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| Montclair State athletics photo |
By Rob Knox
D3sports.com
Montclair State junior forward Melissa Tobie enjoys numbers, statistical formulas and solving complicated equations.
That passion for digits is one reason why Tobie wants to be a math teacher whenever she finishes playing basketball and earn her master’s degree in special education. However, the only formula and numbers that matters for Tobie and Montclair State isn’t too complex. It’s actually basic math.
It’s actually basic math: One as in another victory over Scranton Friday in a Sweet 16 matchup at FDU-Florham would keep the Red Hawks’ season alive and move them a step closer to their goal. The Montclair State-Scranton winner would meet either Baldwin Wallace or undefeated and host FDU-Florham for a spot in the Final Four at Stevens Point, Wis., on Saturday night.
Though, Montclair State defeated Scranton, 86-75, in the opening game of the season, Tobie knows that means nothing. The Red Hawks were eliminated in this round last year by Christopher Newport.
“It’s a great feeling to be back in the Sweet 16,” Tobie said. “We worked hard in the offseason to prepare for this season. It’s a great accomplishment to make it back here. Now, we want to keep our season going. It seems like forever ago when we played them. I am sure they’re a different team just like we are. We may know their personnel, but we expect a really tough game because they have some weapons. I don’t think us winning before helps us in any way because we still have to win this game.”
Tobie is no secret, but she’s certainly a 6-1 weapon of mass destruction. She has inflicted plenty of damage on Montclair’s opponents while shredding the school record book one basket and rebound at a time. In three years, Tobie has registered 1,469 points, which is sixth in school history, and 643 rebounds. More amazing is that Tobie is a 50.3 percent career shooter from the field (526-for-1046).
However, the two-time reigning New Jersey Athletic Conference Player of the Year is more impressed and happy with her career totals of 260 assists, 202 steals and 167 blocked shots.
“I have never worried about scoring,” Tobie said. “I go out and play hard and do whatever team needs. Certain nights it’s scoring and others it’s rebounding. I play hard every possession and I’ve been working on defense since getting to college. I like kicking the ball out to an open shooter because I trust my teammates to make the open shot.”
However, the points just continue adding up for Tobie, who became the first MSU player to surpass the 500-point mark in a single season since 1991. She currently ranks second in the NJAC in scoring (18.7 points per game) and leads the league in blocks and assist-turnover ratio while ranking third in field goal percentage and assists and fourth in free throw percentage.
This season, Tobie has scored in double figures 26 times and hit for 30 or more points three times. She scored a season-high 33 points against Kean. Tobie earned the final NJAC Player of the Week selection on Monday, her fourth of the season.
Tobie has been Montclair State’s leader during another memorable season. She did it by example last Saturday as Montclair rallied from a 16-point deficit to beat Cabrini in overtime. Showcasing an indomitable will to win, Tobie scored 30 points, including 18 in the second half and overtime, along with nine rebounds, one assist, four steals, and five blocks during a 78-73 come-from-behind overtime victory over Cabrini in the NCAA Tournament second round.
For the Red Hawks it was the perfect dose of adversity that all championship teams need to conquer if they’re going to be the last team standing. Although Montclair rolled through its season with a few paper cuts in posting a 27-2 record, the Red Hawks were tested during the season and most recently in the NJAC final against William Paterson.
“Cabrini is a great team and they executed their game plan well,” Tobie said. “We had a few games this year where we came from behind to win so we’ve been in this situation before without the pressure of the NCAA Tournament. We went into halftime and trusted ourselves and played together. We did that in the second half and our defense brought us back.”
That same toughness and determination is something Tobie passes along to her fourth grade team that she and Jenny Malone coaches during the offseason. Tobie’s love of the game started in fourth grade. Tobie also played soccer as a youngster until basketball won out. Once she got into high school and started playing more seriously, Tobie played AAU ball with the New Jersey Crusaders. As a student at Montclair, her grade point average fills her with pride. She is a member of the Athletic Honor Society.
Tobie is the complete package on and off the court.
She’s a blue-collar player that outworks bigger opponents for loose balls and overpowers smaller ones. Tobie loves the beauty of banging in the post and navigating the tight and confined spaces of the paint beneath the basket.
While Tobie may be the headliner for the Red Hawks, they would not be preparing for a Sweet 16 battle again without the contributions of Janitza Aqunio, who averages 15.9 points per game and leads Montclair State with 69 3-pointers. She has made at least 3 3-pointers 13 times this season, including eight in the first half against William Paterson. Aquino has scored in double figures in 16 straight games. She made the game-winner against William Paterson in the NJAC final with nine seconds remaining that provided the winning margin in a 67-64 win.
Defensive wizard Nicosia Henry also chips in 12.2 points and a team best 8.8 rebounds. Tobie credits the defensive battles against Henry in practice for helping her game improve. Rachel Krauss has made 33 3-pointers.
Tobie and the rest of the Red Hawks are focused on Scranton’s talented team. However, the rest of the Division III world has glanced at a possible Elite Eight matchup against FDU-Florham, clearly the two best women’s basketball programs in New Jersey the last two years in what would be the unofficial state title game. That’s the future. The present is Scranton.
“We haven’t talked about FDU,” Tobie said. “It would be a good matchup if it happened. All I know about FDU is that they are undefeated and that they’re a good team. We would treat that game like any other. We’ll prepare and give it our best shot, but our main focus is Scranton.
“Making the Sweet 16 is a great feeling,” Tobie continued. “Every game we can play, I wouldn’t want to do it with any other group of girls. We’ve worked hard and we have a fun group. We love playing together and it would be a great accomplishment if we could get to the Final Four. We all work hard to do that for each other.”