By, Kyle Alves-Ferreira
CHATHAM – The Chatham Cougars (11-4) got the job done in the second half and took down the Delbarton Green Wave (12-5) on Tuesday, winning 70-62. This was the second meeting of the season between the two Morris County foes.
The past few days for residents of the Garden State have not been welcoming thanks to massive snow totals and frigid temperatures. Parts of Morris County received as high as 16.4 inches of snow over the weekend.
In Chatham, it appeared conditions defrosted a little bit and it wasn’t because of warmer temperatures outside (it was 14 degrees at tipoff). Rather, two of Morris County’s finest boys basketball programs came into Tuesday’s NJAC American Division battle on mini-hot streaks.
Both riding two-game winning streaks, the Cougars and the Green Wave had something to play for. For Chatham, they wanted to avenge their January 7 loss at Delbarton where they squander a 22-21 halftime lead. For Delbarton, not only did they want the season-sweep, but they wanted to earn their first away victory against the Cougars since December 20, 2023.
Either way, a win for either side would provide them with some momentum as both inch closer to the 2026 Morris County Tournament. It was recently announced that Delbarton would be the fifth seed in the tournament while Chatham was given the sixth seed.
Right from the gate, it was a track meet up and down the court for both squads. The play early on did favor the Green Wave, who after the first quarter were up 20-16.
Powered by junior Austin Kolakowski, senior Günther Neumann and sophomore Stephen Kmetz, it appeared Delbarton would add to their winning streak. Up 37-32 at the half, it was still anyone’s game, however.
While Kmetz deserves praise for leading the Green Wave with a career-high 21 points, he wasn’t the only player on the court with that amount.
For the home side, senior Michael MacAniff once again shined bright for the Cougars and was a massive reason for their second half comeback. With 21 points, MacAniff’s play Tuesday was incredible. Now with seven 20+ point games this season, MacAniff has proved why his name should be among the best in the county.
Speaking of that comeback, the Cougars were able to push through a tough Green Wave squad and outscore them 38 to 25 in the second half. An impressive fourth quarter, where the Cougars would score 21 points, would seal it for them. As a result of the victory, Chatham now jumps ahead of Delbarton in the NJAC – American Division standings, sitting second behind an excellent Montville squad.
On top of MacAniff’s great scoring performance, Kenyon College commit Ryan Leach provided 15 points of his own.
Now with their win behind them, Chatham’s focus now shifts to a pair of Union County schools later this week. Prior to the Morris County Tournament, the Cougars will face Summit and Governor Livingston on Thursday and Saturday respectively.
For Delbarton, they will have a difficult task ahead on Thursday when they go on the road to Wayne and face DePaul Catholic.
