Messina’s 34 Leads Old Tappan Past Indian Hills 61-52!

              With the loss of  junior point guard Shane McLaughlin to torn ligaments in his foot (injured in practice), Old Tappan needed a special game from their other star Thomas Messina. The senior answered the call with a 34 point performance as he elevated Old Tappan to a 61-52 victory over a good Indian Hills basketball team. Messina(pictured) got it done when it counted,scoring 23 of his points in the second half. The lefty started the game off with a steal and layup and became a difficult guard the entire way as Hills went into a box and one defense to contain him. Hills took a 25-22 lead into the 2nd half, but Old Tappan( 8-1) took the lead at the end of the 3rd as Sammy Elias (12 pts., 4rebs.) woke up to  give Old Tappan another scoring option. Indian Hills (5-3) has a few talented players of their own led by 6’3 senior Jason Chalmers who led the squad in scoring with 19 points and 5 rebounds and knocked down a few buckets late to keep Hills within striking distance.  Senior Andrew Ballester (10 pts., 5asts.) and senior Chris Torres (9 pts.,7 rebs., 3asts., 3stls) also had moments where they shined on the offensive and defensive ends. The game however, became a showcase for the 6’3 Messina as, in this game he was the best player on the floor.  Old Tappan got solid floor games from guard Tim Brophy (7 pts., 3 asts, 2 stls.) and Nick Bianca (9 rebs.,4 blks.)                                                                                                         

                                                             Notes : McLaughlin will be out at least 4 weeks.