Seabreeze Ford/Sea View Jeep Shore Conference Boys Basketball NJSIAA Scoreboard: Thursday, Feb. 26

Seabreeze Ford/Sea View Jeep Shore Conference Boys Basketball Scoreboard

 

Thursday, Feb. 26

NJSIAA Tournament

Opening Round

Central Jersey Group IV

(3) Montgomery 76, (14) Manalapan 40

University of Pennsylvania commit Ethan Lin scored a game-high 25 points and the Cougars (22-4) began their quest for a third straight sectional championship by handling the Braves (13-15) to earn a spot in the sectional quarterfinals Saturday vs. No. 6 Trenton.

Junior Joe Farino poured in 15 points and senior Dean Aviles added 12 to lead Manalapan.

(8) Freehold Twp. 83, (9) Franklin 59

Junior Jake Schultzel scored 20 points to go with five rebounds and three assists while classmate John O’Neill posted 17 points and nine rebounds as the Patriots (15-10) routed the Warriors (10-16) to move on to the sectional quarterfinals Saturday at top-seeded Hillsborough.

Junior Cole Gerigk added 15 points and three assists and sophomore Aamari Alexander-Monroe made it four Freehold Township players in double-figure scoring with 10 points. Juniors Sam Hawksby and Dakota Lasater also turned in well-rounded games, with Hawksby contributing eight points and five assists while Lasater went for six points, five rebounds, four assists and six steals.

(2) Marlboro 68, (15) Princeton 47

Junior Dylan McEwan scored 19 of his game-high 28 points in the second half and the Mustangs (20-5) rumbled past the Little Tigers (9-16) and into the sectional quarterfinal Saturday vs. No. 7 Sayreville.

Junior Nolan Gong added 17 points and six assists while senior Christian Elmasri contributed 10 points and six rebounds for Marlboro, which reached the 20-win plateau for just the third time in program history — all since the 2019-20 season.

(5) Jackson 83, (12) Hightstown 55

Senior George Boley drained 27 points and dished out five assists to lead the Jaguars to a rout of the Rams (11-16) that sends Jackson (17-6) to the sectional quarterfinals Saturday at No. 4 East Brunswick.

Senior Jimmy Pappalardo poured in 14 points, senior Sean Hallihan chipped in 12 points and six rebounds and sophomore Mi’Aire Anderson posted 11 points and seven rebounds for Jackson. Senior Randy Holmes Jr. also made a bid for a double-double, settling for nine points and 10 rebounds in the victory, including 3-for-3 from three-point range.

 

Central Jersey Group II

(3) Ocean 67, (14) Governor Livingston 53

Senior Aidan Saint Louis poured in a game-high 20 points and the Spartans (18-9) rolled through the Highlanders (10-16) and into the sectional quarterfinals, which Ocean will host Saturday vs. No. 6 Governor Livingston.

Freshman Omar Ayyash netted 16 points and junior Justice Hodges scored 10 for Ocean, which owned a 38-28 halftime lead and put the game away by outscoring Governor Livingston, 14-7, in the third quarter.

(1) Wall 61, (16) Bordentown 44

Senior Dan Hennessy scored 10 of his game-high 16 points in the first half and grabbed seven rebounds as the Crimson Knights (20-2) broke the game open in the second quarter to beat the Scotties (9-17) and secure a spot in the sectional quarterfinals Sunday vs. No. 8 Holmdel.

Senior Liam Killea added 14 points and five steals, senior Jake DeBrito scored nine points and senior Brian McKenna chipped in eight. Hennessy and DeBrito combined for 15 points during Wall’s 22-6 second quarter that opened up a 32-11 halftime lead.

(8) Holmdel 60, (9) Robbinsville 46

Senior Jack Vallillo scored 10 of his game-high 26 points in the second quarter and the Hornets (16-7) pulled away to beat the Ravens (16-10) and reach the sectional quarterfinals. Holmdel will travel to play top-seeded Wall on Sunday at noon.

Sophomore Anthony Serini added 15 points and senior Connor Paul chipped in 10 for Holmdel, which trailed, 28-27, with five minutes left in the third quarter before riding Vallillo’s second-half hot streak to a 33-18 run to close the game.

