After a long adventurous season, here’s Hoop Journal final Top 20 Passaic and Bergen County Teams!

 

 

1.) Paterson Catholic –      Ranked as high as #6 in the country, this team was the best squad in the area. Won prestigious City Of Palm Tournament in Florida, captured their 3rd straight Passaic County Tournament and finished 28-1 for the year!

 

 

2.) Paramus Catholic – Bergen County Jamboree champs! Co NBIL Division 1 Champions! 

 

 

3.) Kennedy H.S. – Runner up in Passaic County tournament!

 

 

4.) Old Tappan – Won Group 3 North Sectionals! Shared NBIL Division 1 Title with Paramus Catholic!

 

 

5.) Passaic – Seeded #1 in Group 4 North playoffs!

 

 

6.) DePaul – The most surprising team of the year!

 

 

7.) Passaic Valley – Reached semis of Group 3 North playoffs! Runs some of best offensive sets in area!

 

 

8.) Bergen Catholic – Runner up to Paramus Catholic in Bergen Jamboree!

 

 

9.) Don Bosco Prep – Made it to semifinals of Non-Public A North playoffs!

 

 

10.) Teaneck – Runner up in Group 3 North Finals! Co NJTCC Division A Champs!

 

11.) St. Joseph – Reached Semis of Bergen Jamboree! Shared NJTCC Division A title with Teaneck!

 

 

12.) Pequannack – Have to give it to Group 2 North Sectional Champs!

 

 

13.) Indian Hills – Runner up in Group 2 North Sectionals! One of the best teams in years for this school!

 

 

14.) Wayne Valley –   Reached semifinals of Passaic County Tournament! Tough defensive squad!

 

 

15.) Cresskill – Group 1 North Sectional champs!

 

 

16.) West Milford – Reached semi finals of Group 3 North Sectionals!

 

 

17.) Elmwood Park – The BPSL -King Champs!

 

 

18.) Passaic County Tech – Surprising team that brings back their core players!

 

 

19.) Dwight Englewood – Another squad with their top players returning!

 

 

20.) Garfield – Made noise in the Group 2 North playoffs!

 

 

Team Of Year : Paterson Catholic – The 28-1 squad was one of the best in area in years!

 

Surprising Team Of Year : DePaul Catholic – No one expected this team to go 20-6!

 

Defensive Team Of Year : Kennedy – Pressure defense always led to big scoring runs!

 

Offensive Team Of Year : Paterson Catholic – Holding the ball in the 4th quarter kept team from scoring 100 points numerous times!

 

Disappointing Team Of Year : Hackensack and Englewood – Both teams had surprisingly poor seasons  for quality of players!

 

Funnest Team To Watch –  Besides P.C. because of talent, had to be Indian Hills and their crazy crowd!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

New Brunswick…….Paterson Catholic came to the party undefeated and looking to make history for their school. They beat St. Anthony’s last year in the semifinals of theNorth 1 Parochial B playoffs and truth be told, they expected to pull it off again. But this is St. Anthony’s and if you’re not ready to grind every time against them they will get you. Paterson Catholic fell into a halfcourt game and it proved to be their undoing as the Friars brought the Cougars undefeated season to a crashing halt in a workmanlike 63-49 win for the Parochial B Sectional final. For this night St. Anthony’s 6’1 guard Elijah Carter was the best player on the floor. He played a tremendous game scoring 28 points and grabbing a surprising 14 rebounds. The St. Bonaventure recruit was 4 of 5 from the three line and hit big shots when P.C. even had a thought of making a run. Either Paterson Catholic wouldn’t run or couldn’t run but not getting their fastbreak game in gear kept the game at St. Anthony’s tempo. The game started with a Jayon James (7 asts) to Fuquan Edwin (22 pts) alley oop for a 2-0 lead. It would be the last lead of the contest for Paterson Catholic. The Friars defense held P.C. to 16 1st half points, taking a 27-16 lead at intermission.The closest they would get was 8 points the rest of the way and the pace of the game made that amount seem insurmountable. St. Anthony’s made a point of finding Paterson Catholic’s Myles Mack wherever he was on the floor, giving D’Marcus Owens the job of covering him. It resulted in a subpar game from the star Junior who was held to 9 points,all coming in the 2nd half and only converting 1 of 8 from the three point arc. Sophomore Kyle Anderson was the only other Cougar besides Edwin to reach double figures with 10 points and dishing out 5 assists. James had 4 steals to go with his assists total and Junior Derrick Randall had 5 blocks. 6’8 Arizona St. recruit Devon Collier added 14 points for St. Anthony’s who now will face Trenton Catholic for the Parochial B title.

 

Notes: Hoops Journal would like to acknowledge the Seniors of  Paterson Catholic who not only have had great success but have helped get this site recognizable. Javon Handsford, Andre Rose, Davon Daniels, Trevor Clemmings and Jermaine Peart all should be proud of their basketball careers. Clemmings(far right) is a two way sportsman with a full ride at  Pittsburgh Univ. for football. Junior Derrick Randall(bottom) will also be leaving for Ft. Kent Prep school next year and he also has to be acknowledged for the season he has had. Most importantly, Hoops Journal has to give special love to Jayon James(top left) and Fuquan Edwin(bottom left). These two players have been the catalyst for Paterson Catholic’s basketball squad this year. James will be taking his game to Fordham University, while Edwin will be getting it on at Seton Hall University. Watching these two mature into the players they’ve become has been a thrill for this site and the evolution of Edwin in particular from an offensive rebounder as a freshman to a lights out jump shooter as a senior has showed what hard work can do for you. These guys have been here from the start and will truly be missed. GOOD LUCK TO ALL IN THE FUTURE! THANK YOU FOR A GREAT YEAR!

New Brunswick, N.J……. ENOUGH SAID!