NJSIAA Boys Basketball Tournament Preview: The Shore Non-Publics

NJSIAA Tournament: Non-Public Playoff Preview

The final game of the Shore Conference Tournament pitted the two best non-public teams in the conference against one another, which marked the first time since 2018 that the Shore Conference Tournament final featured two non-public programs — and one of those 2018 finalists no longer exists (Mater Dei). St. Rose and Christian Brothers Academy slugged it out in a hard-fought conference title game on Saturday and now each team will be the Shore’s best hope for a title in their respective NJSIAA Non-Public sections.

St. Rose has become the perennial favorite in South Jersey Non-Public B since the arrival of the Hodge brothers from Belgium before the 2022-23 season. The younger brother, Jayden, is still just a junior and has a chance to add a third sectional title to his list of accomplishments since he arrived at St. Rose as a freshman starter from day one. The Purple Roses are the No. 1 seed and will have a chance to not only bring home a third straight sectional title, but a second straight overall Non-Public B championship as well. That would also be the Shore Conference’s third Non-Public B championship in the last six tournaments, as well as its fifth South Non-Public B title in the last six tournaments, with Ranney winning the sectional title in 2018 and both in 2019 on the way to winning the Tournament of Champions.

Non-Public A has not been as friendly to the Shore Conference in recent years, with CBA winning the last sectional title in 2015 and just one Shore Conference squad reaching a sectional final since then. While CBA has been the torch-bearer for the Shore Conference in Non-Public A throughout its history, Red Bank Catholic was actually the last Shore team to reach the precipice of a championship, only to lose a heartbreaker to Rutgers Prep in the 2022 South Jersey final.

Both CBA and RBC are the Shore’s best hope in 2025, but both reside on the same side of the bracket as St. Peter’s Prep — currently ranked No. 2 in the state by NJ Advance Media. While St. Rose is the heavy favorite to bring home a third sectional title, CBA and RBC will be up against a deep, talented field of well-prepared teams.

Now, here is a closer look at the South Jersey sections in the two Non-Public Tournaments.

South Jersey Non-Public A

Shore Teams in the Field: No. 3 CBA, No. 7 Red Bank Catholic, No. 12 Donovan Catholic, No. 14 St. John Vianney
Top Seed: Paul VI
Defending Champion: Paul VI
Favorite: No. 2 St. Peter’s Prep. The NJSIAA has once again deemed Jersey City South Jersey, although not for Hudson Catholic, which is the No. 2 seed in the North Jersey Non-Public A section, creating the real possibility that two schools located in Jersey City could play one another in the Non-Public A final. The Marauders – ranked No. 2 in the state by NJ Advance Media – are a good bet to hold up their end of the deal. Even after junior center Keiner Asprilla was arrested in January, St. Peter’s Prep has played like a championship contender by beating four teams ranked in the state top 20: Don Bosco, No. 7 St. Rose, No. 4 Plainfield and No. 6 Hudson Catholic.

Dark Horse: No. 4 Camden Catholic. Any team outside the top five seeds in this section is probably not a realistic threat to win the section, so a title run by No. 6 Immaculata, RBC, No. 8 St. Thomas Aquinas, No. 9 St. Augustine or No. 10 Notre Dame would be a the definition of a Cinderella run. Within those top five seeds, Camden Catholic is the only one that is not currently ranked by NJ Advance Media, but there is reason to believe in the Irish. Three of their six losses are to top-seeded Paul VI and all three were competitive. The other three were to rival Bishop Eustace, a Morris Catholic team that routed St. Peter’s Prep earlier this month and Group II favorite Camden.

There are three Shore Conference teams that definitely qualify as a potential dark horse, led by Red Bank Catholic. The Caseys can shoot with any team in the section, so if the whole team is in rhythm, they can be dangerous in a potential showdown with St. Peter’s Prep.

Donovan Catholic and St. John Vianney will have their hands full in the first round, with the Griffins – playing without senior guard Ryan Jacobs for the past three games – heading to play 2023 sectional champion Union Catholic and SJV making the much shorter trip to face CBA.

Bracket Breakdown: Coming off a run to the Shore Conference Tournament championship game for the first time since 2016, CBA will try to reach the sectional final for the first time since 2015, which was also the last time the Colts won South Jersey Non-Public A. Last year, they lost at home to eventual South Jersey Non-Public A champion Paul VI in the sectional semifinals and this year, CBA will likely have to go on the road in the semifinals and beat the No. 2 team in New Jersey in St. Peter’s Prep.

The Colts gave St. Rose a competitive game in the Shore Conference Tournament final on Friday, which is also one of two common opponents between CBA and St. Peter’s Prep, which beat St. Rose, 56-53, at the Metro Classic in early February. The other is Morris Catholic, which beat both CBA and St. Peter’s and actually had a harder time beating CBA, even though the Colts were not at 100 percent. Even though St. Peter’s Prep has looked like the top team in the state at times, CBA has had its moments when it plays well enough to compete with any team in the state, so don’t write off the Colts.

As for the other side of the bracket, Paul VI has had the number of both Camden Catholic and Union Catholic. The Eagles beat Camden Catholic three times this season and returned most of the 2023-24 roster that boat-raced Union Catholic in the 2024 sectional final.

Championship Prediction: St. Peter’s Prep over Paul VI. In addition to being a great sectional final matchup, this would almost certainly be the sectional final with the greatest distance between the two participating schools (88 miles). Even at a neutral site, Paul VI would have the advantage in proximity, with Lenape High School again hosting the Non-Public A final. Ultimately, though, St. Peter’s is as battle-tested as any team in the state and, the loss to Morris Catholic notwithstanding, is playing its best basketball of the season heading into the state tournament.

