• Home
  • Multimedia
  • Pick Your School
  • Pick Your Sport
    • Baseball
    • Boys Basketball
    • Girls Basketball
    • Cross Country
    • Field Hockey
    • Football
    • Ice Hockey
    • Lacrosse
    • Boys Soccer
    • Girls Soccer
    • Softball
    • Boys Tennis
    • Girls Tennis
    • Track
    • Boys Volleyball
    • Girls Volleyball
    • Wrestling

Boys Hoops Top 20:Week 1

Thursday, December 31, 2015

By The Unkown Ranker
NJS.com's Anonymous Source
(Rankings will be next updated on January 11 and then every Monday thereafter for the rest of the season)

 
1. ST. ANTHONY (4-0) --  The Friars opened the season with convincing wins out west in Arizona, despite missing two starters. Tthey defeated Corono del Sol, 68-58, and knocked off Shadow Mountain, 60-48, as Georgetown commit Jagen Mosely pumped in 30. Back in Jersey, they topped Pope John 71-48 behind 22 points from RJ Cole, and then beat up on Iona Prep, 66-31.
JAGEN MOSELY
LAST WEEK'S RANKING: No. 1

2. HUDSON CATHOLIC (1-2) -- The Hawks opened the season by dismantling Elizabeth, 74-37, as their terrific backcourt tandem of Jahvon Quinerly and Luther Muhammad dropped in 29 and 17, respectively.  They followed that up with a 63-60 loss to Blair Academy and put on a a great performance in losing to highly ranked Neumann Goretti (PA), 82-73. That game was 58-57 heading to the fourth quarter, but HC came up a little short in the final period.
JAHVON QUINERLY
LAST WEEK'S RANKING: No. 2

3. BERGEN CATHOLIC (6-0) -- BC the season with the rare forfeit win over Eastside  then beat up on IC of Montclair, 65-40, as Taj Benning had 19 Gabriele Stefanini, the transfer in from Italy, had 17.  The Crusaders slipped past pesky Paramus Catholic, 49-46, and were crowned champion of Score in the Shore Tournament, taking down Southern in the title game, 75-66, as Stefanini had 18 and Benning 16.  In the first two games they cruised past Howell (86-62) as Stefanini had 26 and they beat St. John Vianney (53-43) after opening a 15-1 lead after one quarter. They travel to Union Catholic, ranked No. 10 in New Jersey, on January 10.
TAJ BENNING
LAST WEEK'S RANKING: No. 3

4. DON BOSCO PREP (6-0) -- The Ironman opened the season in fine fashionwith an easy win over Kennedy 70-53 and followed it up by beating CBA, 52-46, as Brandon Anderson led with 17.  Led St. Joes Montvale comfortably the whole game but needed to hold on with a 50-49 win as Anderson had 23. On Sunday the Ironman defeated South Carolina’s  RB Stall 79-54 as Omar Mostafa led with 18 points. Bosco held off another top program in South Carolina, beating Porter Gaud, 40-39, after holding a 33-26 lead after three quarters. In their final game outside NJ, they beat Peachtree Ridge (GA) 60-54. Paramus Catholic Tuesday.
OMAR MOSTAFA
LAST WEEK'S RANKING: No. 6

5. RAMAPO (5-1) --  The Raiders top seven players are all seniors from a team that went
27-0 as freshmen four years ago. Their performance against highly ranked St. Joe's Metuchen, No. 5 in the state, was brilliant. The Raiders had possession with under a minute to go down just a basket before falling 55-49.  Opened with a 53-42 win vs, Ridgewood and beat Indian Hills, 50-30, before romping through the Coaches vs Cancer Tournament by an average score of 63-36. Wins were over Passaic (58-26), DePaul (62-42) and PCT in the title game, 70-41. Hackensack next Thursday and a visit to St. Joseph Regional on January 14.
JOE O'HAGAN
LAST WEEK'S RANKING: No. 9

6. EASTSIDE (3-2) -- The Ghosts were given a loss to BC via forfeit on opening night then   proceeded to beat Bergen Tech, 64-32, as Nhazir Smith had 23.  Followed that up with a win over Hackensack, 62-50, in the Jingle Bell Jubilee by pulling away in the second half behind Smith’s 26 points, setting up a semifinal matchup with St. Joseph’s Metuchen where they lost 52-34 on Sunday night. The Ghosts captured third place as they beat IC of Montclair, 64-54, behind Charles Powell’s 18 and Smith's 17. Thursday at Passaic Tech.
NHAZIR SMITH
LAST WEEK'S RANKING: No. 4

