Boys’ Roundup: St. Joseph hits the century mark, two-time defending CJ4 champ Montgomery rolls, Ridge upsets Elizabeth, Perth Amboy takes buzzer-beater as state tourney opens at long last

It was a two-day wait to start the NJSIAA state high school basketball tournament for public schools in Groups 2 and 4, but for eight schools from the Central Jersey Sports Radio coverage area, it was well worth the wait.

CJSR-area squads went 10-10 on the opening day of the three-week tournament, with two non-publics winning games that were originally scheduled for Thursday anyway.

Here’s a look at some of the key wins, followed by all results, and the upcoming schedule.

St. Joseph hits 100…

The Falcons scored 103 points in a season-opening 103-36 win over Wesley College (Australia). Thursday night, the newly-minted GMC Tournament champions opened the state tournament as the fourth-seed in Non-Public South A, beating 13th-seed Donovan Catholic out of the Shore Conference, 100-44.

Junior and GMC Tournament MVP Andrew Kretkowski led the way with 22 points and nine rebounds, while fellow junior Aidan Carter added 19, and sophomore Joel Patrick recorded his second double-double of the season, with 15 points and 13 rebounds.

The Falcons (27-1) now will play fifth-seed Red Bank Catholic (20-7) in the sectional semis. The Caseys were a Shore Conference Tournament finalist, falling to CBA, and opened with a 41-39 win over rival St. John Vianney Thursday night.

Aquinas wins in OT…

Two free throws from senior Dan Jennings – a transfer last season from St. Joe’s – with 2.1 seconds to go in overtime helped the Trojans pull out a 77-76 upset win at 11-seed Immaculata.

Click here to read the full story, and hear postgame reaction from Jennings and first-year head coach Tom Weiler, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen.

Abreu’s putback sends Perth Amboy…

The 6th-seeded Panthers got their first playoff win since 2015 Thursday night when Kasey Abreu’s putback off a miss from downtown beat the buzzer, giving them a 54-43 victory over 11th-seed North Star Academy in the Bay City Thursday night.

Abreu finished with a game-high 15 points, and also grabbed eight rebounds, while Yandel Susana added 13 for Perth Amboy (22-5).

They get third-seed Union Saturday (time TBA) in the semifinals, after the Farmers rolled past 14th-seed Ferris, 53-28, in the opening round.

FIRST ROUND RESULTS

Central Jersey Group 4

• (1) Hillsborough def. (16) Old Bridge, 74-44
• (8) Freehold Twp. def. (9) Franklin, 83-59
• (5) Jackson Twp. def. (12) Hightstown, 83-55
• (4) East Brunswick def. (13) Edison, 91-61
• (3) Montgomery def. (14) Manalapan, 76-40
• (6) Trenton def. (11) Hunterdon Central, 78-44
• (7) Sayreville def. (10) South Brunswick, 82-49
• (2) Marlboro def. (15) Princeton, 68-47

North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4

• (1) Piscataway def. (16) JP Stevens, 75-30
• (9) Columbia def. (8) Dickinson, 59-48
• (5) Bayonne def. (12) Scotch Plains-Fanwood, 71-61
• (4) Plainfield def. (13) Bridgewater-Raritan, 60-39
• (3) Union def. (14) Ferris, 53-28
• (6) Perth Amboy def. (11) North Star Academy, 45-43
• (10) Ridge def. (7) Elizabeth, 54-53
• (2) Linden def. (15) Westfield, 49-45

Central Jersey Group 2

• (1) Wall def. (16) Bordentown, 61-44
• (8) Holmdel def. (9) Robbinsville, 60-46
• (5) Manasquan def. (12) Roselle, 66-40
• (4) Delaware Valley def. (13) Spotswood, 67-58
• (3) Ocean Twp. def. (14) Governor Livingston, 67-53
• (6) Johnson def. (11) Monmouth, 54-47
• (7) Rumson-Fair Haven def. (10) Point Pleasant Boro, 75-74 (OT)
• (2) Metuchen def. (15) Delran, 57-31