(7) Rumson-Fair Haven 75, (10) Point Boro 74 (OT)

Senior Luke Cruz scored 19 of his game-high 34 points in the fourth quarter and overtime, including the game-tying three-point play with 13 seconds left in regulation, and the Bulldogs (17-8) survived a furious comeback by the Panthers (17-10) to advance to the sectional quarterfinals Saturday at No. 2 Metuchen.

Cruz also grabbed 17 rebounds and blocked a pair of shots, but his most critical contribution came in the form of making key shots while Rumson was attempting to recover from squandering a 21-point second-half lead. After a 15-point first half, Cruz went scoreless for the first 12 minutes of the second half before scoring 19 of his team’s 28 points in the final eight minutes, including 9-for-9 from the free-throw line.

Rumson led, 30-10, at halftime and 35-14 two minutes into the third quarter before Point Boro stormed back into the game with 12 unanswered points that kicked off a 20-4 run to close the third, sending the game to the fourth with the Bulldogs’ lead down to 39-34. Senior Luke Lydon converted a three-point play to put Rumson up, 44-37, but junior Landon Hoyle banked in a three-pointer to cut the lead back to four, to which Rumson responded with a corner three from senior Zach Halpern to push the lead back to 47-40.

Point Boro then ripped off eight unanswered points to take its first lead since 3-0, at which point Cruz scored off a pass from fellow senior Blake Ahmann to give Rumson the lead, 49-48, with 3:59 left, setting up a dramatic final eight minutes.

Senior Jovin Steinmetz hit a three-pointer to make it 51-49 and junior teammate Hunter Hynes scooped up a loose ball and took it in for a layup and a 53-49 Point Boro lead. Steinmetz then made the second of two free throws for a 54-49 lead with just over two minutes left. Cruz then earned a trip to the free-throw line and made both, but senior Nick Carmino counted with two free throws for a 56-51 Point Boro lead with 1:21 left. Cruz then went back to the line and hit two to pull within 56-53 and Ahmann stole the ensuing inbounds pass, then converted the layup to cut Point Boro’s lead to 56-55 with 1:05 left.

Carmino went back to the line with 1:00 left and hit two free throws for a 58-55 lead and Cruz missed a clean look from the three-point line, setting up a pair of free throws by Steinmetz with 34 seconds left. Steinmetz hit both before Lydon found Cruz for a layup and Point Boro threw away the inbounds pass with 22 seconds left, giving Rumson a chance to tie the game with a three.

Point Boro ran Cruz off the three-point line and he forced up a contested baseline shot that hit the side of the backboard. Cruz followed his shot with the offensive rebound, then flipped up a layup as he was fouled with 13.6 seconds left. The 6-foot-9 senior hit the game-tying free throw and Steinmetz’s three-pointer was off the mark at the buzzer.

After scoring on its last two possessions of the fourth quarter, Rumson scored on its first five possessions of overtime, the last of which ended with Lyndon draining a three-pointer from the left wing to give the Bulldogs a 71-66 lead with 1:20 left. Steinmetz hit a pair of free throws with 1:08 left and Point Boro forced a 10-second violation of Rumson to get the ball back. Carmino then nailed a three from the left wing to tie the game, 71-71, with 42 seconds left.

The tie game was short-lived, as Rumson raced up the court and freshman Clint Martin hit a baseline floater for a 73-71 lead with 30 seconds left. After a timeout, Point Boro turned the ball over with 10 seconds left and fouled Cruz with 8.5 left. Cruz put the game away with two makes from the line and Carmino closed the game with a three-pointer in the final seconds.

In the final 16 minutes of the game, Point Boro shot 12-for-15 from the three-point line after going 1-for-10 over the first 20 minutes. Steinmetz scored 23 of his 24 points after halftime while shooting 3-for-4 from three-point range in the second half and overtime. Hynes hit four three-pointers on the way to 18 points and Carmino scored 14 of his 17 points after halftime and was 3-for-3 on three-pointers in the third, fourth and overtime.

