Big day on the holiday tournament slate for GMC, Somerset County boys hoopsters

Holiday tournament season is in full swing across New Jersey, and dozens of boys’ basketball teams have been – or will be – in action this week. Here’s a look at all the GMC and Somerset County teams in action this week, including past results and upcoming matchups. 

We begin with a look at the teams in the Bellamy & Son Paving Boys’ Basketball Week Two Top Ten:

#1 St. Thomas Aquinas: So much for the Trojans “trying to figure it out.” A team that lost all but one player with (minimal) varsity experience to graduation and transfers is now 6-0. And if they are still trying to figure it out? Well, that’s for the rest of the GMC to worry about. Meanwhile, STA won its opening game Wednesday down at the Vikings Invitational at St. Elizabeth High School in Wilmington, DE, beating East New York Family Academy 66-29. Aiden Ur led four players in double figures with 19 points. Thursday at 9 pm, they play Thurgood Marshall (NY) in the final.

#2 St. Joseph-Metuchen: The Falcons are joined by Ridge in the Whitey Dukiet All-American Holiday Classic up at Livingston High School, and both teams won their opening games. Joe’s beat Morris Knolls 84-54 to improve to 5-0 on the season, behind another 25 points from Jeremy Clayville. The senior has been the top scorer in four of the team’s first five games, and is averaging 26.4 points a game. The Red Devils also won their opener against host Livingston, 63-50, on 16 points from Quinn Dashefsky. Those wins pit Ridge and St. Joe’s against each other in Friday’s championship game at 2 pm.

#3 Rutgers Prep: The Argonauts (3-1) are playing just one-game in a showcase at Widener University, the Jameer Nelson Classic. They’ll face Camden Eastside (3-0) Saturday at 2:45 pm.

#4 Colonia: The Patriots (3-2) opened up play in their very own, three-day LeGrand Tournament with a 39-32 win over Scotch Plains-Fanwood. Sophomore Aiden Derkack led the way with 13 points, and he’s now scored in double figures in all five games so far. This is a round-robin tournament, so Colonia faces Union City (0-4) Friday at 1 pm following Westfield and Scotch Plains-Fanwood at 11. Then, Saturday, the event finishes up with Union City and SPF at 11, followed by Colonia taking on Westfield at 1:00.

#5 Hillsborough: The Raiders (3-1) are in the Oratory Holiday Tournament in Summit, and will host Morristown-Beard (1-2) Thursday at 3 pm. That’s followed by Newark Academy and Oratory playing at 6 pm. Friday, the consolation game is at 1:30; the final is at 6 pm.

#6 Gill St. Bernard’s: The Knights (4-1) are hosting their own Knights Holiday Basketball Tournament, and picked up an 80-26 win over Pope John (0-5) in their opener Wednesday, getting 11 points from Kobe Closeil and 13 boards from Stanley Njekwe. Also in the tournament is Bernards, which is also 4-1 after a 58-39 win over The Patrick School (0-2). Connor Laverty had a double-double – his first of the season – of 16 points and 10 rebounds. That means Bernards and Gill will play in today’s final at 1 pm up in Peapack-Gladstone.

#7 Watchung Hills: The Warriors (6-1) suffered their first loss of the season in the opener of the Cougar Classic at Chatham to their hosts, 54-50, but they rebounded Wednesday with a 55-49 win over New Providence, fueled by a team high 13 points from Zack Patetta, while Dean Smith added nine rebounds. The round-robin format finishes up on Friday, with a 1:30 pm matchup for the Warriors against Cranford (4-2). 

#8 Montgomery: The Cougar Holiday Classic will feature the host school and a Somerset County rival in the finals. Monty (5-0) was a 72-39 winner over North Hunterdon Wednesday, getting a game-high 20 points from sophomore Ethan Lin, his third straight double-figure scoring game. And Bridgewater-Raritan (4-2) topped Princeton Wednesday 59-45, picking up its second win in a row, as Matt Lyne led all scorers with 18 points. Now, the Cougars and Panthers will face off in the final at 4 pm Friday. Montgomery has won its last four meetings with Bridgewater, dating back to 2017.

#9 Piscataway: The Chiefs aren’t in a holiday tournament, but will try to rebound from a loss to Immaculata Wednesday in a Thursday game at Morristown at 5:30,

#10 South Plainfield: The Tigers (3-3) host their own Anthony J. Cotoia Tournament, featuring three GMC schools, but dropped their opener to Edison on Wednesday, 61-49. The Eagles improved to 2-3 with the win, getting a big game from Ricky Harvey, who led all scorers with 26 points. He’s now averaging 11 points a game and has scored 20-plus in three of the Eagles’ first five games. In Wednesday’s other game, JFK lost to McNair of Jersey City, 58-54, despite 22 points from Gurshan Nahal. That sets up Thursday afternoon’s consolation game between the Tigers and Mustangs at 3:00, while Edison takes on McNair at 5 for the championship.

Other holiday tournaments…

East Brunswick: The bears beat Ranney, 75-60, in the third game of the round-robin Albert E. Martin Buc Classic at Red Bank Regional. That puts them up against Tottenville (NY) Thursday at 3:30. A win would put them in the 5:00 final Saturday, while a loss puts them in the third-place game at 3:30.

