Paterson……As much as things change,they still remain the same! After all was said and done Eastside H.S. and Kennedy H.S. will meet in the finals of the Passaic County Tournament! Eastside and Kennedy will be meeting in the finals against each other for the 5th time as Eastside will make it’s 17th final appearance and Kennedy will make it’s 16th since the tournament started in 1971:

                                  Eastside 59    West Milford  43

     West Milford started the game out on a 7-0 run and seemed ready to go toe to toe with Eastside! But usually in big games a player least expected comes up big! For the Ghosts that player was Senior Carl Barrett in Eastside’s 59-43 win! Barrett came off the bench and knocked down three huge “triples” to calm Eastside down and more importantly, made West Milford come out of their zone defense and play Eastside’s game! This gave Senior David Burgos and Junior DeAndre Noble the opportunity to put their stamp on the game, and they did it in style! Burgos scored 19 points and dished out 5 assists and took complete control of the game in the 4th quarter when they needed smart, heady plays to be made! Noble,who was the player of the game for 1500WGHT radio(pictured with commentator) has continued to play at a high level the last week or so as he scored 18 points and grabbed 14 big boards! Eastside also did a great job on West Milford’s All County guard Connor Healy as he was guarded primarily by Senior guard Nashian Brimley and held to 9 points by the Ghosts! Senior Tyler Coyle led West Milford with 14 points and Tyler Maurer added 9!

                                  Kennedy 39   Wayne Valley 26

     This game was not good for the eyes, but in Kennedy’s case a “W”is a”W”! And that’s what they got in their 39-26 win over Wayne Valley! This was the lowest combine scoring game in the history of the tournament and it was due to a combination of good defense and bad shooting! Senior Dawon Lighty was the leading scorer in the game with 13 points,11 coming from the foul line! He was 1500WGHT radio player of the game! Kennedy’s defense was impressive as they held Valley to 16 points over three quarters! Junior Gary Simpson was a spark for the Knights as he scored 7 points with 3 assists and 2 steals, while Junior Sammy Singletary and Senior Jhamir White each had 4 steals apiece!Wayne Valley was led by Senior Andrew Herasimtchuk with 8 points!

NOTES: Kennedy will be looking for it’s 11th tournament “chip” while Eastside will be lookking for it’s 8th next week! Game is Saturday Feb 26 at noon at Wayne Valley H.S.

Wayne……….For Passaic County Tech, they were able to while Passaic Valley wasn,t! P.C.T. was able to get a”W”after a three game losing streak, while P.V. was still trying to find one as they lost their third straight game 65-62! P.V. cut the lead to two with 19 seconds on the clock after being down as much as 14 in the 2nd half! But Xavier Nieves(right)stole the ball in the paint and Isaac Williams(bottom right) made a free throw to force Valley to take a half court shot at the buzzer which bounced off the rim! Williams, a Sophomore guard led the scoring with 22 points, while Xavier Nieves scored 19 points grabbed 8 rebounds and dished off 6 assists! DiCristina led Passaic Valley with 19 points and 6 assists while Tom Gaccione dropped in 16 points and 7 boards and Olumide Onajide scored 15 points and grabbed 6 boards! Passaic Valley will try one more time to get off the losing streak when they face DePaul Tuesday at home!  

In a Series of player Profiles Hoop Journal sat down with Kennedy Highschool’s Senior Dawon Lighty, one of the best long range shooters in the area! Lighty can also put the ball on the floor when he has to! A silent killer, he can score in bunches in a hurry and is a true threat anywhere on the court! He became a 1,000 point scorer this season!

FUN FACTS:      Hgt : 6’2             Wgt:  175

Nickname:  DBO

Age: 17                                          D.O.B.    February 28, 1993

Parents:   Wakina Bellfield   and     Davon Lighty

Siblings:  Jimyah and Nivaeh Lighty

Who Inspires You(non basketball): My Family

Favorite Basketball Team:  Denver Nuggets

Favorite Basketball Player:  Tracey McGrady

Favorite Alltime Sneaker:  Jordan 13

Favorite Artist: Drake

Hottest Song On Ipod: 9am In Dallas: By  Drake

Highschool Goals:  Maintain A 3.0, Be Successful In Basketball,Graduate from College and be a Sports Agent

Something People Would Be Surprised To Know About You: I am a game freak, Love Call Of Duty

Favorite College Team:  Villanova

Schools Interested In You:  Citadel, Rutgers Newark