moved them into Group 1 state finals against Bloomfield Tech. Five players finished in double figures for the Lancers. The opening moments of this game would feature both teams giving the crowd a ton of reasons to stand and cheer. The fast pace, "you can't stop me" first quarter featured a total of thirty-four shot taken during quarter. Bordentown's Sam McDuffie continued to impress with his ability to create the open shot helping the Scotties pull ahead 12-9 halfway through the quarter. With the game tied at 19 apiece with 1:37 remaining, LEAP Academy would end the quarter with a 7-2 run giving them a five point advantage heading into the second quarter. This game was all about the Lancers picking the right time to pick up their game. As the time began to tick down towards halftime, Chauncey Gilliam and Dylan Talley came off the bench each scoring 12 and 11 points before the half. The Lancers would go on a 16-5 run that ended the half that help them outscore Bordentown 34-23 during the second quarter. But this game would turn into the Lance James show as he shot 4 for 6 from the field and a total of ten third quarter points. James maneuver easily path through the defense for the easily close range shots. LEAP Academy would lead 86-57 after three quarters were completed. Even before the final quarter began, the Lancers had five players in double figures. McDuffie just continued to insert himself into the offense scoring 14 of his game high 31 points during the second half which included a ton of free throw attempts. Brandon Fraser would score all of his 11 points during the first half shooting 3 for 5 from behind the three point arch for the Scotties. The Lancers knew how accurate Fraser could be so the defense aggressively defended him on the perimeter. With the win, LEAP Academy will advance to meet a very talented Bloomfield Tech team. It will be a good test for the Lancers to show off their team skills. Photos by Hugh Tsung