7. ST. JOSEPH REGIONAL (4-2) -- Started the season with two great wins, beating a good DePaul team, 62-45, as junior Chauncey Hawkins led with 16 and followed that up with an easy win over Hackensack, 72-54, behind Hawkins' 22. Next was home loss to Don Bosco, 50-49.  Beaten by IC Montclair, 54-52, in the Jingle Bells Jubilee then won the consolation game, 56-25, over Plainfield. behind Bryan Griffin’s 16 points. In the final game of the tournament the Green Knights, like a week earlier, beat up on Hackensack, this time by 68-41 final as Nate Garvey had 18. Jan 12 at Bergen Catholic.

NATE GARVEY
LAST WEEK'S RANKING: No. 5

8. TEANECK (3-1) -- The Highwayman opened the season with a 48-34 win over Tenaflyand followed that up with a 64-55 loss to Gil St Bernard in a game where they made a few runs to get close. They then struggled with NV/Demarest before winning, 52-47.  In the Holiday Jubilee Tournament they defeated Kennedy, 81-76, in overtime behind Jawuan Daniels' 33 points and 16 boards and Ja'Quaye James' 25 points. They were named champions of the Holiday Jubilee as they beat Neptune, 41-31, in the finals as James had 17 and was named Tourney MVP. Sunday at IC Montclair, a team St. Joes lost to and Eastside beat.
Ja'QUAYE JAMES
LAST WEEK'S RANKING: No. 7

9. KENNEDY (3-2) -- Opened with a 70-53 setback to Don Bosco Prep before defeating Passaic Tech, 79-71, behind Alfonso Gee’s 20 points. On Saturday at the Holiday Jubilee in Neptune they beat Asbury Park, 100-61, behind Jamir Lattimore and Tamir Williams' 18 points apiece, however they dropped an 81-76 overtime decision to Teaneck. Finished third in the tournament as they easily pounded Long Branch, 62-28, in consolation game as Jordan Rodriguez had 16 points. Sunday vs. Plainfield
ALPHONSO GEE
LAST WEEK'S RANKING: No. 8

10. WAYNE VALLEY (5-0) -- The Indians are off to a great start as they built a big lead on West Milford on opening night before holding on, 70-68, as Alex Kokos had 20 and Nick Guiliano had 18. Knocked off Lakeland 72-48 (Guiliano 25 pts).  The Indians have won their first two games of the JP Flynn Memorial Tournament beating both Morris Catholic, 58-54, (Goodwin 22 pts.) and Delbarton, 69-58, (Giuliano and Goodwin each with 20 pts). Finished off West Morris, 66-47, in the championship game behind Goodwin’s 23 points and remained perfect in December. Visit Passaic Valley Tuesday.
ALEX KOKOS
LAST WEEK'S RANKING: No. 14

11. PASSAIC TECH (3-2) -- The Bulldogs jump into the Top 20 by opening the season with a 62-50 win over Passaic where Xavier Hilbert scored 16.  Dropped a 79-71 decision to Kennedy despite Yohanly Ortiz dropping 28.  In the Coaches vs Cancer Tournament in Franklin Lakes they beat Paterson Charter, 75-60, and followed that up with a semifinal win over Wayne Hills, 67-46, when Eric Alford Johnson had 22 and 10 rebounds. In the title game they held a brief first half lead on Ramapo before being outscored 54-22 the rest of the way.
YOHANLY ORTIZ
LAST WEEK'S RANKING: Not Ranked

12. HACKENSACK (3-3) -- Comets opened the season with a 96-68 win over Indian Hills, but were thoroughly handled by St. Joseph two nights later, 72-54.  A convincing win over Northern Highlands (69-52) before playing Eastside tough through three quarters before falling, 62-50. The Comets beat Columbia, 54-45, in the consolation round as MJ Richardson hit for 25 points. Lastly, the Comets got a rematch with St. Joe’s but they fared no better as they lost big, 68-41. Ramapo next Thursday.
MJ RICHARDSON
LAST WEEK'S RANKING: No. 10

13. WAYNE HILLS (3-1) --  The Patriots jump into the official rankings after three straight convincing wins to start the season. First was a 63-50 win over Passaic Valley behind Dorian Hodge’s 20. They handled West Milford, 87-57, as Hodge pumped in 27. In the Coaches vs Cancer Tournament at Ramapo they beat Scotch Plains, 54-40, before getting handled by Passaic Tech, 67-46. The Patriots rebounded nicely as they beat one of the better teams in Passaic County, DePaul, 56-45 behind Hodge's 22 points. Jan 12 at Wayne Valley
DORIAN HODGE
LAST WEEK'S RANKING: Also Receiveing Votes

