Shore Sports Insider Week 8 Boys Basketball Top 10

Shore Sports Insider Boys Basketball Top 10 — Week 8

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The last Shore Sports Insider Top 10 was influenced by the projected seedings for the Shore Conference Tournament. This latest update to the Top 10 is influenced by what has actually happened in the Shore Conference Tournament.

Each of the four remaining teams in the SCT is a top-five seed, with Christian Brothers Academy, Wall and Red Bank Catholic all advancing as top-three seeds. Even No. 5 Marlboro was the No. 4 team in last week’s SSI Top 10, so this week’s top four in the rankings remains unchanged.

The No. 5 position is where the debate begins, with four quarterfinalists that came up short on Saturday all in the mix, plus a few teams that lost tough round-of-16 games two days earlier. After this week, the focus turns the NJSIAA Tournament, when many of these teams will be playing in different brackets, making this the last week to truly compare the teams from the Shore against one another. There is still a lot to decided, to be sure, but we are getting closer to the point at which the only way for a team to alter its position in the rankings is with an extraordinary state-tournament run.

For the first four teams in this week’s rankings, however, it is all still on the table.

1. Christian Brothers Academy (21-3, 10-0) Last Week: 1

Both of CBA’s Shore Conference Tournament games last week were close after one quarter and on Saturday, Holmdel was even beating the No. 1 team at the Shore through the first eight minutes. In quarters two through four, however, CBA was dominant against both Point Boro and Holmdel. After two more 30-plus point victories, CBA is again asserting itself as the overwhelming favorite to win its first SCT championship in 16 years and will put that standing to the test on Wednesday against Marlboro in the semifinal round at Brookdale Community College.

2. Wall (19-1, 10-0) Last Week: 2

Wall went five minutes without scoring to end its quarterfinal game vs. Manasquan and still managed to pull out the victory by holding the Warriors scoreless for the last three minutes. Wall’s defense was its strength early in the season and after a stretch in which the Crimson Knights put up some eye-popping offensive numbers, tournament play has reminded Wall that its defense is its meal ticket. Wall’s opponents are averaging 40.5 points through two rounds of the SCT and its semifinal opponent – Red Bank Catholic – scored 34 points against the Crimson Knights when the two teams met in December at the Kevin Williams Classic.

3. Red Bank Catholic (18-6, 8-2) Last Week: 3

While Wall will play its third rematch Wednesday when the Crimson Knights meet RBC, the Caseys will not only be doing the same but can take it one step farther. If Red Bank Catholic can knock off Wall on Wednesday, the Caseys will be guaranteed to face a fourth consecutive familiar opponent in the championship game. RBC was a combined 3-1 vs. Point Beach and Ranney heading into the tournament and beat both teams in a third meeting, with Saturday’s win over Ranney avenging a loss to the Panthers in late January. RBC managed only 34 points vs. Wall in the December showdown between the two teams, but the Caseys were down by only four heading into the fourth quarter of that game before going cold on offense in the fourth.

4. Marlboro (18-4, 7-3) Last Week: 4

Without any experience playing No. 1 CBA this season, Marlboro will hope Red Bank Catholic’s overtime loss to CBA is a sign the Mustangs can also play with the Colts. Marlboro went 1-1 against RBC during the regular season, just as the Mustangs did vs. Howell. On Saturday, Marlboro beat Howell in the most exciting game of the day at Middletown South, with senior Ajay Mathews putting on a scoring exhibition in the fourth quarter and overtime and senior Rob Glorioso playing the role of unexpected hero for his game-winning three-pointer with 30 seconds left. In that win, Marlboro had two players – Mathews and McEwan – go on runs in which they scored at leas 10 straight points for their team, which underscores the Mustangs’ balance.

5. Manasquan (12-9, 6-4) Last Week: 7

The Warriors are now a combined 0-4 vs. the top two teams in the Shore Conference, but the last three of those games came down to the final minute. Factor in wins over Rumson-Fair Haven, Holmdel, two over Freehold Township and another vs. NJSIAA Group I favorite Thrive Charter and Manasquan’s résumé is back to looking worthy of the top five, despite a record that is not too far beyond .500. After losing a heartbreaker to Wall on Saturday, Manasquan will regroup for the NJSIAA tournament, which could produce a third meeting between Wall and Manasquan if both teams can reach the Central Jersey Group II semifinals.

