North Brunswick visits Hillsborough in a Central Jersey Group 4 opening round game on February 27, 2025. (Source: Hudl)
Look out for North Brunswick!
The Raiders’ boys’ basketball team – just 9-17 entering the NJSIAA state tournament – won their second game in a row in upset fashion in Central Jersey Group 4 Monday night, and in the process are just the second Greater Middlesex Conference boys’ team left in the postseason.
Top-seed Montgomery also advanced in the section Monday night, while Gill St. Bernard’s and Rutgers Prep moved on to the semifinals in Non-Public North and South B, respectively.
Here’s a look at Monday night’s action. Scroll down further for the upcoming schedule, including Tuesday’s sectional semis in Groups 1 and 3, Wednesday’s semis for Groups 2 and 4, and Thursday’s non-public sectional semifinals.
Central Jersey Group 4: Top-seed Montgomery – the defending CJ4 champs – topped ninth-seed East Brunswick Monday, 66-47, pulling away with a strong third quarter after taking a 34-26 lead into the break. Christian Hill led the Cougars (22-5) with 20 points, while Ethan Lin added 14. East Brunswick (15-13) got 14 from Cam Vick, to lead the way in defeat. Montgomery will host 12-seed North Brunswick in the semifinals, after the Raiders topped 13-seed Manalapan in a surprise home game – as both teams picked up first round upsets – 57-50. The Raiders trailed 28-25 at the half, and by four going into the final eight minutes, but outscored the Braves (11-17) 17-6 in the fourth quarter to win it. Tommy Koroma scored 21 to lead North Brunswick, while Srijay Bandi added 19, and Joshua Anudon added ten.
(1) Montgomery def. (9) East Brunswick, 66-47
(12) North Brunswick def. (13) Manalapan, 57-50
(3) West Windsor-Plainsboro North def. (6) Trenton, 68-58
(10) Freehold Twp. def. (2) Sayreville, 58-32
North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4: Third-seed Ridge advanced with a 55-51 win over 11-seed Irvington, holding off the Blue Knights in the fourth to win. The Red Devils (22-6) led 29-23 at the half and would need all of that cushion in the second half. Luke Kreitz led the way with 17 – including 5 of 6 from the foul line – while Gabe Kielb added 14 and Sidd Narayanbhatla scored ten. The Red Devils will go to the Dunn Center Wednesday to play second-seed Elizabeth (19-6) in the semifinals. Meanwhile, fourth-seed Piscataway was bested by fifth-seed Westfield at home, 71-53. The Chiefs got 16 points from Nate Davis in defeat, but end the season having tied a school record 24 wins under first-year head coach Bob Turco. The 2007-08 team also won 24 games, including the North 2, Group 4 title.
(1) Plainfield, def. (8) Linden, 74-58
(5) Westfield def. (4) Piscataway, 71-53
(3) Ridge def. (11) Irvington, 55-51
(2) Elizabeth def. (7) Dickinson, 65-62
Central Jersey Group 2: Seventh-seed Metuchen (20-8) saw its season come to an end with a 66-41 loss at second-seed Rumson-Fair Haven. The Bulldogs – who were the last area team in the section, got a team-best 13 from Cam Hayes-Durina, while Jason Woods added 11.
North Jersey, Section 2, Group 2: Bernards – the only area team in the section fell 82-51 Monday night at third-seed Madison. The Mountaineers – whose season comes to an end at 16-11 – got a team-high 24 points from Monty Douglass, and 11 from Richie Jobise in defeat.
Non-Public South A: Sixth-seed Immaculata – the last area team left in the bracket – fell 71-51 at third-seed Christian Brothers Academy in Lincroft. Riley Gorman led the Spartans with 14 points, while Nick Swartwood added 13. Immaculata ends its season at 20-8, their best campaign since a 22-6 season in 2018, when they reached the Somerset County Tournament semifinals.
Non-Public North B: Top-seed and Somerset County Tournament Champion Gill St. Bernard’s rolled past eight-seed Timothy Christian in Peapack-Gladstone Monday night, 87-32, with only one Knight scoring in double figures. Kobe Closeil had 17, while Stanley Njekwe added eight and 12 rebounds. Gill got out of the gate quickly, with a 28-6 lead after one and a 51-14 lead at the half. Jalen Fleming led Timothy with 17 points – and went 9-of-10 at the charity stripe – ending his stellar career with 2,152 points, the school’s all-time leading scorer. They finish their season at 15-11, while Gill is now 21-6 and moves on to play fourth-seed Morristown-Beard in Thursday’s semifinals.
(1) Gill St. Bernard’s def. (8) Timothy Christian, 87-32
(4) Morristown-Beard def. (5) St. Mary-Rutherford, 52-46
(3) Morris Catholic def. (6) Montclair-Immaculate, 76-60
(2) Roselle Catholic def. (7) Saddle River Day, 77-39
Non-Public South B: Third-seed Rutgers Prep moves on to the semifinals with an 88-67 win over sixth-seed Wildwood Catholic. The Argonauts (19-9) were led by Jacob Canton with 24 points – including five treys – and was one of five players in double figure scoring. Andrew Kretkowski added 17, while Nicholas Nsenkyrie had a triple-double of ten points, ten rebounds, and ten assists. The Argonauts will travel to Delran to face two-seed Holy Cross Prep Thursday in the sectional semifinals.
(1) St. Rose def. (8) Ranney, 68-46
(5) St. Joseph-Hammonton def. (4) Bishop Eustace, 53-49
(3) Rutgers Prep def. (6) Wildwood Catholic, 88-67
(2) Holy Cross Prep def. (7) Holy Spirit, 48-40
TUESDAY
North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3 – Semifinals
(4) Chatham at (1) Colonia, 6 pm
(3) Payne Tech at (2) Mendham, 7 pm
Central Jersey Group 1 – Semifinals
(4) Manville at (1) Thrive Charter, 7 pm
(1) New Providence at (3) Point Pleasant Beach, 5 pm
WEDNESDAY
Central Jersey Group 4 – Semifinals
(12) North Brunswick at (1) Montgomery, 6 pm
(10) Freehold Twp. at (3) West Windsor-Plainsboro North
North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4 – Semifinals
(5) Westfield at (1) Plainfield
(3) Ridge at (2) Elizabeth
THURSDAY
Non-Public North B – Semifinals
(4) Morristown-Beard at (1) Gill St. Bernard’s
(3) Morris Catholic at (2) Roselle Catholic
Non-Public South B – Semifinals
(5) St. Joseph-Hammonton at (1) St. Rose
(3) Rutgers Prep at (2) Holy Cross Prep
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