What happened in the Tournament of Champions final?

The 2021-22 New Jersey high school girls basketball season officially ended on Sunday with the Tournament of Champions final between Rutgers Prep and St. John Vianney. The Lady Lancers, the most dominant team in the state and arguably one of the greatest girls basketball teams in New Jersey’s storied history, ran the gauntlet and completed its championship run with a win in the TOC final. Here’s a recap of Sunday’s action. <strong>RECAP</strong> SJV started out strong against a tough Rutgers Prep team, leading 23-12 after the first quarter. While the Argonauts kept it close in the second quarter to cut the deficit to eight at the half, the Lady Lancers in the second half were too much and pulled away big time, out-scoring Rutgers Prep 32-20 over the final 16 minutes of the game. Rutgers Prep was able to keep with the overpowered Lady Lancers for the 16 minutes, but were lapped by the game’s end and a dogpile ensued at midcourt in Jersey Mike’s Arena on the campus of Rutgers University. <strong>SUNDAY’S STANDOUTS</strong> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="325201" first="Mikayla" last="Blakes"] (So.) - 6-0 G, Rutgers Prep</strong> Blakes finished an impressive sophomore season with a great performance against the Lady Lancers, scoring 18 points along with seven rebounds and an assist. She had five steals on the defensive side of the ball, playing well in a tough assignment against SJV. Offensively, the large majority of her scoring came from inside the perimeter, though she knocked down a three-pointer in the game as well. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="325188" first="Zahra" last="Alexander"] (So.) - 5-9 PG, Rutgers Prep</strong> Alexander has shown herself to be a solid scoring guard for the Argonauts this season, but struggled after a strong freshman season with Columbia. Her TOC final performance against SJV, however, was a return to form for her as she scored 11 points along with two rebounds. Alexander also had a block on the day and did a great job at pounding the interior for Rutgers Prep. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="325217" first="Julia" last="Karpell"] (So.) - 5-11 SG, St. John Vianney</strong> Karpell was on fire from beyond the arc on Sunday, knocking down 3 three-pointers, scoring 11 points overall for the Lady Lancers. She was one of this team’s best three-point shooters this season and with 80 percent of her scoring coming from three, it’s not surprising at all she came up big in a game like the TOC final for the Lady Lancers. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="134626" first="Madison" last="St. Rose"] (Sr.) - 5-11 PG, St. John Vianney</strong> St. Rose finished off her high school career with a fantastic game in the TOC final, scoring a game-high 21 points along with five rebounds and five assists. She also knocked down two three-pointers on the day, making things happen inside and outside the perimeter. On defense, St. Rose had five steals, helping to shut down a potent Rutgers Prep offense. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="134644" first="Zoe" last="Brooks"] (Jr.) - 5-9 PG/SG, St. John Vianney</strong> The unstoppable Brooks/St. Rose duo was nothing short of spectacular in the TOC final as while St. Rose led the team in scoring, Brooks was right behind with 14 points and two rebounds, knocking down six foul shots in the win. What stood out in this game was her ability to draw contact in the lane and push the tempo from there. Brooks put Rutgers Prep on their heels and make them backtrack on defense. <strong>Janie Bachmann (Jr.) - 6-0 SF/SG, St. John Vianney</strong> Bachmann came up big for the Lady Lancers in a precursor for her senior season, scoring nine points in the TOC final with five rebounds, two assists, two blocks and a steal. More than half of her points came at the foul line, showing how well she’s been able to use her size to her advantage. From her interior scoring to her stellar foul shooting to her lock-down defense in the paint, Bachmann had quite the overall performance.