Wayne………If DePaul Catholic plays the way they did against St. Joseph in their 63-56 win they are gonna be a”problem”for any team in the Passaic County Tournament! The Spartans had a balanced attack with three players in double figures and two others with 9 points! DePaul was led by Sophomore Joshua Marquez with 15 points and 6 assists! Freshman Kiy Hester finished with 12 points and 4 assists and Junior Mas Aronson(pictured) brought plenty of energy with his 12 points, 7 rebounds and 3 steals! These guys not to mention Junior’s Davon Jacobs and Nafee Lighty who each scored 9 points and grabbed 7 rebounds a piece gave the kind of effort that can take them a long way in the Counties! DePaul created 9 steals and forced a number of turnovers! St. Joe’s could never get it going consistently and could only rely on Sophomore Terrence McNair and Senior Michael Pelham for most of their scoring! McNair finished with 20 points and Pelham added 16! DePaul’s tough schedule this season make them a tough out for anyone! Joe’s will have to regroup to continue play in the Bergen County Jamboree! 

Paterson…….Bergen Catholic made a late run to over take Kennedy 61-58! Behind the play of Senior Jhamir White and Senior Dawon Lighty, Kennedy led most of the contest, taking  a 7 point lead 45-38 into the 4th quarter! Bergen came out and put the pressure on the Knight’s shooters and finally put it together on the offensive end! Sophomore P.J. Reed(top right) led Bergen for the first three quarters, but it was the veteran play of Junior Charles Wingate and Senior’s Maurice Grant(bottom right) and Eric Flanagan that made the run, as Flanagan finished it with a”triple”to put them ahead and Grant’s layup gave them a 59-54 lead! Kennedy fought back but could not make a late three to tie! Reed led the balanced scoring with 15 points! Flanagan finished with 4″triples”for 12 points and Grant scored 10 points and grabbed 7 boards! Point guard Travis Procida dished out 7 dimes for B.C. White finished with 24 points and Lighty had 21 points and 8 rebounds for Kennedy!   

Wayne…….When two rival schools get together you can throw records out the window! Wayne Valley was riding high after a great win against Passaic Valley had pushed their record to 9-6 and feeling good about the way they were playing! Meanwhile, Wayne Hills has been struggling most of the year because of inconsistant play which had resulted in a 4-12 record! But that’s why they play the games! Hills pulled off the win 52-49 in overtime and watching the contest it would have been hard to decide which team was which! Valley controlled the game in the 1st half,taking a 28-20 lead into intermission!Hills came out in the 3rd and outscored Valley 18-8 in the quarter to take a 38-36 lead into the 4th! Senior center Peter Daibes(top right), point guard Michael Driesse(bottom right) and Matt Heskins were the key players for Hills as they made it known they were here to stay! The 4th quarter stayed close as Valley cut the lead  to 40-39 on a three point play from Junior guard Jay Mustafa and after a Hills free throw, Mustafa tied it at 41 on a layup with 13 seconds left! Hills ran a perfect play for the win but Daibes shot went in and out which sent the game to overtime! In the extra session Driesse found Daibes twice down low to take a 4 point lead 45- 41! Valley continued to fight but Hills kept the lead behind the free throw shooting of Heskins and Sam Pressler! Valley could not score a field goal in overtime, getting all their points at the free throw line! Daibes led Hills with 16 points and 9 rebounds, while Heskins scored 14 points and Driesse ran the show with 11 points, 6 dimes and 5 rebounds! Valley really only got it from two players as Senior Andrew Herasimtchuk led the scoring with 18 points and Junior point guard Mustafa added 17 points! This game again shows how up for grabs the Passaic County Tournament will be!