Monroe high School yesterday hosted two of the top teams in the Group 4 bracket between Lenape and Howell. A lot was in stake as the winner would move on to Rutgers this Saturday for Group IV. Howell with a 22-7 record is coached by Joe Santopietro while Lenape is 24-7 underneath head coach Sean McAneny with a talented freshman guard EL-Anita Joe Samuel which Howell needed to focus on most of the time. Lenape plays up tempo, great flow to their offense and can beat you multiple ways on defense. Howell had a tough task coming into this game and needed to keep up with them in order to win.
Both teams were struggling in the beginning finding shots as their defenses set the tone early. Turnovers were also an issue in first quarter as they went back and forth to find something. Then Lenape started to heat up from the three point line which Howell had trouble stopping. El-Anita Joe Samuel started to get into a zone for Lenape which helped her teammates Alexa Henry, Shelby Croly, Olivia Watkins, Sienna Fedoruk and Ryleigh Nichols get involved also. Howell couldn't get going on offense as they only scored 6 points and Lenape had a 10-6 lead going into second quarter.
Lenape ended up extending their lead even more going on a 8-1 run at one point with Howell's defense being all out of sorts and confused. They did a great job of getting to the basket more, drawing fouls against Howell and continuing to hit three pointers. Alexa Henry, Olivia Watkins, Shelby Croly and El-Anita Joe Samuel all did a fantastic job of keeping Lenape's offense focused as they made their shots and creating for their teammates. Howell wasn't ready for them at all in this game, Lenape took advantage of that while they outscored Howell 19-8 in second half and leading 29-14 going into halftime. Howell needed to make adjustments quickly in order to stay in this game.
The second half Lenape was able to put this game away by scoring 35 points and giving up 17 combined in third/fourh quarters. EL Anita Joe Samuel continued to make shots along with key defensive stops. Lenape was just more locked in, had everything going on their end and a better game plan then Howell. Heading into the fourth quarter, Lenape had a 44-22 lead and put finishing touches in this matchup with a 20-9 run. Lenape gets a 64-31 victory over Howell as they advance to the Group IV this Saturday at Rutgers.
Lenape will now face Morristown this Saturday March 9th at 6:30 Pm Eastern in Group IV and Location Rutgers.
EL-Anita Joe Samuel was huge on both ends of the court for Lenape yesterday against Howell.
Leading scorers for Lenape
El-Anita Joe Samuel 15 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 blocks, 2 steals
Shelby Croly 12 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block
Alexa Henry 10 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal
Olivia Watkins 7 points, 2 assists, 4 steals
Sienna Fedoruk 7 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals
Ryleigh Nichols 6 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists, 3 steals
Photo Credit 📹 Mike Franco
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