Allendale, N.J…….. Hoop Journal caught two of the Jamboree games where Cresskill and Bergen Catholic advanced:

                                      CRESSKILL  47                       PASCACK VALLEY  45

    Cresskill trailed most of the game and needed a spark! Off the bench came Junior Tyler Jackson who was a starter most of the season! Jackson scored 18 points and hit a”triple” with 1:23 left to give them a 45-42 lead and made two free throws to clinch it! His energy was just what Cresskill needed in their 47-45 win! Junior Dominic Wilson added 8 points and put Cresskill up 40-39 with 3:20 left in the quarter for their first lead! Senior Rich Van Cleft added 8 points and 6 rebounds! Pascack Valley was led by Senior Glen Scalia who knocked down 6″triples” and scored 22 points and tried to answer by tying the game at 42 with 2:11 left! Cresskill will meet the winner of the Teaneck- Lodi game!

                                                BERGEN CATHOLIC  75            WOOD RIDGE  68  O.T.

      Bergen Catholic hung around just enough to steal a win from Wood Ridge 75-68 in overtime! Wood Ridge made 8 treys but could not make enough free throws to end the game! They finally opened the door where B.C. got a chance to tie as Junior P.J. Reed(right) went to the line with 1 second left in the contest and with ice in his veins sent the game into overtime by making two free throws to tie the game at 64! Reed then scored 6 of the 11 overtime points to lead them to the 75-68 win! Reed finished with 17 points and 8 rebounds and was complimented by his teammates! Sophomore Nadi Beciri scored 13 points, pulled down 7 boards and 3 blocks, Junior’s Taino Flores and Kyle Quiero each scored 9 points as Flores also had 5 assists and Senior Chuck Wingate was all over the floor on the offensive and defensive end, contributing 8 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals! Wood Ridge was led by Junior Gary Whritenour who made 5″triples” for a game high 22 points and Junior Mike Gibney with 20! The Blue Devils had to overcome the lost of Senior bigman Vin O’Bierne who took a hard foul and left with a swollen elbow in the 1st hal! His lost was critical, but Wood Ridge still played well enough to have a lead late and opportunities to pull the game out but their inconsistency at the line proved to be their undoing! Bergen Catholic will meet the winner of Tenafly vs. Ridgewood for the quarterfinals!

Hawthorne,New Jersey…..The question coming into this contest was whether Hawthorne Christian’s backcourt could handle Passaic’s pressure and take care of the basketball! Well the#6 seed Defenders answered that question with flying colors as they not only handled it but thoroughly outplayed the #11 seeded Passaic’s guards in their 57-35 win! Senior Nick Aust, Junior Jake Hart and Sophomore Chris Aust along with Senior Jamari Moss were near flawless in controlling the rock which gave Hawthorne Christian’s frontcourt a chance to take control in the middle! Senior Paul Little(right) and Sophomore Alex Thomas could not be stopped as Little scored 15 points and grabbed 18 rebounds and Thomas scored 14 points with 10 boards and 5 assists! Hawthorne Christian took a 33-18 lead into the half and did not let up in the 2nd half! They outrebounded Passaic 34-18 and Nick Aust(left) in particular made them pay by knocking down perimeter shots as he scored 13 points with 3″triples”! The lone bright spot for Passaic was Junior Rahsaan Johnson who scored 18 points and grabbed 7 rebounds! Hawthorne Christian will meet Wayne Valley in the quarterfinals next week! 

  Senior Davon Jacobs needed 18 points last night to enter the 1,000 point club, and late in the 4th quarter Jacobs made it happen as he scored 20 points in a DePaul win over St. Joseph 59-49! Jacobs reached his goal a day before his birthday and it’s only fitting! He is the glue for DePaul as he’s a lunch pail guy who brings it every night! One of the best athlete’s in North Jersey Davon just signed his National Letter Of Intent for football at Rutgers University! But he still has unfinished business in Highschool basketball as him and his mates will be looking for a County and State Championship! Hoop Journal congratulates Davon on his tremendous accomplishment and Happy Birthday!