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)
With playoff qualification in high school basketball closing Saturday at the NJSIAA cutoff, Piscataway appears to have locked in the top seed in North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4, while four-time defending champs Colonia in North 2, Group 3 have used a late-season surge to appear to take the top seed, yet again.
Below is a look at all the area teams in the Central Jersey playoff brackets, based on NJ.com power point standings as of 2 pm on Sunday, February 15, 2026. It should be noted that the standings could change as the NJSIAA confirms records and details of the formula heading into Tuesday’s seeding meeting in Robbinsville, at which point the brackets will be announced. They become official (pending any discrepancies) as of noon on Wednesday.
First round action begins on Tuesday, March 24th.
Below is our analysis of the sections, and unofficial projected matchups, in the North Jersey, Section 2 playoff sections. Click on the header for each section to visit the NJ.com standings for that section. Please note that unlike football, there is no “head-to-head” jump of teams, unless they are tied in power points, in which case head-to-head is merely the first of several tiebreakers.
Top eight seeds get first round home games, the top four are guaranteed the first two rounds, and top two get home court advantage through the semifinals.
North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4:
In a section that features powerhouse Linden and defending Group 4 champion Plainfield, beating each other up in the Union County Conference play didn’t help either get the top seed, which appears it will go to Piscataway (19-6) by a sizable margin of a little more than two points. The Tigers (16-8) get the No. 2 seed, it would appear, moving up from three a week ago, followed by Union (18-4) and the Cardinals (19-4) to complete the top four.
After that, it’s Bayonne, followed by Perth Amboy (21-5) in sixth, then Elizabeth and Dickinson to round out the top eight.
After Columbia at nine, Ridge (13-11) moves up one spot from our Super Bowl Sunday analysis to get the tenth spot, followed by North Star Academy and Scotch Plains-Fanwood. Bridgewater-Raritan (12-13) dropped a spot in the last week and appears to get the 13th seed, with Ferris and Westfield after them before JP Stevens (11-13), which survived the bubble. The Hawks dropped from 15 to 16 in the past week, during which they went 1-1, getting jumped by the Blue Devils.
Here are the projected first round matchups:
- (16) JP Stevens at (1) Piscataway
- (15) Westfield at (2) Linden
- (14) Ferris at (3) Union
- (13) Bridgewater-Raritan at (4) Plainfield
- (12) Scotch Plains-Fanwood at (5) Bayonne
- (11) North Star Academy at (6) Perth Amboy
- (10) Ridge at (7) Elizabeth
- (9) Columbia at (8) Dickinson
North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3:
How about the Colonia Patriots? This is a squad that lost a ton, started the year 2-6, and now is 16-8, having won 14 of their last 16 games. Their reward? The No. 1 seed, it appears, and by just under six-tenths of a point. As of last week, they were threatening, but still in the No. 2 slot by about half what their final margin was behind Millburn (20-4). The Millers fell to three, while third-place Chatham (19-4) moves up and gets the two spot after a 3-0 week. Warren Hills (19-4) rounds out the top four.
After fifth-seed Mendham, South Plainfield (17-7) holds steady from a week ago and should get thee sixth seed, with Cranford (16-8) and Randolph (14-1) rounding out the top eight.
A week ago, Somerville (now 15-9) and North Plainfield (13-12) were at nine and ten, and they appear to hold on to those spots, the last two teams from the CJSR coverage area. JFK (11-13) had been in 14th, and Carteret (9-15) had been in 16th by less than a point, but both got bounced – to 18 and 17, respectively – as Fort Lee came from the wrong side of the bubble to take 15th, and North Hunterdon 16th.
Here are the projected first round matchups:
- (16) North Hunterdon at (1) Colonia
- (15) Fort Lee at (2) Chatham
- (14) Nutley at (3) Millburn
- (13) Summit at (4) Warren Hills
- (12) Payne Tech at (5) Mendham
- (11) Cliffside Park at (6) South Plainfield
- (10) North Plainfield at (7) Cranford
- (9) Somerville at (8) Randolph
North Jersey, Section 2, Group 2:
Please note, power points closed at noon Sunday, still only counting games through Saturday. This section has been changed to reflect an update to the standings since our data was pulled earlier in the morning.
Newark Collegiate appears to have held on to the top spot, while the only CJSR-area team in the section, Bernards (8-15), dropped on spot, dropped from eight to nine, where they will begin the playoffs on the road.
Here are the projected first-round matchups:
- (16) Newark West Side at (1) Newark Collegiate
- (15) McNair at (2) Lyndhurst
- (14) Snyder at (3) Ridgefield Park
- (13) Rutherford at (4) Madison
- (12) Hanover Park at (5) Hackettstown
- (11) Becton) at (6) Caldwell
- (10) Hillside at (7) Voorhees
- (9) Bernards at (8) Weequahic
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