Junior Aidan Goldschneider scored a game-high 29 points for Tenafly, which won its 8th straight game to start the season with a 72-62 victory over a previously unbeaten Cresskill at the Brian Long Classic.
RIDGEFIELD PARK – Brian Long was a husband and a father. He was a graduate of Bergenfield High School, a police officer in New Milford, a resident of Park Ridge and the best friend of Ridgefield Park boys basketball head coach Chris Gaskin.
The Brian Long Classic is a basketball showcase of one-off games that honors his life and legacy. Now in its ninth year, it has become a place to also celebrate high level public school basketball.
This year's headliner was a matchup between two unbeatens, Tenafly from the Big North Conference, and Cresskill, the NJIC power that was coming off a thrilling two-point league win over Waldwick about 16 hours earlier. It was a throw-back type of game as Cresskill sported a travelling student section and there was the feeling that there was more at stake then just a win in a random independent matchup on a Saturday afternoon.
"Our league is great. Waldwick is a heckuva team, Midland Park is an awesome team, New Milford is physical and tough and we get tested all of the time," said Cresskill head coach Dan Egorow. "But it is also good to go up a weight class and see how you can play. That is the only way to get better. We play Tenafly every year, they are tremendous, and playing them here was a great thing to be a part of."
And there is no doubt that Tenafly is in the Bergen County public school heavyweight division this season. Five of the Tigers' seven wins coming in were by double digits, they are an experienced group and they have some depth as well. They were also trailing for most of the first half and the first five-plus minutes of the third quarter against a Cresskill team that presented some matchup problems.
Cresskill led by six at the break and by seven after Liam Peleg's 3-pointer with 4:56 left in the third quarter, but that was when Tenafly hit the gas. The Tigers closed the third period with a 16-4 run to take control in a 72-62 victory that makes it eight straight wins to start the season.
Junior Adin Goldschneider scored the last four points of the third quarter and the first two of the fourth to help Tenafly turn the 7-point deficit into an 8-point lead. Goldschneider burst onto the varsity scene as a freshman two years ago, but a broken leg and shoulder surgery cost him the last half of the 2024 season and the first half of last year.
Back healthy now and a lot stronger, he is tough to stay in front of and keep out of the lane. Goldschneider scored a game-high 29 points with zero of them coming from behind the 3-point line.
Senior center Mark Kopczynski scored a team-high 19 points for Cresskill.
[Head coach Jeff] Koehler tells us, 'Harlem Globetrotters.' Move the ball around quick, back door cuts, quick passes and that is what we try to focus on almost every single practice. Motion, playing with a ball without air, it teaches us to move the ball and learn each other's cuts and everything else. That is why we play together so well as a team," said Goldschneider, who made three 2-point field goals in each quarter and was 5-for-6 at the free throw line. "I love this team; I love our chemistry. Everyone was so excited for this season. Koehler is excited, all of the coaches are into it and we just can't wait to play the next game and 8-0 feels great."
While Goldschneider was a handful for Cresskill, the Cougars presented a matchup problem of their own at the other end of the floor. Six-foot-4 senior Luke Kopcynski is a true back-to-the-basket low post threat and the offense runs through him. Instead of chucking contested 3s up while he is calling for the ball, Cresskill's guards throw traditional entry passes. Because Kopczynski is relentless down low and because he draws double teams, the Cougars space the floor and wait for kick-outs and the open shots they create.
Kopczynski, who both doled out and absorbed plenty of contact in the paint, scored a team-high 19 points and also facilitated the Cougars balanced scoring. Cresskill had four players finish in double figures with Nimi Dotan (14 points, 2 3s), point guard Fayncilbert (13 points, 3) and Jake Lewin (10 points, 3 3s) all contributing. Liam Peleg had two third quarter 3-pointers on consecutive trips, the second of which gave the Cougars their largest second half lead at 43-36.
Both teams are well-coached and well-prepared and stuck to their game plans. Tenafly trusts every player it has on the offensive end, got production from its usual crew and also from an unexpected source.
Nick Lewin (15 points), Nick Baldini (9 points) and Caleb Berkowitz (8 points), Tenafly's three senior starters, combined for 32 points, and it was the Tigers' other senior, David Casty, who provided quality second half minutes off the bench and made it impossible for Koehler to take him out.
Nick Lewin scored 15 points for Tenafly, which pulled away in the fourth quarter.
"So happy for him. David Casty is a great kid from a great family and it showed in a game like this," said Koehler. "He works so hard in practice, he supports his teammates and he made a huge contribution. Even Caleb Berkowitz, who he was in there for, said, 'You have to leave him in. It's working.' That says a lot about this team. They know I will play anyone and any combination and they all support each other."
After Kopczynski gave Cresskill its last lead of the game at 47-46 with 54 seconds in the third quarter, Casty made his field goal of the game, a 3-pointer from the left corner that put Tenafly back in front for good. He also made a tough runner with just under 5:00 to play and finished with 7 points, all in the second half.
"This is the first time that I have gotten to play a lot in the second half. My mentality this season has been to stay ready, stay hungry and wait for my opportunity and I am grateful that my coaches put trust in me today," said Casty. "My teammates were able to find me; I was able to help them out on the offensive and defensive side of the ball. I was able to make an impact and I am just so glad that we got the win. This was a great team win, two great teams out there today."
How great is still a question without an answer. While Bergen Catholic is still the overwhelming favorite to win the Bergen County Jamboree, for the first time in at least a decade the second-best team might not be a parochial school. With Don Bosco Prep and St. Joseph Regional having uncharacteristically difficult seasons, there is actually reason to look forward to the later rounds of the Jambo. The quarterfinals for the last few years have not had much excitement, but maybe a few public schools duking it out for spots in the semifinals and one in the final might change that.
"I think we have a really good shot [to make a run]. We play with so much hunger every game," said Goldschneider. "We are not going to back down. We can beat anyone and we could lose to anyone; we know that. But we also know that we can compete with really good teams."
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