Tag: Outerbridge Crossing Challenge

December 12, 2025December 12, 2025 by Mike Pavlichko

Edison will lean on top-scorer Samparaboyina as Eagles figure the rest out heading into 2025-26

When you’re coaching at the same school for more than two decades – 23, in the case of Edison’s Charlie Mohr – you’ve seen the cyclical nature of high school sports (at public schools anyway) – more than you probably care to count.

Consider Edison, which came out of the COVID-shortened 2021 season with a .500 record to go 19-9 in 2021-22. With eight and seven wins in each of the next two seasons, last year was a bounceback campaign, finishing 13-14 and a solid 8-2 in the GMC Blue Division behind champion Timothy Christian, the only team in the Blue they lost to.

And while the Eagles may have lost their second, third and fifth-leading scorers to graduation – seniors Jonan Norris, Kamir McKay and Dedrick Harvey, with his 165 assists and 121 steals – there’s still some gas in the tank.

The main character he’ll lean on in the 2025-26 episode of Edison boys’ basketball is Dheeraj Samparaboyina, who Mohr says is relishing the role of being the team’s leader. He was the team’s top scorer a year ago at 13.3 points per game, and also their leading three-point shooter with 46.

Mohr will be looking for others with experience to step into increased roles, like junior Vibert Reynolds, who scored about seven points a game last season and got a handful of starts. And fellow junior Ray Tavares – who was splitting time with jayvee and varsity last year at point guard, but mostly varsity by the end of the season, will be full-time with the big squad this year.

Saturday afternoon at 1 pm, the Eagles will see how it’s coming together when they host the opener of a doubleheader in the Outerbridge Crossing Challenge at 1 pm against Petrides of Staten Island. You can hear that game live on Central Jersey Sports Radio with Mike Pavlichko and Alec Crouthamel calling all the action, followed by Piscataway taking on McKee/Staten Island Tech (NY) at 2:30 pm Click here to listen.

For Petrides, they are coming off an 8-16 season, and will be a young squad in 2025-26. Kareem Nesbitt averaged 10.3 ppg a year ago as a sophomore, and will be playing his third varsity season. Coach Nick Lezoli says he does “a little bit of everything,” with the ability to score from anywhere, while also getting bigger and stronger in the off-season. Malachi Rowland (16.3 ppg, 53 triples) is back to run the point.

Lezoli says this year could be some more growing pains, but believes they’ll survive if they can play defense.

Click below for previews of the Edison/Petrides game in the opener of the Outerbridge Crossing Challenge with both head coaches:

Edison head coach Charlie Mohr with Mike Pavlichko

Petrides head coach Nick Lezoli with Alec Crouthamel

December 12, 2025December 12, 2025 by Mike Pavlichko

Chiefs turned it around in 2024-45, now Turco looks for Piscataway boys to take the next step

It won’t be easy, it never is. But if it were, would it be as fun?

Bob Turco has made multiple coaching stops in his career, three of which have come in the Greater Middlesex Conference, where he’s the only coach to bring that many different schools to a GMC Tournament final.

But last year, when he brought the third of those teams to the championship game, may have been the most fun he’s had.

Going from St. Thomas Aquinas to a public school in Piscataway meant he’d no longer have to “build” a team; he would mostly get the kids he had, the ones who wanted to be there, and coach them up, then coach them up some more.

So, he took an 11-14 team in 2023-24 to 24-6, finishing second in the Red Division, along with a trip to the GMC finals, where they lost to Colonia. Not too shabby for Year One.

Year two starts Saturday in Edison in Game Two of the Outerbridge Crossing Challenge, an opening weekend showcase Turco wanted to host at Piscataway, but has been moved to various locations as their new gym floor awaits completion after heavy rains caused flooding this fall that damaged several athletic spaces.

The Chiefs will “host” McKee/Staten Island Tech out of New York City, which already has begin its season (they start earlier in New York) and is 3-2 on the year in the PSAL, the New York City Public School Athletic League. They were 11-15 last season.

You can hear the game on Central Jersey Sports Radio at approximately 2:30 pm, following the 1 pm opener between Edison and Petrides. Mike Pavlichko and Alec Crouthamel will call both games; click here to listen.

Head coach Charles Donohue is looking forward to the challenge, and looking at last year’s GMC finals against Colonia, he was impressed most with their poise under pressure, as well as their pressure and defense.

They return senior Nizayah Jordan, the Seagull’s top scorer last season, averaging 17.4 points per game, while hitting 53 times from beyond the arc. They’ll also be looking to get more scoring out of senior point guard Terrence Legrand.

For Piscataway, it’ll be dealing with graduation losses of Nate Davis (14.5 ppg, 53 treys, 49 steals) and Vaughn Turner (9.6 ppg, 5.3 rpg), but has plenty of talent back, including long-distance shooter Josh Lima (10.3 ppg), football starting QB Landon Pernell (7.9 pppg, 28 treys, team-best 116 assists) and swing Donald Nwaigwe (11.1 ppg, 6.4 rpg), the team’s top returning scorer from last year’s GMCT runner-up team.

Click below to hear a preview of the Piscatway/McKee-Staten Island Tech game from both head coaches