JAM SESSION: Matt Solomon of the Majeski Foundation slams down a dunk last Monday in Princeton Recreation Department Men’s Summer Basketball League action at the Community Park courts. Solomon tallied 10 points in the contest to help Majeski defeat AEI 59-52 in a rematch of last year’s championship series. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

As the Majeski Foundation rode a late surge to the championship in the Princeton Recreation Department Men’s Summer Basketball League last year, Matt Solomon didn’t have much of a role.

“I played a few games,” said Solomon, who was making his debut for the squad which is comprised of players from The College of New Jersey men’s hoops program. “I was a freshman last year so I didn’t get as much playing time.”

Last Monday as Majeski faced AEI in its summer opener, Solomon made his presence felt, scoring the team’s first six points.

“I came out with a lot of energy, trying to get a good start,” said Solomon, a 6’7, 195-pound native of Manasquan, who averaged 6.3 points and 4.7 rebounds in 27 games last winter for TCNJ.

The Majeski team collectively showed a lot of energy as they got their summer league campaign underway.

“We are happy to be back on the court together,” said Solomon. “We don’t really get a lot of opportunities in the offseason to formally come and play together. This is a good opportunity for us to get familiar with each other. We have some freshmen that we are introducing to the group and getting them comfortable with how we play.”

Majeski built a 34-25 lead early in the second half in a rematch of teams that played in the league championship series, but then got a little too comfortable and AEI responded with a 19-10 run to knot the game at 44-44 with 4:00 left in regulation.

“We got up a little, we had a good lead, we got complacent,” said Solomon. “We thought they were going to give up but they didn’t.”

Getting back in sync, Majeski outscored AEI 15-8 down the stretch to pull out a 59-52 victory.

“We picked it up at the end,” said Solomon, who ended up with 10 points in the win that saw Anthony Milligan tally 15 points and Nick Koch chip in 11. “We said in the time-out, ‘We need to pick it up. It is way too close for comfort.’ We started hitting shots.”

While Solomon slammed down several dunks in the win, he is looking to diversify his game this summer.

“I am trying to step outside a little more this year, maybe shoot a few more 3s the next game,” said Solomon. “I am trying to lead the group.”

In Solomon’s view, the Majeski group has what it takes to go on another championship run.

“I know our guys had a lot of fun last year,” said Solomon. “There are definitely teams coming for us. We will get the chemistry right and hopefully we can do what we did last year.”