ROSELLE (NJ) – The much-awaited showdown between Plainfield and Gill St. Bernard lived up to the billing as Plainfield pulled out a 78-77 overtime victory in what may be the greatest basketball game witnessed in the history of high school basketball in New Jersey.

Senior Jahmal Lane (22 points) got Plainfield (18-3) on the board first with a jumper just outside the lane.

“That’s my game,” Lane said after the win. “I have to stay aggressive and play defense.”

Plainfield’s lead didn’t last long as Alex Mitola connected on three pointers in Gill St. Bernard’s (19-3) next two trips down the court. The deep shooting onslaught was in its begging stage as Jaren Sina pitched in with a triple of his own and Gill took their largest lead of the game at 12-6. Taylor Plummer instigated a 9-0 Plainfield run with a three pointer as the opening period closed with Plainfield holding a three-point edge.

The hot shooting of Mitola and Sina surprised no one in the gymnasium. Plainfield guard Denzel Johnson commented about his first start in of the season against the talented duo.

“I was there to make a difference,” Johnson said. “I had to play defense and pass the ball.”

Yale bound Justin Sears carried Plainfield in the second period, but not in his usual fashion. With his constant effort, Sears usually dominates the offensive glass and scores on put backs in the lane, but last night Dominic Hoffman, Larry Piretra and Michael Hyland challenged everything the senior put up. Their aggressiveness placed Sears on the foul line where he calmly sank all six of his attempts in the period. Plainfield gained their largest lead of the game on another bucket by Lane before Gill called a timeout and stopped the momentum.

After the stoppage, Gill resumed their torrid shooting from behind the arc. Mitola and Sina each connected from deep. Plainfield guard Sekou Harris countered the deep shooting with blazing rushes down the court before Gill St. Bernard set their defense and scored with an array of penetrating moves. Gill St. Bernard shook of Plainfield’s attempt at

running them out the gym and rolled out their own 7-0 capped by a Jon Schreer bucket that evened the score at the half.

Mitola and Sina put on a deep-shooting display for the ages in the third period as the pair combined for five treys. Plainfield built a slight lead behind the offensive glasswork of Sears. The senior grabbed five offensive boards that led directly to 10 Plainfield second chance points.

The heavyweight teams continued the battle in the fourth quarter, but this time each squad put together runs that usually knock other teams out of games. Plainfield tied their largest lead of the game (9 points) with an 11-3 run, but Gill answered with a 15-1 run and took a five-point lead with 55 ticks left on the clock.

The veteran Plainfield team dug in on the defensive end led by the fiery Dii ‘Jon Allen-Jordan. Allen-Jordan scored three points and Harris connected on a jumper as Plainfield tied the game with 13 seconds remaining. Down to their last timeout, Gill St. Bernard got the ball to Hoffman but his shot over the outstretched hand of Sears fell off target.

Alex Mitola converted a pair of free throws as Gill St. Bernard took another five-point lead with just over a minute remaining in overtime. Once again, Plainfield put on a ferocious defensive effort and ended the game on a 6-0 run punctuated with a Sekou Harris dish to Allen-Jordan for a left-handed game-winning bucket.

Players of the Game:

Plainfield - Sekou Harris earned PrimeTime Player of the Game scoring 20 points,

Jahmal Lane scored a team high 22 points, Justin Sears scored 15 points and grabbed 14 rebounds and Dii ‘Jon Allen-Jordan scored 16 points including the game winner and collected 16 boards.

Gill St. Bernard’s - Alex Mitola earned PrimeTime Player of the Game with 30 points on 8 for 9 shooting from the 3-point line. Jaren Sina scored 22 points and handed out eight assists, Dominic Hoffman scored 12 points and 13 rebounds.

Game stats
More photos

Next Game:

When: Saturday February 18

Opponent and Site: To be determined