Mergin Sina, Mark Taylor among those to be honored at The Basketball Reunion next month
Now in its second year, The Basketball Reunion – an event created to bring together players and coaches from high school and college teams throughout various eras – will induct two high school coaches with local ties into its Hall of Honor. Gill St. Bernard’s boys’ basketball coach Mergin Sina, and St. Benedict’s boys; basketball coach Mark Taylor – who also previously coached at Ridge and St. Joseph-Metuchen – will be honored on April third at the second annual event at the Prudential Center in Newark. Sina played his college ball in New Jersey at Seton Hall, and after a…
With another two titles, Mary Klinger named CJSR Girls’ Basketball Coach of the Year
One might say it’s easy to win when you have the talent Mary Klinger has at Rutgers Prep. Mikayla Blakes, Katie Ledden, Gigi Battle, and on and on. But harnessing that talent, getting more and more out of it every day, is the task she really has, and once again, in 2022-23, Klinger was a success. This is a coach who considers the regular season the preseason, the warm-up, the long stretch to constantly improve. She can be heard bemoaning a defensive effort in a game where her team might win by 30. That comes from growing up in hardscrabble…
Rutgers Prep’s Blakes earns back-to-back CJSR Girls’ Basketball Player of the Year Honors
It’s rare for a sophomore to be named a Player of the Year in high school basketball, and that’s just what Mikayla Blakes of Rutgers Prep did last year. Which, of course, begs the question, “What do you do for an encore?” Answer: You do it again. Blakes – now a junior – had another fantastic season for Rutgers Prep, the clear leader of the ballclub. As she went, Prep went. And they “went” to the tune of a 25-5 record, third straight Somerset County Tournament title, second straight Non-Public South B sectional title, and a clean sweep of the…
Aquinas girls’ coach Joe Whalen stepping down after three seasons, two GMCT titles
St. Thomas Aquinas head coach Joe Whalen hasn’t let Multiple Sclerosis define him, not at any time since his summer 2021 diagnosis. In fact, it was something few people outside the program even knew he had by the time his Trojans had won their first GMC Tournament title under his wing, and their third straight overall. But ultimately, MS does require taking care of one’s self. And that’s the decision Whalen has now made, stepping down as the head coach of the STA program. He actually made the decision during the season. He wanted to announce it before the GMC…
Rutgers Prep claims final No. 1 Ranking in Bellamy & Son Paving Girls’ Basketball Top Ten
Despite a loss in its final game of the year to Morris Catholic in the Non-Public Group B Final Sunday afternoon, another dominating season by Rutgers Prep has earned them their rightful place at the top of the final Bellamy & Son Paving Girls’ Basketball Rankings of the 2022-23 season for the third straight season. The numbers for the Lady Argonauts continue to stagger the mind. Consider: they have won 41 straight games against Somerset County opponents and 54 against Skyland Conference foes. Of the last 30, none have been by fewer than ten points. And their last loss to…
Post-halftime Morris Catholic surge dooms Rutgers Prep as frenetic comeback falls short in Non-Public B Final
“They punched us in the mouth,” said Rutgers Prep coach Mary Klinger, in the season’s post-mortem. It didn’t look like it would be that way, though, especially with a much better start this time around than an early season loss to Morris Catholic in December. Prep got the start it wanted, leading by as many as 13 points in the first quarter, and ending it with a 21-11 lead. Morris Catholic chipped away and got it to five by halftime, but it was after that when the Crusaders played their best basketball. A 29-13 run through the next eight minutes…
Experience of regular and postseason has Rutgers Prep ready for another state championship
When Mary Klinger’s team takes the floor for the opening tip-off Sunday afternoon against Morris Catholic in the quest for a second straight state title – and her program’s fourth overall – it will be much improved from the last time the Argonauts faced the Crusaders. That was December 17th – Game Two of the season for both squads – in the She Got Game Classic down at St. John Vianney in Holmdel. Klinger will tell you it was not one of Prep’s best. And the numbers bear it out, too. The Argonauts like to start hot, hitting baskets, then…
Morris Catholic brings two highly-touted sophomores, win over Rutgers Prep into rematch with Argonauts for state title
Head coach Billy Lovett sees a lot of parallels and similarities in his life right now. Having played for the legendary Bob Hurley at St. Anthony’s in the 1990s, he has given his team the same experiences, playing in national showcases far from New Jersey that create great moments for his players, and top-notch exposure – like the John Wall Holiday Invitational. He played in that tournament before it was even called that, back when it was the Raleigh Times Holiday Festival, which celebrated its 50th year this past December. Other similarities are less intentional, like the fact this his…
INSTANT REPLAY: Girls’ Non-Public South B Final: #3 Rutgers Prep 70, #1 Wildwood Catholic 40
Third-seed Rutgers Prep won its second straight Non-Public South B title, beating top-seed Wildwood Catholic 70-40 in the sectional title game at Seneca High School in Medford Lakes. Junior Mikayla Blakes led the Lady Argonauts with 22 points, while Katie Ledden followed up with 22. Click below to hear Mike Pavlichko call all the action on March 1, 2023 on Central Jersey Sports Radio.
Rutgers Prep girls ride defense, Blakes and Ledden to back-to-back Non-Public South B titles with 70-40 win over Wildwood Catholic
Press. Score. Defense. Rebound. Transition. Repeat. The same tried and true formula that has worked her entire life at Rutgers Prep worked again on Wednesday night for head coach Mary Klinger’s squad, as the third-seeded Argonauts “knocked off” top seed Wildwood Catholic in the Non-Public South B championship game at Seneca High School, as heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio. And so, it’s back-to-back sectional titles for Klinger, Mikayla Blakes, Katie Ledden and Co. with one more game to play, the Non-Public Group B final, to be played Saturday at the RWJBarnabas Health Arena in Toms River, at a time…
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