Boys basketball: North Jersey highlights from Day 3 of the state tournament
ORADELL – Bergen Catholic opened the state tournament by showing a renewed energy and focus.
The senior-less Crusaders grabbed the early lead and pulled away in the fourth quarter for a 79-58 victory over Seton Hall Prep in Friday night’s North Non-Public A boys basketball first-round game.
Bergen Catholic played committed defense and shared the ball, with sophomore Julius Avent scoring 24, junior Naiim Parrish 17, sophomore Jaden Brown 15 and junior Declan Wucherpfennig 12.
“We came out with the right mentality,” Parrish said. “We were fired up from warmups, even before warmups everybody was talking about it, and we couldn’t wait to be on the floor. And this is what happens when the team is locked in, fired up, and ready to play.”
Bergen Catholic, the No. 6 seed, withstood eight 3-pointers and a game-high 28 points from senior Gino Romano. In the first half, Romano hit five treys and scored 17 to keep No. 11 Seton Hall Prep within 42-30.
“I really like the way we played,” Bergen Catholic coach Billy Armstrong said. “I thought we played with great pace, I thought we played aggressive defensively. We played really hard on offense and defense. Give Seton Hall credit. They came out in the first half and made seven threes, and [Romano] made five threes.”
The state tournament has afforded Bergen Catholic the opportunity to erase the bad taste of a 69-57 loss to Ramapo in the semifinals of the 67th Bergen County Jamboree. In January, the Crusaders had beaten the Green Raiders, 50-43.
“Sometimes it takes a couple of losses, unfortunately, where the same process happens, where all of a sudden we have to get back to our principles, and that’s what we did defensively in our halfcourt and our full-court,” said Armstrong, whose team faces No. 3 St. Benedict’s in Monday’s quarterfinals. “And offensively, too. We moved the ball well, we cut well, so I really like where we are.”
In other North Non-Public A openers:
St. Joseph slows Oratory Prep
MONTVALE - When healthy, Alex Mazzella is among North Jersey’s top on-ball defenders, and the St. Joseph point guard is only a freshman.
Mazzella’s pressure defense was a key to the No. 8 Green Knights’ 65-45 victory over No. 9 Oratory Prep. His lateral quickness and perimeter defense made it difficult for the Rams to run their offense.
When the St. Joseph lead was cut to 52-42 in the fourth, Mazzella made a midcourt steal, was fouled and made two free throws with 4:08 remaining. Oratory had fought back from a 47-28 deficit, and Mazzella’s foul shots gave him six points and ended a Rams’ 6-0 spurt.
“They were going on a run, and we had to find a way to stop them,” said Mazzella, who missed a handful of games this season with a hip injury. “There’s no way better than to get a steal and go the other way."
“I thought the kids played really hard,” said St. Joseph coach Dan Davis, whose team plays at top-seeded Don Bosco in Monday’s quarterfinals. “And when the lead [fell] to 10, our response to get it to a comfortable spot was great to see.”
Junior Jahmir Joseph led a balanced St. Joseph attack with a game-high 14 points. Senior Evan Brown scored six of his 11 in the second quarter to help the Green Knights (16-9) open a 32-17 halftime lead.
Senior John Pirone led Oratory with 13 points, including three free throws with 4:47 remaining to cut the deficit to 52-42. Senior Pat Conniff and junior Asher Bradley scored 10 apiece for the Rams.
Dwight-Englewood wins every quarter
Senior Jackson Burke scored 25 to lead No. 7 Dwight-Englewood to a 61-38 victory over No. 10 Montclair Kimberley. Senior Christian Garrett added 10 points and sophomore Leo Colosimo eight for the Bulldogs. Dwight-Englewood (15-11) advances to Monday’s quarterfinals at No. 2 St. Peter’s Prep.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: North Jersey highlights from Day 3 of state boys basketball tournament