East Brunswick Magnet, JP Stevens, Metuchen: That trio all is in the ALJ Crusader Holiday Classic at Johnson Rejional in Clark, where play opens Thursday with JP taking on EB Magnet at 6 pm, while Metuchen plays Johnson at 7:30. Saturday, the consolation game is at 6 pm, while the final tips at 7:30.

North Plainfield, Timothy Christian: Both lost their opening games on Wednesday and will play each other in Saturday’s 5 pm consolation game. Timothy Christian (4-1) took its first loss of the season against Rahway, 58-45, while the Canucks lost 90-37 to Rumson-Fair Haven. The Indians and Bulldogs will play at 7:30 Saturday in the final.

Bound Brook: The host Crusaders (2-3) got an 80-56 win over STEMCivics Wednesday in the annual Crusader Classic, and now will play Great Oaks Charter in Thursday’s 7 pm final.

Carteret, Monroe, New Brunswick, South Brunswick: The Falcon Holiday Tournament at Monroe is an all-GMC affair. Carteret (3-2) got by South Brunswick (0-4) in the opener Wednesday, 46-39, on 11 points from Michael Gomm, while the Falcons (4-1) crushed New Brunswick (2-3) 71-18, jumping out to an 18-2 lead after one quarter, and never looking back. They allowed only four in the third and two in the fourth period. Myles Marabuto pumped in 20 for Monroe, which now takes on the Ramblers at 4 pm in Friday’s final. South and New Brunswick square off in the noon consolation game.

Old Bridge, Perth Amboy, Sayreville, Woodbridge: Three of the four GMC teams – the Knights, Bombers and Barrons – won their opening games in the eight-team Huskies Holiday Classic at Matawan. Old Bridge (3-3) beat Raritan 56-30 in Wednesday’s opener, while Sayreville (5-1) topped host Matawan, 89-74. Woodbridge (4-1) beat Manalapan, 72-63, but Perth Amboy (3-3) lost to Holmdel 67-60. This is a three-day tournament, and the first of the GMC teams in action today plays Manalapan at 11:45 in the loser’s bracket, followed by the semifinals featuring the other three GMC teams. Old Bridge and Sayrveille play at 1:30, while Woodbridge gets Holmdel (3-1) at 3:15 pm.

South Amboy, South River: The Rams (3-3) were 81-69 winners over Keansburg, as sharpshooter Alex Grospe dropped a 41-point game, and even had eight steals. It was his second straight game of 40-plus points, his third this year, after never topping 20 in a game in two prior seasons. He’s now averaging 33.5 points per game. The Rams will play Henry Hudson in the final Thursday afternoon at 12:30, following the 11 am consolation between South Amboy (5-1) and Keansburg. The Governors suffered their first loss of the season in their tourney opener, 74-63 to Henry Hudson.

Dunellen, Highland Park, Manville: The Destroyers (1-4) – hosting their own Mike Shello Holiday Tournament at the Faber School in town, got their first win of the season in the tourney opener against Urban Leadership, 68-43. Manville (3-2) topped Highland Park (3-2) in the opener, 71-37, so now it’s the Mustangs and Destroyers at 7 pm Friday in the final, while the opener at 4 has the Owls taking on Urban Leadership in the consolation game.

Perth Amboy Magnet, Somerset Tech: In the North Warren Holiday Extravaganza, PA Magnet (2-4) fell to their hosts, 51-40, while Somerset Tech (2-3) also lost its opener, 77-58 to Central Jersey College Prep. They’ll face each other at 10 am Friday in the consolation game.

North Brunswick: The Raiders (4-2) topped Middletown North 56-47 Wednesday in the Ravens Winter Classic at Robbinsville, rebounding off a pre-Christmas loss to Pingry. Now, North Brunswick gets host Robbinsville – a 72-51 winner over Bordentown in its opener in the Classic’s final at 1 pm Friday.

Middlesex, Piscataway Magnet: The Blue Jays (3-2) beat Piscataway Magnet (1-6) by a score of 70-61 Wednesday in the opening round of the Roselle Park Holiday Hoopfest, while the hosts topped Keyport 52-44. That sets up a final of Middlesex and Roselle Park at 2 pm Thursday, following the 11 am consolation between P’way Magnet and Keyport.

Somerville, Spotswood: The Winter Holiday Classic at West Windsor-Plainsboro South features Somerville and Spotswood from the GMC, and both won their opening round games of the thre-day event on Wednesday. The Pioneers (3-2) won their third straight after an 0-2 start, beating South Hunterdon 71-56 behind Brady Scheier’s 27 points. Spotswood (4-1) got 30 points from Kiye Walker in an 80-70 win over Northern Burlington. Thursday’s games feature Somerville and Spotswood in the 4:15 semifinal game. The other features West Windsor-Plainsboro’s two schools – North and South – facing off at 2:30. Saturday’s slate includes the seventh place game at 11, fifth place at 12:45, the consolation at 2:30, and the final at 4:15 pm.

Wardlaw-Hartridge: The Rams open up play in the Voorhees Holiday Tournament out in Glen Gardner at 3 pm against the ir hosts, while Delaware Valley and Mount Olive play in the 1:00 opener. Friday’s consolation game is at 1, followed by the final at 3 pm.

Calvary Christian: They open the Patriot Holiday Invitational at the University of Valley Forge in Pennsylvania at 4 pm Thursday against Baptist Regional. The consolation and final are Friday at 12:30 and 3:30, respectively.