Marlboro Boys Basketball Halts Middletown South in Buc Classic Round 1

LITTLE SILVER – Seeing all-time Shore Conference leading scorer Bryan Antoine walk into the field house at Red Bank Regional High School as a spectator to Saturday’s opening round of the Albert E. Martin Buc Classic brought back fond memories for Marlboro boys basketball coach James Reuter, who coached Antoine as an eighth-grader at St. Mary’s Elementary School in Middletown.

It also reinforced what Reuter and his Marlboro team were up against: a freshman duo at Middletown South that are off to the kind of start to their varsity careers that begin to evoke memories of Antoine and former running mate Scottie Lewis during their glory days at the Ranney School.

“Bryan asked me if they (Middletown South) are good and I said, ‘Yeah, everyone is saying they have the two best freshmen in the Shore since you and Scottie,” Reuter said, only partially in jest. Different level, of course, but they are dynamic.’”

Eagles freshmen Ryan Gannon and Evan Wells gave Reuter and his team – No. 10 in the Shore Sports Insider Top 10 – a scare Saturday, but the Mustangs prevailed, 54-52, on a go-ahead score by junior Dylan McEwan in the final minute.

McEwan finished with a game-high 17 points, capped by his driving, left-hand layup with 52 seconds left that gave Marlboro the 54-52 lead.

Dylan McEwan with a go-ahead drive with 52 seconds left and Marlboro leads Middletown South 54-52. Now 12 seconds left, Midd South ball. pic.twitter.com/soBidxwyST

— Matt Manley (@Matt_Manley) December 27, 2025

On the other end of the floor, Middletown South could not find an opening in the Marlboro defense and used a timeout with 14 seconds left, still trailing by two. Out of the timeout, Gannon worked his way for an open three-point attempt that hit the front rim and the Mustangs ran out the clock.

After coaching the eighth-grade version of Antoine, who went on to become the all-time Shore Conference scoring leader, lead Ranney to an NJSIAA Tournament of Champions title in 2019 and play at both Villanova and Radford, Reuter faced off against Antoine during his high-school years.

Reuter was an assistant coach at Mater Dei Prep when the Seraphs went head-to-head with Antoine and Lewis – himself a high-major player at Florida with a dose of NBA experience – multiple times per year.

Marlboro was the fourth team to square off against Middletown South’s new-look lineup and the Mustangs were the first to beat the Eagles while themselves improving to 4-0. It did not start promising for Marlboro, which surrendered the first nine points of the game before climbing all the way back to take a 26-25 lead into halftime.

Senior Ajay Mathews and junior Nolan Gong helped shoot Marlboro back into the game and senior Drew Lubeck’s work on the boards and in the paint served to offset Middletown South’s six in the middle with 6-foot-6 Beckett Oliver. Mathews scored 13 points, Gong poured in 12 on four three-pointers and each guard added five rebounds, three assists and three steals for Marlboro.

Mathews is off to a start that suggests a breakout season from the 6-foot-1 senior guard. Through three games, he is averaging an even 13 points, six rebounds, 4.7 assists and two steals while complementing Gong – last year’s leading scorer.

“All summer, we just preached to him about being aggressive,” Reuter said. “We know Nolan can score, we know Dylan can score, but he can score too and I don’t think he understood how good he is. Once we instilled that confidence in him, he took it to another level as far as impacting the game in other ways when he’s not scoring. Plus, he works hard. When we have a day off of practice, he is working out.”

Lubeck, meanwhile, dropped 10 points while hauling in 13 rebounds – a slight edge over Beckett’s production (six points, 11 rebounds).

“They’re so good offensively, we couldn’t give them any extra possessions,” Reuter said. “Any time we could get them to miss or turn it over, we had to take advantage. We chipped away, got in our transition game, they went small to counter that and it was a tight game all the way through. I expected that.”

Marlboro led for most of the second half before Middletown South tied the game, 50-50, on a layup by Oliver off a precise bounce-pass from Gannon midway through the fourth. Gannon later hit a pair of free throws to tie the game with just under a minute to go, setting up Marlboro’s final full possession.

The Mustangs worked the ball round the perimeter until McEwan took a hand-off from Lubeck and attacked with a left-handed drive that he finished at the rim with 52 seconds left.

With their length and skills, we were just looking for a spot to attack at the right moment,” Reuter said. “It was nice to see us work the ball, space the floor and waited for that opportunity to attack the basket, and Dylan is great at attacking the basket.”

Gannon finished with 12 points, six rebounds and four assists, while Wells put up 10 points and six rebounds. Senior Matt Trimble also chipped in 11 points and three assists in the loss.

Gannon’s last shot was reminiscent of a clutch three-pointer he hit in a Middletown South win over Notre Dame on Dec. 20. He later ended the game with a game-winning floater in the lane.

“Against Notre Dame, they ran almost that same play for him and he knocked it down,” Reuter said. “We lost him for a second and he got open. I would like to say our defense got into his legs enough that he left that shot short. But he is a very good player and we were fortunate to get out with a win.”

Through four games, Gannon has put up games of 29, 18, 17 and 12 points, which started with 12 straight points in the fourth quarter to lead a win over St. Rose on opening night. Wells, meanwhile, has reached double-figures in each of the last three games after going for eight on opening night.

“Gannon is just a three-level scorer, but he is always under control and you don’t usually see that from a freshman,” Reuter said. “Wells with his size can shoot the ball, but he can also put it on the floor and get by somebody. It’s tough but it’s all about making those guys work.”

Marlboro advances to Monday’s semifinal round and will take on top-seeded Red Bank in a rematch of a game played a week earlier on Dec. 22 in Marlboro. The Mustangs took down Red Bank, 55-46, in that one to improve to 2-0.