6. Howell (18-5, 7-3) Last Week: 5

After coming painfully close to its first ever trip to the Shore Conference Tournament semifinals, Howell will now prepare for the NJSIAA Group IV playoffs on the heels of two SCT games that could not have been more competitive. The Rebels pulled out a 53-52 win Thursday over a Middletown South team that beat them by 31 points just 10 days earlier, then had Marlboro on the ropes before a heroic performance by Mathews and a clutch shot by Glorioso denied the Rebels in overtime. Cherry Hill East will be the heavy favorite to win the South Jersey Group IV section, but the Rebels have an opportunity to get a crack at the Cougars in the semifinals, as long as Howell can handle the first two rounds.

7. Holmdel (13-7, 6-4) Last Week: 9

The Hornets have proven to be every bit as good as – perhaps even better than – Manasquan and Rumson-Fair Haven, but unlock those two teams, the Hornets were not able to figure out how to keep the game close vs. CBA. In a third attempt to compete with the Colts, Holmdel got off to a promising start on Saturday at the SCT quarterfinals, but the last two minutes of the second quarter started an avalanche that ended Holmdel’s SCT run. Even if that result was disappointing for the Hornets, they are still a real threat to win the NJSIAA Central Jersey Group II title and might even be looking at their best chance to win the section since losing a tight 2012 championship game at Ewing. The road, however, won’t be easy: if the seeds remain as project, Holmdel could potentially have to go through Wall, Manasquan and Rumson-Fair Haven in consecutive rounds – all on the road.

8. Ranney (13-9, 7-3) Last Week: Not ranked

The Panthers push their way into the Top 10 after a convincing round-of-16 road victory at Jackson that placed Ranney in the Shore Conference quarterfinals for the eighth time in the 11 seasons since Tahj Holden took over a program that had never won a Shore Conference Tournament game prior to his arrival. Ranney now owns wins over Red Bank Catholic, Marlboro, Middletown South and Jackson, which moves the Panthers from the edge of the rankings to comfortably positioned in the top eight. As the projected No. 6 seed in the NJSIAA South Jersey Non-Public B bracket, Ranney has a realistic shot to make it to the sectional final for the first time since finishing No. 1 in the state in 2019.

9. Middletown South (14-9, 6-4) Last Week: 10

The Eagles were the bounce of the ball away from knocking out Howell on Thursday and playing Marlboro in the Shore Conference Tournament quarterfinals Saturday in their home gym. The one-point loss to Howell in the round of 16 was a tough pill for the Eagles to swallow, but it gives them a chance to regroup and prepare for a run in a NJSIAA Central Jersey Group III section that could be again wide-open again after a Shore Conference team won it in both 2024 (Freehold Boro) and 2025 (Colts Neck).

10. Rumson-Fair Haven (15-8, 5-5) Last Week: Not ranked

The last spot in the Top 10 for the time being comes down to Freehold Township and Rumson. To pick one is to split hairs: both have nearly identical records vs. common opponents (Freehold Township 6-4; Rumson 5-4) and both finished in fourth place at 5-5 in their respective divisions. The lone difference is that Freehold Township has gone 2-1 vs. Holmdel and Middletown South (Rumson is 1-3 vs. those teams) while Rumson is 2-1 vs. Red Bank Catholic and Manasquan (Freehold Township is 0-3). Since Red Bank Catholic and Manasquan are higher in the rankings than Middletown South and Holmdel, Rumson currently owns the edge. If the Bulldogs can get healthy and take advantage of a favorable draw in Central Jersey Group II, they could climb even higher.

 

Dropped Out

Jackson (15-5, 7-1) Last Week: 6 – Jackson only has five losses, but all five are by at least 16 points after falling to Ranney, 67-50, in the SCT round of 16. Two wins over Manasquan keep the Jaguars in the conversation, but it will take a special state-tournament performance to climb back into the Top 10.

Freehold Township (13-9, 5-5) Last Week: 8 – The Patriots got a good test ahead of the state tournament in their loss at Manasquan in the SCT round of 16 and will try to carry that experience into the NJSIAA Group IV playoffs as a projected No. 8 seed in Central Jersey.

 

The Next 10

Point Pleasant Beach (18-7, 8-2)

Point Pleasant Boro (15-8, 7-3)

Ocean (17-9, 8-2)

Monmouth (15-7, 7-3)

Central (15-9, 6-2)

Brick Memorial (13-10, 5-5)

Southern (11-10, 5-3)

Red Bank (8-15, 2-8)

Colts Neck (11-11, 6-4)