Fast start sends Burlington Twp. to state final

This time, they didn't need a great comeback.

This time, they started fast, finished strong, and booked their ticket to Sunday's state championship game.

Burlington Township broke to a 10-0 lead and never lost the advantage in a 53-49 victory over Kingsway on Thursday night in the Group 3 state boys' basketball semifinals at Winslow Township.

Senior forward Danny Rodriguez scored 18 to lead the Central Jersey champion Falcons (22-9), who advanced to face Plainfield, a 62-60 semifinal winner over Teaneck, in the state final at Rutgers.

Senior forward Avery Holliday added 10 points and junior forward Demetrius Tilley scored nine off the bench for Burlington Township, which will be seeking its fourth state title and first since 1992.

Senior guard Rondell Gilmore-Lane scored 16 in his final game for Kingsway (23-6), the three-time South Jersey champion.

"When you give the Central Jersey champions a 10-0 lead, that's a huge mountain to climb," Kingsway coach George Passante said. "But I'm so proud of these kids. They could have quit so many times, and they kept battling back."

Kingsway was within 50-48 after Gilmore-Lane hit a pair of three-pointers late in the fourth quarter.

But the Dragons committed turnovers on their next two possessions, and Burlington Township got a huge basket from junior guard David Coulanges, who hit a short jumper in the lane for a 52-48 lead with 48 seconds left.

"You can make those mistakes in the regular season, but you can't make them in the playoffs," Passante said.

Burlington Township had rallied from a 15-point deficit in the fourth quarter of the sectional finals against Colts Neck and from a 22-point deficit in the third quarter in the quarterfinals against Monmouth.

But the Falcons burst from the gate against Kingsway, scoring the game's first 10 points and holding the Dragons scoreless until 1 minute, 18 seconds remained in the first quarter.

"That was important against a team like Kingsway," Burlington Township coach Scott Kupersmit said. "They are so disciplined and play such great defense that it would be tough to come back against them."

Kupersmit said Burlington Township's man-to-man defense was the key to the team's fast start. But the Falcons kept the lead with some timely three-point shooting.

For the game, the Falcons made eight three-pointers. The 6-foot-5 Rodriguez hit four.

"We had some ups and downs, some trials and tribulations," Kupersmit said of the Falcons' regular season in the Burlington County Liberty Division. "But I always try to have us playing our best ball at the end of the season, and that's what we're doing."

The loss ended the best era in Kingsway basketball history, as the Dragons became the first team since Woodrow Wilson in the mid-1980s to win three consecutive South Jersey Group 3 titles.

"There are not many people and not many teams that can say they accomplished what these seven seniors accomplished the last three years," Passante said. "We fell short of our ultimate goal, but they should walk out of here proud of everything they've done."

Burlington Twp.   10 15 17 11 – 53

Kingsway   2 16 22 9 – 49

BT: Danny Rodriguez 18, Avery Holliday 10, Jalon Wilson 6, David Coulanges 2, Remi Odulana 4, Joe Smith 4, Demetrius Tilley 9.

K: Rondell Gilmore-Lane 16, Kyler Grigsby 4, Troy Jenkins 6, Brad Fagan 6, Jaysen Conway 8, Julian Tention 8, Ben Merritt 1.