North Jersey, Section 2, Group 2

• (1) Newark Collegiate def. (16) Newark West Side, 70-43
• (8) Weequahic def. (9) Bernards, 72-50
• (5) Hackettstown def. (12) Hanover Park, 58-50
• (4) Madison def. (13) Rutherford, 66-28
• (3) Ridgefield Park def. (14) Snyder, 49-43
• (6) Caldwell def. (11) Becton, 80-53
• (10) Hillside def. (7) Voorhees, 62-46
• (2) Lyndhurst def. (15) McNair, 94-43

Non-Public South A

• (9) Union Catholic def. (8) St. Augustine, 63-51
• (5) Red Bank Catholic def. (12) St. John Vianney, 41-39
• (4) St. Joseph-Metuchen def. (13) Donovan Catholic, 100-44
• (3) St. Peter’s Prep def. (14) Notre Dame, 80-25
• (11) St. Thomas Aquinas def. (6) Immaculata, 77-76 (OT)
• (7) Camden Catholic def. (10) Pingry, 58-53

UPCOMING SCHEDULE

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 27 (FIRST ROUND)

North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3

• (16) North Hunterdon at (1) Colonia, 7 pm
  (9) Somerville at (8) Randolph, 5 pm
• (12) Payne Tech at (5) Mendham, 7 pm
• (13) Summit at (4) Warren Hills, 7 pm
• (14) Nutley at (3) Millburn, 4:15 pm
• (11) Cliffside Park at (6) South Plainfield, 6 pm
• (10) North Plainfield at (7) Cranford, 7 pm
• (15) Fort Lee at (2) Chatham, 7 pm

Central Jersey Group 1

• (16) Keansburg at (1) Thrive Charter, 7 pm
• (9) Bound Brook at (8) Henry Hudson, 5:30 pm
• (12) New Providence at (5) Piscataway Magnet, 4 pm
• (13) Roselle Park at (4) Shore, 4 pm
• (14) South Hunterdon at (3) Middlesex, 5 pm
• (11) Dunellen at (7) Manville, 7 pm
• (10) Dayton at (7) South Amboy, 6 pm
• (15) Perth Amboy Magnet at (2) Point Pleasant Beach, 5:30 pm

Non-Public North B

• (9) Wardlaw-Hartridge at (8) Pioneer Academy, 4:30 pm; winner at (1) Gill St. Bernard’s
• (11) Franklin School at (6) Montclair-Kimberley, 4:30 pm; winner at (3) Morris Catholic
• (10) Koinonia at (7) Timothy Christian, 5 pm; winner at (2) Roselle Catholic

Non-Public South B

• (9) Princeton Day at (8) St. Rose, 6 pm; winner at (1) Rutgers Prep
• (12) Noor-ul-iman at (5) Bishop Eustace, 6:30 pm
• (13) Moorestown Friends at (4) Doane Academy, 6 pm
• (11) Calvary Christian at (6) Ranney, 4:30 pm; winner at (3) Holy Spirit
• (10) Wildwood Catholic at (7) Gloucester Catholic, 5:30 pm; winner at (2) Holy Cross Prep

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 28 (SEMIFINALS)

Note: Not all game times have been announced. This schedule will be updated as game times are set.

Central Jersey Group 4

• (8) Freehold Twp. at (1) Hillsborough, 1 pm
• (5) Jackson Twp. at (4) East Brunswick, 1 pm
• (6) Trenton at (3) Montgomery, 1 pm
• (7) Sayreville at (2) Marlboro

North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4

• (9) Columbia at (1) Piscataway
• (5) Bayonne at (4) Plainfield
• (6) Perth Amboy at (3) Union
• (10) Ridge at (2) Linden

Central Jersey Group 2

• (8) Holmdel at (1) Wall
• (5) Manasquan at (4) Delaware Valley
• (6) Johnson at (3) Ocean Twp.
• (7) Rumson-Fair Haven at (2) Metuchen, 12p

Non-Public South A

• (9) Union Catholic at (1) Paul VI
• (5) Red Bank Catholic at (4) St. Joseph-Metuchen
• (11) St. Thomas Aquinas at (3) St. Peter’s Prep
• (7) Camden Catholic at (2) Christian Brothers Academy