14. UNION CITY (3-1) --  The Soaring Eagles opened their season by  knocking off Memorial, 80-58, behind Abraham Feliz 21 points, but then dropped a game to Hoboken before beginning their Christmas Tournament on their home court Saturday vs. Clifton where they won 78-41. Then beat Orange, 55-46, in the semifinals behind Steven Sanchez’s 17 points.  In the finals it was all Union City as it ripped Lincoln 62-38.
ANTHONY GOMEZ
LAST WEEK'S RANKING: No. 11

15. PARAMUS CATHOLIC (3-1) -- As the Paladins look to rebound from their 8-12 season from a year ago, they posted three nice performances to open the season with the best one coming in defeat against highly ranked Bergen Catholic, where PC fell 67-65 and lead after three quarters. They had three players in double figures led by EJ Anosike with 18.  They beat Christ the King, 88-43, and beat Old Tappan, 55-52, in the Jack Reilly Tournament as Anosike again led the way with 19. The Paladins scored a 47-40 win over Tenafly for the title. They have St. Mary’s Elizabeth and Don Bosco Prep after the New Year. 

EJ ANOSIKE
LAST WEEK'S RANKING: Not Ranked

16. NV/OLD TAPPAN (4-1) -- The Golden Knights opened with a 54-51 win over Pascack Valley as Justin Minaya scored 23.  They cruised past Bergenfield, 58-34, before beating Snyder, 52-41, behind Minaya's 18.  They suffered their first loss to a talented Paramus Catholic, 55-52, as Eric Slater led with 16. Secaucus was no match as the Knights won 68-40.

LUCAS CASSAMENTO
LAST WEEK'S RANKING: No. 15

17. PASCACK HILLS (4-0) -- Cowboys opened the season with a 2-point win at Mahwah before easily beating Westwood, 67-30, as Nick Guillemain scored 17.  In the All Groups Tournament they handled Group 4 Ridgewood, 54-40, as Guillemain had 23 points.  The Cowboys put the clamps down on Demarest as they won the All Groups title, 51-39. Big on at Ramsey on January 12.
NICK GUILLEMAIN
LAST WEEK'S RANKING: No. 16

18. RAMSEY (5-0) -- The Rams started with wins over River Dell, 69-58, behind Jack Gaffney’s 20 points and then beat Ridgewood, 67-53, behind Joey Carrol’s 21 and Gaffney’s 18.  In the KSA Tournament in Orlando (FL) the Rams beat Unitah from Utah, 56-41, and followed that up by beating Westmoore (OK) 45-43 and played for the title on New Year's Eve.
JACK GAFFNEY
LAST WEEK'S RANKING: No. 19

19. DICKINSON (4-0) -- The Jersey City public school is off to perfect start, beginning with a 76-72 win over Hoboken, a team that beat Union City a few nights later, as Troy Lopez had 29 points.  The Rams then defeated Memorial, 64-58, Nutley easily, 75-51, and finally Keany in the championship game of the Charlie Dolan Tournament in Kearny by 55-53 score as Trop Lopez had 22.  Hudson Catholic next Thursday.
DICKINSON LOGO
LAST WEEK'S RANKING: Not Ranked

20. DePAUL (1-3) -- Lost to St. Joseph Regional on opening night, 62-45, before coming back to defeat North Bergen in the Coaches vs Cancer Tournament as five players scored in double figures in an 83-53 win. The Spartans then suffered a 62-42 loss to Ramapo in the semifinals and then lost to Wayne Hills, 56-45, on Wednesday.  

DEPAUL LOGO
LAST WEEK'S RANKING: Not Ranked

DROPPED OUT:
Passaic Valley, Manchester, West Milford & St. Peter's Prep

ALSO RECEIVING UNKNOWN VOTES:
Pascack Valley, Hoboken, St. Peters Prep, Passaic Valley, Marist





Rankings always create controversy so we are shielding the source of ours from the public. All we can say is that he/she is a knowledgeable student of the North Jersey hoops scene who works out of a back table at a greasy spoon somewhere in our coverage area. We accept comments on twitter @NJScom or email us directly.

PREVIOUS RANKINGS:
PRESEASON

 

 

About NJS | Contact Us | Site Map | Advertise | Media Kit | Feedback | Report a Bug | Terms of Use

Copyright @ 2000-2015 northjerseysports.com A Member of SportsWeb