Tag: Mark Taylor

by Mike Pavlichko

Back in Town: St. Joseph alum, Hall of Famer Mark Taylor to lead Falcons’ Basketball

With nearly well over career wins and the revival of three different basketball programs under his belt, Mark Taylor is coming back home, returning to his alma mater – St. Joseph of Metuchen – as the Falcons’ new basketball coach.

Having spent the last 14 seasons at powerhouse St. Benedict’s Prep in Newark, winning over 400 games with the Gray Bees while coaching numerous future Division I standouts, Taylor is coming back to Metuchen where he played in the early 1980s and coached future stars Jay Williams – who was National College Player of the Year at Duke and second overall pick by the NBA’s Bulls in 2002 – and Andrew Bynum, who was drafted right out of St. Joe’s by the Lakers. Both also were McDonald’s All-Americans.

Taylor is a 1983 graduate of the school, and as a player, went twice to the Middlesex County Tournament finals, then played in College at Fordham. He also in the St. Joseph Athletics Hall of Fame.

He came back to coach at St. Joe’s for eleven seasons, breathing new life into the program, winning two GMCT crowns in six trips to the finals, as well as two state sectional titles and seven division championships.

After that, he went to Ridge, and revived that program as well, winning 94 games in five seasons from 2006 to 2011, more than any other Somerset County public school in that time frame, winning the Somerset County Tournament title in 2010, their first such trophy since 1977.

Taylor then moved to St. Benedict’s, and in 14 seasons, went 333-60, bringing his overall record – compiled from various sources – to 599-171 in 30 seasons overall at the scholastic and prep levels. Current UConn coach Danny Hurley had spent nine years there – with a down year in between – before Taylor arrived and rejuvenated the program.

Overall, he’s produced eight NBA draft picks and over a hundred Division I NCAA players.

“Mark Taylor’s success in the New Jersey high school basketball landscape has been second to none over the past 28 years,” Saint Joseph Director of Athletics Bill Tracy said in a press release.

“We are excited to welcome yet another hall of fame caliber coach to the Saint Joseph Athletics Department. More importantly, I am confident that Coach Taylor’s focus on forming successful young men will have a positive impact on the student-athlete experience at Saint Joseph High School. We welcome him back with open arms and now set our sights on bringing trophies back to Maglio Gymnasium,” said Tracy.

What’s unique about Taylor is he’s not involved in basketball at any other level, whether it’s owning a training or involved in AAU basketball. He calls himself an “entrepreneur,” and has a history of building successful businesses across many industries. He holds a business degree in finance management from Fordham University and a masters certificate in Christian Ministries from Liberty University.

When he was first at St. Joe’s, he started a warehouse distribution and packaging company from his garage and sold it in 2012. He also has been involved in home construction and now is involved with an internet venture called Taylored Digital Assets.

Click below to hear Mark Taylor talk about returning home to St. Joseph-Metuchen with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko:

by Mike Pavlichko

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 12-year professional playing career overseas that saw him inducted into the Portuguese Basketball Federation Hall of Fame, took over the girls’ program at Gill, going 105-49 in six seasons and winning the program’s first two Somerset County Tournament titles in 2009 and 2010. He then took over the boys’ program, where he just wrapped up his 13th season, is 273-71, and has won seven of the last eight SCT championships, including five straight from 2015 to 2019.

Taylor has been at St. Benedict’s in Newark for 12 years and has racked up more than 300 wins, in addition to the 255 victories he had combined at Ridge at St. Joseph of Metuchen. With the Falcons – where he also played his high school ball and is in the Athletics Hall of Fame – Taylor coached two future NBA players in Andrew Bynum and Jay Williams, who was the second pick in the 2002 NBA Draft out of Duke.

Sina and Taylor will be inducted in the “Special Recognition” category.

The Basketball Reunion will be held on the floor of the Prudential Center the night of April 3rd, with a “steakhouse” dining experience, capped off by a watch party of the NCAA Tournament’s men’s basketball national championship game. The event will be emceed by award-winning sports anchor Bruce Beck of WNBC-TV, Channel 4, in New York for the second straight year.

Among those also being inducted in various categories: former Seton Hall stars Terry Dehere and Shaheen Holloway; the 1982 Rutgers women’s basketball AIAW National Championship team; , Dana O’Neil, senior writer for the Athletic; referees Tim Higgins, Ed Corbett and Tom Lopes, all of whom have New Jersey ties; and Mike Fratello and Brian Hill in the NBA Coaching Legends category.

For more information on the event, visit www.thebasketballreunion.com. The event is open to the public. Proceeds benefit the Team Hill Foundation and its “programs to assist disadvantaged youngsters on the path to success in life.”