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Big Game Ready: CBA Survives Manasquan, Stays Perfect vs. The Shore

Matt Manley|February 6, 2026|Last Updated February 6, 2026

MIDDLETOWN — The Super Bowl will be played this coming Sunday, Feb. 8, but according to Christian Brothers Academy senior Connor Andree, he and his teammates on the Colts basketball team have already played in 11 Super Bowls this season — at least from the perspective of CBA’s opponents.

After a dominant start to the season, CBA has found itself in a number of tightly-contested games against various opponents from the Shore Conference, and while that might suggest the Colts — the No. 1 team in the Shore Sports Insider Top 10 since the start of the season — are be more beatable than they appeared through the first half of January, it is also a function of being the most important game on every local opponent’s schedule.

“Everybody that comes in, CBA is their Super Bowl,” Andree said. “They are coming in, giving their best effort and they always expect that. We know it’s a game of runs. They are going to punch us, we just have to make sure we punch back.”

For the fourth time in the last three weeks Thursday, CBA found itself in a game that hung in the balance during the fourth quarter and for the fourth time, the Colts executed their winning formula.

A little more than two weeks after nearly pulling off an improbable comeback vs. CBA at home, No. 8 Manasquan again cut a double-digit third-quarter deficit to one in the fourth quarter, only for CBA to close out the Warriors — this time for a 57-51 victory that completes the Colts’ 10-0 run through the Shore Conference Class A North regular season.

Andree starred on Thursday with 24 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two blocks, including a key steal-and-score during a game-clinching 6-0 burst late in the fourth quarter, followed by four made free throws on four attempts in the final 1:17.

With under two minutes to go in the third quarter, it appeared any late-game heroics by CBA would not be necessary. Seniors Charlie Messano and Charlie Marcoullier buried three-pointers on back-to-back possessions to give the Colts a 43-30 lead over Manasquan in a game that CBA quickly gained control of after Manasquan stormed out to a 12-2 lead.

After being outscored, 41-18, during a stretch of just over 18 minutes, Manasquan made its move against CBA. The Warriors authored a 14-2 run that pulled them within 45-44 on a drive floater by senior Jack Lattimer with just under four minutes to go. The comeback was strikingly reminiscent of Manasquan’s near-comeback in a 50-46 loss to CBA on Jan. 20 in which the Colts led, 37-20, with 10:30 left before the Warriors rallied within 46-45 before the three-minute mark of the fourth.

In both matchups, however, CBA made sure Manasquan’s rally stalled before the Warriors could tie the game. After Lattimer cut the CBA lead to one, Colts junior Avery Lynch rose to the occasion with a mid-range jumper, followed by a drive to the basket that pushed the lead to 49-44. Those were four of Lynch’s six points in the game and he made a similar impact in the Jan. 20 win, when he scored all 11 of his points in the fourth quarter to help CBA avoid the upset.

Andree then added to the cushion by jumping in front of a pass near the top of the key and dribbling the rest of the way for a layup that made it 51-44 with 2:12 left. CBA’s final six points came from the free-throw line, with Andree going 4-for-4 in the quarter while sophomore Izayah Cooper also hit a pair of free throws in the final minute.

Andree and Cooper helped CBA back into the game after Manasquan started the game on fire. CBA celebrated its Senior Night on Thursday and began the game with Cooper the lone non-senior in the starting five. The visitors capitalized by jumping out to a 12-2 lead with 4:03 to play, which included a 9-2 start before CBA coach Bryan Lynch inserted Avery Lynch, sophomore Oymere Rene and junior David Buley into the game.

While getting back to the regular lineup helped CBA find its groove, it was three of the starters who jump-started the Colts. Andree and Cooper combined for 23 of the team’s points in taking a 29-21 halftime lead, with Cooper scoring 11 of his 13 points in the game during the first half. Cooper also dished out four assists in the game.

Andree, meanwhile, was steady throughout the game, scoring 12 points in each half, including eight of CBA’s 14 in the first quarter.

“They were just hugging everyone on the outside, because everyone on our team is a great shooter,” Andree said. “I was just able to go work, get downhill and it worked out for me. We play team basketball, so we’re always going to look for who is hot and who has the best opportunities. Tonight, it was me but other games, it will be somebody else. We’re always looking for each other.”

Messano also made an impact, grabbing four of his five rebounds in the first half, then scoring seven of his nine points in the second half while proving his typical high energy on defense.

Manasquan’s shooting got the Warriors off to a strong start and later got them back into the game. Sophomore Sean Bilodeau scored 19 points while burying four three-pointers to lead Manasquan, while junior John Visceglia hit three three-pointers during an 11-point performance for the Warriors. Bilodeau hit corner three-pointers on consecutive possessions to start the fourth quarter, cutting CBA’s lead to 45-42 and nearly made it three in a row, but his top-of-the-key attempt to tie the game rimmed out.

Junior Logan Cleveland added 16 points and five rebounds and senior Jack O’Reilly helped Manasquan battle CBA to a stalemate on the glass with nine rebounds to go with his two points.

Manasquan was the more efficient team from the perimeter and limited CBA to four offensive rebounds, but six turnovers in the first quarter prevented the Warriors from building an even bigger lead. CBA went on to force 13 Manasquan turnovers in the game.

In addition to the two narrow victories over Manasquan, CBA has had to close out tight games at home vs. both Red Bank Catholic and Rumson-Fair Haven. Prior to the overtime win over RBC, CBA had dominated its first four Shore Conference opponents — Holmdel, St. Rose, Rumson-Fair Haven and Red Bank — by an average margin of 34.5, with none of the games closer than 31 points. At that point in the season, CBA also had three wins over teams currently ranked in the state: Roselle Catholic, Linden and St. Mary of Rutherford.

“Sometimes, your shots don’t fall,” Andree said. “You can play great defense, but if the shots aren’t falling, you need to find other ways to win. Our last couple games, we haven’t shot they way we know we can shoot, so it’s all about heating up at the right time and I really think we’re starting to heat up at the right time. Good teams are able to win while it’s ugly and we have won a bunch of ugly games this year. We just have to expect there are going to be highs and lows in a season and if we can fight through the lows, we’ll get back to the highs.”

What CBA might have lost in its perceived invincibility, it has gained in high-pressure, late-game experience against many of the teams that will be trying to deny the Colts the Shore Conference Tournament championship, which will be awarded two weeks from Friday at Monmouth University. CBA has not won the conference championship since 2010 and its trip to the championship game was its first in nine years.

Now, with Lynch taking over the program for predecessor Geoff Billet and bringing Avery Lynch, Cooper and Rene with him from his previous post at St. Rose, CBA has supplanted St. Rose as the powerhouse of the Shore Conference. Just as St. Rose needed to do in 2024, CBA would like to certify their standing with a championship.

“We feel great,” Andree said. “In the Shore Conference Tournament and in the state tournament, it’s all about being battle-tested. We are battle-tested. A lot of other teams aren’t.”

 

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