Kevin Belbey, CBA Student Correspondent
Freehold - With a chance to get both a crucial divisional win in the wild A North and to avenge their loss from earlier in the year, Freehold Township had an opportunity that they could not throw away. With the score tied at 46 with just 6.7 seconds remaining, the Patriots defeated the Colts 48-46 after a Corey Csakai miss was tipped in by Chris Ballester at the buzzer.
The game started off well for the Patriots, as they had a quick 8-0 lead in the first behind five points from Csakai. Brian Neller (10 points) of CBA helped the Colts get back into the thick of things with five of his own as they were down by two heading into the second. However, Neller was limited beyond those five in the first half due to foul trouble.
Pat Light (11 points, 10 rebounds) opened up the scoring in the second frame with a three and gave the Colts their first lead at 13-12. The Patriots, however, would come back to regain their lead and head into the break up 23-20.
The third saw a series of ups and downs for both teams. CBA looked strong in the beginning of the third, taking a 32-26 lead behind two threes from CBA's Matt Byrnes (8 points) and four points from Mike Kuhn, but he was held to just seven for the game. The Colts seemed to be in control of the game, taking charges and getting stops on the defensive end and turning them into points, but that would soon change behind the hand of Corey Csakai (19 points). Csakai had 7 in the quarter to give Freehold a one point lead with just one quarter remaining.
CBA jumped out to a 41-35 lead in the fourth, seeming to once again be in control of the game. However, Freehold would battle back to have a two point lead with 28 seconds remaining, as Kevin Fischer (8 points) headed to the line with a chance to create a two possession game for the Colts. Fischer would make his first, but missed his second to set up Pat Light's game-tying three with just 6.7 seconds left in the game. Ballester's tip gave the Patriots an 8-3 record and sent the Colts looking for answers as they prepare for their game on Saturday against New York power Boys and Girls in the Battle on the Boardwalk.