Round-by-Round Predictions

First Round
(9) St. Augustine over (8) St. Thomas Aquinas
(5) Union Catholic over (12) Donovan Catholic
(4) Camden Catholic over (5) St. Joseph Metuchen
(3) CBA over (14) St. John Vianney
(6) Immaculata over (11) Pingry
(7) Red Bank Catholic over (10) Notre Dame

Quarterfinals
(1) Paul VI over (9) St. Augustine
(5) Union Catholic over (4) Camden Catholic
(3) CBA over (6) Immaculata
(2) St. Peter’s Prep over (7) Red Bank Catholic

Semifinals
(1) Paul VI over (5) Union Catholic
(2) St. Peter’s Prep over (3) CBA

Championship
(2) St. Peter’s Prep over (1) Paul VI

South Jersey Non-Public B

Shore Teams in the Field: No. 1 St. Rose, No. 8 Ranney
Top Seed: St. Rose
Defending Champion: St. Rose
Favorite: St. Rose. The Purple Roses completed their quest for a repeat in the Shore Conference Tournament and will set their sights on a three-peat in South Jersey Non-Public B. The two-time defending champs are again the No. 1 seed in the section and the heavy favorite to represent South Jersey in the group championship game on March 14 at Jersey Mike’s Arena. Last year, the Purple Roses went all the way and won the Non-Public B championship to cap a 29-2 season and a No. 1 ranking in the state to end the 2023-24 season. The No. 1 ranking is likely out of reach, but St. Rose has a chance to win a third straight sectional title, a second straight overall state title and complete another season in which it went toe-to-toe with the top teams in the state.

Dark Horse: No. 6 Wildwood Catholic. This is another section in which we are likely to see four of the top five seeds coast to the sectional semifinals – even more so in this section because the top four get a bye into the quarterfinals. No. 4 Bishop Eustace vs. No. 5 St. Joseph of Hammonton could go either way and No. 7 Holy Spirit might have a better chance at beating No. 2 Holy Cross than Wildwood Catholic has beating No. 3 Rutgers Prep.

Wildwood Catholic, however, stands out because of how competitive the Crusaders have been. Of their eight losses, seven have been by margins of six points or fewer, including three one-point losses. They have two wins over South Jersey Group III top seed Ocean City, as well as a win over South Jersey Group II No. 2 seed Middle Township. Rutgers Prep has as much talent on paper as any team in the section, so Wildwood Catholic’s path to a deep run is not favorable, but the Crusaders have proven to be a tough team to beat throughout the season.

Bracket Breakdown: As the No. 8 seed, Ranney might have qualified as the dark horse of the bracket had the Panthers pulled into the No. 7 seed. Instead, they are No. 8 and while they are set up nicely to win a first-round game vs. Doane Academy at home, they would then have to make a trip to St. Rose. Since beating St. Rose in the 2023 Shore Conference Tournament final, Ranney is 0-4 in its last four tournament games in which it was due to face St. Rose in the following round. That includes losses in the 2023 South Jersey Non-Public B semifinals at Bishop Eustace, the 2024 Shore Conference Tournament opening round at Freehold Boro, the 2024 South Jersey Non-Public B opening round at Wildwood Catholic, and the 2025 Shore Conference Tournament opening round vs. Jackson Memorial. If nothing else, Ranney would like to hold serve at home and earn a shot vs. St. Rose in what would be the first postseason meeting between the two teams since Ranney shocked the Purple Roses in the 2023 SCT.

The most pressing question in this section is whether or not Bishop Eustace or Holy Cross can pull off semifinal upsets. Bishop Eustace will have to beat St. Joe’s Hammonton first, but the Crusaders could be a threat to St. Rose. Earlier in the season, Bishop Eustace knocked off Camden on the road, albeit before the Panthers were at full strength. Holy Cross’s chance to beat Rutgers Prep are better than Bishop Eustace’s chances vs. St. Rose simply because Holy Cross gets to play at home.

Championship Prediction: St. Rose over Rutgers Prep. In all likelihood, the Non-Public B title will come down to St. Rose and Rutgers Prep – a head-to-head battle that has gone the way of St. Rose in each of the past two seasons. In December, St. Rose junior Jayden Hodge scored a career-high 30 points in leading the Purple Roses to a convincing, 80-63, win over the Argonauts.

Rutgers Prep is back in Non-Public B after a three-year run in Non-Public A that included a trip to the 2022 Non-Public A final, which the Argonauts lost to Bergen Catholic. They have had two months to improve upon their effort at St. Rose in late December and with a roster that boasts just one senior among the seven regular members of the rotation, that time to improve is crucial. St. Rose enters as the favorite and has also benefitted from the maturation of a nine-man rotation with just two seniors in it, so any gains made by Rutgers Prep are likely offset by the improvements St. Rose as made. If the Argonauts are going to reach the Non-Public B final, they are simply going to have to outperform St. Rose.

Round-by-Round Predictions

First Round
(8) Ranney over (9) Doane Academy
(5) St. Joseph Hammonton over (12) Gloucester Catholic
(6) Wildwood Catholic over (11) Princeton Day
(7) Holy Spirit over (10) Moorestown Friends

Quarterfinals
(1) St. Rose over (8) Ranney
(4) Bishop Eustace over (5) St. Joseph Hammonton
(3) Rutgers Prep over (6) Wildwood Catholic
(2) Holy Cross over (7) Holy Spirit

Semifinals
(1) St. Rose over (4) Bishop Eustace
(3) Rutgers Prep over (2) Holy Cross

Championship
(1) St. Rose over (3) Rutgers Prep