Watch these 7 former North Jersey men, women's basketball players in 2024 NCAA Tournament
Seven North Jersey basketball alums are preparing to enjoy the "madness" that comes with this month's NCAA Division I basketball tournaments.
There are four players with ties to Bergen or Passaic county whose teams are competing in the men's Big Dance, plus three more whose teams are in the women's tournament.
MEN'S NCAA TOURNAMENT
Nick Boyd, Florida Atlantic
After beginning his varsity career at Don Bosco, Boyd transferred to St. Mary in Rutherford prior to his junior year. He scored more than 1,000 points in just two seasons and graduated in 2019. The guard from Garnerville, N.Y., helped FAU reach the Final Four as a No. 9 seed last year.
Julian Brown, Wagner
Brown enjoyed a memorable senior year at Bergen Catholic, helping the Crusaders capture the 2022 Bergen County Jamboree and NJSIAA Non-Public A championships. The guard from Middletown, N.Y., tallied 1,086 points in his high school career and averaged 9.5 per game for the NEC champs this season.
Elliot Cadeau, North Carolina
Cadeau became Bergen Catholic's starting point guard as a freshman in 2020-21 and averaged 11.3 points during a COVID-shortened season. Then he lost his sophomore year to injury and transferred to a school in Missouri before his junior year. The guard from West Orange averages 7.6 points for the Tar Heels.
Di’Andre Howell-South, Wagner
The Paterson native went to Immaculate Conception in Montclair, where he averaged 14.6 points during a 15-game senior season in 2021. Howell-South began his collegiate career at St. Francis of Brooklyn, which discontinued all athletics after his sophomore year, and he averaged 4.1 points for Wagner this winter.
WOMEN'S NCAA TOURNAMENT
Dayna Tirado, Fairfield
Tirado led Demarest to the 2019 Big North Patriot Division title as a junior, then followed up by earning a spot on the All-North Jersey second team as a senior. The Closter resident is one of three Garden State products on the Stags' roster, alongside Mimi Rubino (Morris Catholic) and Casey Prior (Red Bank Catholic).
Paulina Paris, North Carolina
The 2022 North Jersey Girls Basketball Player of the Year led Saddle River Day to county and sectional titles as a junior and senior, totaling 1,994 career points (including two seasons at Albertus Magnus in N.Y.). A lifelong Michael Jordan fan, Paris was averaging 5.9 points for the Tar Heels before being slowed by injury in January.
Montana Nicks, Sacred Heart
Nicks enjoyed winning seasons in all four of her years at Dwight-Englewood, helping the Bulldogs to two NJIC division titles and scoring 1,190 career points before graduating in 2023. She was on the floor for the final 3:20 of the NEC Championship game against LeMoyne, making 1-of-2 free throws in the Pioneers' 69-48 victory.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: North Jersey basketball players to watch during NCAA Tournament 2024
