Chris Kelly Shore Regional’s Zach Pierce tries to block a baseline jumper by Rumson-Fair Haven’s Dwayne Reevey in a 43-37 victory last week.

This is almost as good as it gets in local basketball. In a daring display of offense and defense, as well as a lot of heart on the court, Shore Regional handed Rumson-Fair Haven its first Shore Conference B Central Division defeat, 43-37.

"Our guys played a great game," said Shore head coach Bill O’Leary. "Rumson is a great team, and we’ve had our difficulties beating them before; tonight was our night. This team just showed what they can do if they work on defense for the entire game.

"This was the first time this season we ran our defense for the entire 32 minutes of play, and it showed," he added.

The Blue Devils’ defense kept the ’Dogs at bay for nearly three minutes at the beginning of the game as Shore ran to a 6-0 lead.

Two jumpers by Phil Hershkowitz and a pair of foul shots by Cyril Galvin put the host team out ahead.

It was until Dwayne Reevey’s three-point shot, with 5:10 left in the quarter, that Rumson made its mark on the scoreboard.

Despite another three points, this time from John Huntsmen, and a pair of buckets by Pat Callings and Jared Hall, Shore closed out the initial quarter with a 12-10 lead.

Shore’s first two scores combined to chip in another six points to keep the lead.

The Blue Devils continued to dominate the floor, even though only 12 points were scored in the second quarter.

Defensive rebounds and a turnover gave the blue and white the opportunity to score eight points, with Galvin, Hershkowitz, Zach Pierce and Ryan Yelton (two each) improving the score.

Shore’s defense kept the Bulldogs out of the lanes and from finding any open shots, resulting in only four points for Rumson.

Rumson turned up the heat in the third quarter, outscoring its hosts 10-9 after the halftime break. Rumson closed out the third with an 8-2 run with a Hall layup and foul shot, a Bill Geltzeiler trey, and an inside jumper from Dan Wong.

The Bulldogs’ closing efforts in the third quarter trimmed Shore’s lead to five points, 29-24. However, despite Wong scoring nine of his team’s 13 points, Shore staved off their guests with a 14-13 run.

Halfway through the fourth quarter the Dogs were biting their way into the lead, outscoring Shore 10-2.

Rumson took its only substantial lead of the game on four points from Wong and Hall, and two points from Reevey.

After a trey from Wong gave the Bulldogs a 37-33 lead, Shore put together a 10-0 run down the stretch to retake the lead — and win the game.

Leading Rumson was Wong, with 11 points; Reevey (six points), Geltzeiler and Huntsmen (three points), Callinan and Brenden Fox (two points), and Terence Waclawik (one point) chipping in.

The Blue Devils’ superb night was anchored by Galvin and Hershkowitz, who both tallied 15 points and combined for seven steals.

Yelton tossed in seven points, while Pierce chalked up four and Steve Bazaz, two.

The win improves Shore to a 6-5 overall record, placing them 4-4 in the division. Rumson is now 8-4 and 7-1.