Rutgers University………..Unbelievable, incredible, impossible! That was just some of the adjectives used about Eastside’s stunning winning of the Group 4 State Championship against Rancocas Valley 56-52! Down 11 going into the 4th quarter, the Ghosts got on their grind and came all the way back to be the first Passaic County Non-Public in 82 years to win this game and get to the Tournament Of Champions(T.O.C.)! With the players of the past watching, the present players never said die, led by player of the game, Senior point guard David Burgos! He, Junior DeAndre Noble and Senior Ky’re Jackson began a spurt that did not end until Burgos three point play gave them a 50-49 lead with 2:44 left in the game! The magnitude of this win is huge for Eastside, who have had numerous great teams and players in their illustrious basketball history, but have never reached this goal! Eastside was led by Burgos(right) 18 points,4 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals! Jackson finished with 14 points and 13 rebounds and Noble added 11 points and 7 boards and made huge baskets late during their run! Rancocas who gave a valiant effort was led by Junior Tariq Jett and Senior Kenny Johnson with 12 points a piece! Eastside will play Wednesday at 6 o’clock in Toms River against Newark Central! ( Burgos,Noble and Jackson at the podium)

                        Plainfield   57                 Burlington Twp  48

Junior Sekou Harris scored 21 points and Junior Justin Sears grabbed 17 rebounds and blocked 5 shots as Plainfield beat Burlington Township 57-48 to win the Group 3 State Championship! Junior Danny Rodriguez led Burlington with 17!

                                        Group 2 Championship

                               Newark Central  66            Ewing  58

                      Ramon Johnson  23                   Louis Conde 14

                                    Group 1 Championship

                         Asbury Park  64                     Dayton   50

             Maurice  Dickerson  26          Paul Grant 18

Toms River………..Really, this game was an after thought! But it had to be played and St. Anthony was not going to get caught like they did last year against Trenton Catholic! Last year after an emotional win against Paterson Catholic, the Friars were shocked by Trenton Catholic in the State Championship! But this year, after another emotional win against St. Patricks they came prepared to finish the job this season! And with the addition of Paterson Catholic’s Senior Myles Mack and Junior Kyle Anderson they did just that!Led by Anderson’s 22 points in three quarters St. Anthony coasted to the Non-Public B State Championship over Cardinal McCarrick 75-28! St. Anthony took a 18-8 lead at the end of the 1st quarter and pushed it to 41-18 at the half! Was never in doubt! The win kept St.Anthony as the mythical #1 highschool team in the country as they head into the Tournament Of Championship(T.O.C.)! The subplot to this is Mack and Anderson, who after a year of losing their school took their talents to St. Anthony and captured what eluded them last year! Anderson added 5 rebounds to his point total, while Mack, who’s committed to Rutgers next year didn’t put up the numbers he’s accustomed to but dished out 8 dimes with 3 steals! Junior Jerome Frink added 12 points and 6 rebounds and Senior Lucious Jones chipped in 10! Remember, this was all done in 3 quarters or less! McCarrick was led by Junior Ahmid Williams with 9 points and 4 assists!

NOTES: On a personal note, it was good to see Mack(left) and Anderson(right)get this “Chip”! They are two character kids who did not deserve what happened to them! All the Paterson Catholic players and family can be proud of the success of these two players! Take it from me and the conversations with them! THEY HAVE NOT FORGOTTEN!!!!!!!!!! 

East Orange……..Down by as much as 16 points late in the 3rd quarter, Teaneck made a valiant effort in trying to come back, actually having a chance to tie at the end before falling to Plainfield 62-60 in the North 1 Group 3 Championship! For most of the game Junior guard Sekou Harris was a problem for Teaneck! His speed and dribble game was creating for his Plainfield teammates and he was finishing at the bucket! But Teaneck is resilient and when it seemed like their was no chance the Highwaymen found a way! Going with a team of guards, they started full court pressure defense and found themselves cutting the lead down quickly behind Shakir Lindsey, Chris Hargraves, Anthony Upshaw and Duquan Russ! At the same time Plainfield would find Junior Dijon Allen Jordan for layups and dunks which help them keep the lead! Teaneck had cut it to five 47-42 at the end of the 3rd, but Plainfield again built the lead up to 9! Justin Sears(13pts,11rebs), Allen Brown, Harris(top right) and Sekou all went to the line late as Teaneck had to foul to lengthen the game! Plainfield seemed to finally get it to the point where they could breathe a little after Bown made one of two free throws to give them a 5 point lead with 5 seconds left! But Sophomore Joel Hernandez hit a corner “triple” and Teaneck called time with 2 seconds remaining in the game down 62-60! Teaneck drew an offensive foul without the ball being inbounded as they drew it off a Plainfield player! Unfortunately the front end of the one and one was missed and Jordan grabbed the rebound to clinch it for Plainfield! Sekou finished with 19 points and 3 assists, while Jordan(bottom right) finished with 18 and 6 rebounds! Junior Chris Jones led the Teaneck scoring with 16 points and 5 rebounds! Hernandez and Senior Danta Davis each scored 10 points!

NOTES:  Hoops Journal would like to acknowledge the Highschool careers of Senior’s Duquan Russ, Danta Davis(pictured) and Anthony Upshaw! The three Musketeers gave Teaneck it’s fire power and energy when the Highwaymen needed it! These guys are starters for most teams in the area, but sacrificed their games for the betterment of the team! They showed the reason that Teaneck became so successful this season! Due to the unselfishness of these players! Here’s hoping the best for the three in their pursuit on the next level!