Piscataway and St. Joseph-Metuchen tip-off on January 3, 2026. The Falcons won in overtime and switched spots with the Chiefs this week. (Photo: Mike Pavlichko)
Only three teams – Montgomery, Somerville and Immaculata – held their ground this week in the latest Bellamy & Son Paving boys’ basketball Top Ten, the first of the New Year.
Montgomery (8-1) holds at No. 1 after a 2-1 week. In their own Cougar Holiday Classic, they beat Princeton 70-33 on Monday, then North Hunterdon 71-47 on Tuesday. Monty took its first loss of the season Saturday, 53-51, falling to Linden in the Warrior Classic down at Manasquan.
Gill St. Bernard’s (7-2) used a 3-1 week to edge up to No. 2. After a Monday loss to Linden, 73-52, at the Jingle Bells Jubilee at Paterson STEAM Academy on Monday, they went back there Thursday for the New Year’s Jump Off and beat St. Mary-Rutherford, 76-56. Saturday, they beat Don Bosco Prep on the Ironmen’s home floor, 65-58 in the Big Jersey Basketball Showcase, before finishing out the week with an 85-61 win over Trenton in the New Year’s Jump Off II at Newark Collegiate.
Rutgers Prep (5-2) split a pair this week, and falls one spot to third. The Argonauts were 96-79 winners over Cardinal Spellman (NY) in the New Year’s Eve Jump Off at Paterson STEAM Academy, then lost in the Big Jersey Basketball Showcase at Don Bosco to St. Peter’s Prep, 78-72.
The fourth and fifth place teams flip-flopped this week as well, with St. Joseph-Metuchen (6-0) having beaten Piscataway on the road Saturday, 64-53 in overtime, handing the Chiefs their first loss of the year. The Falcons also beat Middle Township on Monday, 69-37, and St. Mary’s Ryken (DC) 69-48 on Tuesday in the Winter Showcase at Paul VI in Wayne.
Piscataway (9-1) – which falls to five – had been unbeaten before the Joe’s game, winning three times in the week gone by before that matchup. They beat Ferris 62-38 Monday, and Dickinson 72-52 Tuesday in the Joe Silver Holiday Tournament at Hillside. They also beat state-ranked No. 12 Teaneck in the BWB Resolution Bumble up at FDU-Madison on New Year’s Day.
Bridgewater-Raritan (7-0) – the only undefeated team remaining in the rankings – moves up two spots this week to No. 6. The Panthers were 2-0 over the break, beating North Hunterdon, 64-63 on Monday, then Princeton, 61-33, on Tuesday in the Cougar Holiday Classic at Montgomery.
Down a spot to seventh is East Brunswick (8-1). The Bears took their first loss of the season Monday in the championship bracket semifinals of the Albert E. Martin Buc Classic at red Bank Regional, but bounced back with a win over host Red Bank regional, 64-42, in the third-place game. Saturday, they came up with a gusty road win, a 72-70 overtime victory at Cranford.
Jumping in at No. 8 this week is South Plainfield (6-1). The Tigers were 2-0 in the week gone by, beating Edison 73-45 on Tuesday, followed by an 87-77 victory at previous No. 7 Sayreville. The Tigers will be on Central Jersey Sports Radio Tuesday night at 7 pm when they face Colonia (2-5) – click here to listen – as part of a doubleheader starting with the South Plainfield girls taking on JP Stevens at 5:30.
And the last two teams held their spots.
Somerville (6-1) stays at nine after a 2-1 week that began with a 62-47 loss to Woodbridge on Monday in the JP Stevens Holiday Tournament, followed by a 58-23 win Tuesday over Perth Amboy Magnet, and a 59-21 win over Dunellen on Saturday.
And Immaculata (4-1) holds in tenth after a 2-0 week, winning the Battle at the Bomb Shelter at Sayreville with a 48-47 victory over Union Monday, and a 71-61 win over the host Bombers Tuesday.
Sayreville dropped out from No. 7 after a 1-2 week, which began in fine fashion with a 66-57 win over New Dorp (NY) in their Battle at the Bomb Shelter tournament Monday. But after the Immaculata loss in the final, they also fell 81-77 to South Plainfield on Saturday.
Below is the complete Bellamy & Son Paving Boys’ Basketball Top Ten for Week Four:
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