In a game where the Golden Knights had little room for error, Old Tappan orchestrated one of their best halves of the season against mighty Teaneck.

Unfortunately it was followed and outweighed by one of their worst.

"In the beginning we were able to do a combination of things, hit shots, grab the offensive board and we were well prepared," said coach Dennis Rossi. "In the second half they controlled the tempo and we were missing the shots we were able to make in the first half."

An upset was in the making, but the Highwaymen rallied in the third quarter, busting out for 30 points, and despite being down by 12 points at the half, they engineered a 64-57 win in front of a neutral crowd at Tenafly High School.

In the first quarter both teams kept it close and mirrored each other’s moves.

At the 2:54 mark Teaneck’s Shamari Barber dodged and drove down the lane for the hoop "and the harm."

The play immediately after featured Golden Knight Steve Martinez with his own "and-one" play.

The difference was that Martinez made his free throw and Old Tappan took the lead.

Brian Stankewicz created momentum for Old Tappan going into the second quarter, sinking an inside jumper in the final seconds of the first to make the score 18-14 in favor of the Golden Knights.

It was also a physical game and the Highwaymen found themselves in foul trouble early in the second. Old Tappan was able to use pinpoint passes to take advantage of the cautious defenders in the paint, while successfully shutting down Teaneck’s offensive attacks.

"In the first half we were able to pressure the ball at half court," said Max Blank. "We practiced deep passes because that’s what they were known to do."

Rossi yelled from the sidelines as he saw his players starting to get comfortable with a 28-16 lead with 4:38 left until halftime. He instructed from the bench that "Everyone needs to keep moving without the ball" and to "defensively make sure you get there."

Old Tappan had their biggest lead at 31-16, but Teaneck mustered up a last-minute offensive spurt. The Golden Knights made thoughtless turnovers before the half, which the Highwaymen capitalized on and trimmed the deficit to 36-24.

"I told them at halftime that we had to put another strong half together," said Rossi.

But it was Teaneck’s defense that put together the strong half, stripping the ball from driving Golden Knights. On the offensive side the Highwaymen knew it was just a matter of time before one of their top shooters, Chris Diaz, would catch fire.

"In the first half we played no defense, but we knew if we were able to play great defense it would turn into offense," said Diaz.

Diaz’s prediction was correct, as the Old Tappan turnovers translated into Teaneck scoring chances. The senior guard torched the Golden Knights defense for 13 points in the quarter. Everything the Highwaymen hoisted up found its way to the bottom of the net.

"Throughout the game I thought no one could guard me and as the game went on I was just able to walk into my zone," said Diaz. "I knew if I missed we would be able to get the rebound and I would try for it again."

With 4:14 left in the third quarter, Teaneck had completed its miraculous comeback. Walter Farrior drained a three-pointer from beyond the arc to put the Highwaymen up for good, 40-39. The Teaneck faithful burst with enthusiasm, as they all stood and cheered.

"In the first half all of our shots fell, but we couldn’t buy a basket in the second half," said Blank. "We got cocky and let them slip by."

Rossi kept his composure as he saw the Golden Knights self-destruct before his eyes. He supported his team and tried to rally Old Tappan to "run the offense. We played too hard, now come on, let’s go."

Old Tappan was unable to snag any rebounds to end Teaneck’s scoring attempts and the Highwaymen’s height proved to be too much.

"I’m just doing my best, but they had strong rebounders," said Peter Clark. "Sometimes they just got passed me."

Old Tappan, down as much as seven points, never threw in the towel. Anthony Messina and Martinez finished the quarter strong, orchestrating a 5-0 run, but the damage had been done and they still trailed 54-51.

"They put more pressure on the ball and got us flustered," said Stankewicz. "We just got away from our game plan."

Old Tappan continued to miss box-out assignments and Teaneck lived on offensive rebounds. The boards led to clock management as the Highwaymen slowed the down the pace.

With 4:33 left in the final quarter Shane McLaughlin whipped a pass to Martinez in the paint for the easy basket to close the gap to three points, but Teaneck held for the win.

"We had a lot of intensity and we really wanted this game, but at the end they just wanted it more," said Stankewicz.