The line between reaching a sectional final and falling one game short is often what separates the very good teams from the great teams.
This is the mountain Glen Rock has tried to climb up and conquer the past two seasons.
The third time proved to be the charm for the Panthers. After falling in the sectional final two seasons in a row, second-seeded Glen Rock defeated sixth-seeded Glen Rock at home on Wednesday evening.
“This is fantastic,” Glen Rock head coach Jason Mittleman said. “My first three years we won 17 games total in three years. In that fourth year, we actually won 20 games and that’s when we first broke through. For them to break through this year after being here for three years now is amazing with the talent that we have. A lot of these guys played in this game last year and they get a little redemption.”
“We’ve been working all throughout high school for this,” senior Sam Viggiano said. “We lost the last two years. It feels really good to get back and win.”
The Panthers have been a defensive team all season. In 17 of their 22 wins, they have allowed 50 or fewer points and have not allowed more than 56 in any of their victories.
Thus, it was not surprising a defensive play turned out to be the biggest of the game. With Glen Rock up by six, 46-40, with 1:41 remaining, Zack Askenazy took a perfectly timed charge on a drive by Mahwah’s Matt Odumgba. Odumgba ended up making the layup and if a defensive foul was called he could have cut the lead to three.
Glen Rock made its free throws down the stretch to make sure the game never got any tighter again.
He’s been doing it his whole career,” Mittleman said. “He and Charlie Garrett are our charge takers. They taking them on a regular basis and are willing to sacrifice their bodies.”
Glen Rock’s defense also carried the team in the first half when the offense did not have much going against the Mahwah zone. The Panthers did not allow a Mahwah field goal in the game’s first eight minutes.
What Glen Rock did have going in the first half was Viggiano shooting the three-ball. Any time he got an open look against the zone it was automatic.
He made four three-pointers in the first half to account for 12 of Glen Rock’s 21 points as the Panthers took a 21-17 lead into the locker room.
“We’ve been waiting for Sam most of the year,” Mittleman said. “We knew coming into the season he was a great shooter. He’s sort of been up and down. He’s had some big moments, but none bigger than today. That really helped put us in a situation where we had the lead.”
Viggiano made two more in the second half on his way to a season-high 22 points. He had not scored more than 15 in a game prior to this one.
“I shot it well tonight,” Viggiano said. “The team shot it well. We just had it going.”
One thing the zone did for Mahwah was turn Glen Rock star Mason Mangione into more of a floor spacer rather than a ball handler and shot creator. This led to a quiet first half for him in which he did not score after the first bucket of the game for Glen Rock.
Of course, you can only keep a talent like him down for so long. Mangione ripped off eight points in the third quarter and two corner three-pointers by helped key a 9-2 run to begin the quarter that helped put Glen Rock up 30-19.
Glen Rock will host fourth-seeded Vernon in the North 1, Group 2 final on Saturday in what is a rematch of last season’s semifinal that the Panthers lost on their home floor, 60-55, in overtime. Glen Rock certainly believes it has the talent to change the outcome this time around.
“I think if we play the way we played tonight we have a good chance,” Viggiano said. “We gotta move the ball and we’ll have a good chance,”
Alex Fessel scored 29 points in that game for Vernon, and he is playing like one of the best guards in the state now as a senior. Stopping him will be the biggest task for the Panthers.
“He’s an amazing guard,” Mittleman said. “I have two days of watching a lot of film on Alex to try to figure something out. Right now, I don’t have an answer. Nobody has had an answer. Pascack Valley didn’t have an answer. Hopefully, we’ll get one by the time Saturday rolls around.”
Matt Bove covers North and Central Jersey boys basketball. He can be reached at mbove@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @MBoveHS
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