Ahmann finished with 14 points and six rebounds and Lydon chipped in 11 points and seven assists for Rumson.

(5) Manasquan 60, (12) Roselle 40

Senior Jack O’Reilly scored a game-high 16 points and the Warriors (14-9) powered past the Rams (13-12) to reach the sectional quarterfinals Saturday at No. 4 Delaware Valley, which will be Manasquan’s first road game in the sectional playoffs since beating South River in the 2023 Central Jersey Group II championship game.

Sophomore Sean Bilodeau poured in 15 points and junior Logan Cleveland added 10 for Manasquan.

(6) A.L. Johnson 54, (11) Monmouth 47

Junior Logan Conrade scored 19 points, but a big third quarter for the Crusaders (18-7) proved the difference in a win over the Falcons (15-9) that earns A.L. Johnson a trip to play No. 3 Ocean in the sectional quarterfinals.

 

South Jersey Group IV

(1) Cherry Hill East 77, (16) Toms River North 57

Chris Delgado scored a game-high 27 points on seven three-pointers and the Cougars (22-3) pulled away for a win over the Mariners (9-18) that lands them in the sectional quarterfinals Saturday vs. No. 8 Cherokee.

Sophomore Jake Greenberg scored 17 points, senior Jayden Thomas added 13 and senior Bryce Kazanowsky contributed nine points and 14 rebounds to lead Toms River North.

(5) Howell 53, (12) Millville 46 (OT)

Junior Jayson Parker scored a game-high 19 points, including seven of Howell’s 12 points in overtime, to help the Rebels (20-6) survive the Thunderbolts (16-10) and advance to a sectional quarterfinal date at No. 4 Atlantic City.

Parker put the game away by hitting all four of his free-throw attempts in the quarter, while sophomore Noah Musto pitched in 13 points for Howell, which recorded its 20th win for the first time in program history.

(7) Vineland 43, (10) Central 41

Junior Derek Roth posted 21 points, 17 rebounds and seven assists, but could not carry the Golden Eagles (16-10) to a road win over the Fighting Clan (21-5), which advances to face No. 2 Lenape in Saturday’s sectional quarterfinals.

(4) Atlantic City 75, (13) Southern 55

Tamir Rex led five Atlantic City scorers in double-figures with 16 points and the Vikings (19-9) stormed past the Rams (12-13) and into the sectional quarterfinals Saturday against No. 5 Howell.

Senior Jake Sliwinski closed out his career by scoring a game-high 22 points, with junior Noah Perna adding 13 and classmate Gavin Gerckens contributing nine to lead Southern.

 

South Jersey Group II

(4) Middle Twp. 77, (13) Barnegat 52

Mason Murawski scored a game-high 28 points to spark the Panthers (15-11) to a win over the Bengals (10-13), sending Middle to the sectional quarterfinals Saturday, when it will host No. 12 Sterling.

Freshman Myles Joseph poured in 20 points and senior Donovan Paul pitched in 12 to lead Barngat.

 

South Jersey Non-Public A

(5) Red Bank Catholic 41, (12) St. John Vianney 39

Senior Ryan Saxton hit two tie-breaking free throws with three seconds left and the Caseys (20-7) closed the game on a 9-0 run over the final four minutes to dodge an upset by the Lancers (7-20) while advancing to the sectional quarterfinals at No. 4 St. Joseph of Metuchen on Monday.

Senior James Hankowski led RBC with 14 points, including two three-pointers in the fourth quarter and one during the 9-0 run that finished the game. Junior Tyler Hager scored 11 points, including four points during the fourth-quarter run, and found Saxton with a full-court pass that led to the foul that set up his winning free throws.

Junior Danny O’Neill led St. John Vianney with nine points.

(4) St. Joseph Metuchen 100, (13) Donovan Catholic 44

Andrew Kretkowski racked up 22 points and nine rebounds and fellow junior Aidan Carter helped out with 19 points and five assists to lead the Falcons (27-1) to a one-sided win over the Griffins (7-17) that sets up St. Joseph with a quarterfinal home game Monday vs. No. 5 Red Bank Catholic.