Group IV State Tournament Preview

Much like Group III, Group IV has a number of teams who could fall into the Favorites category, with a large pack of potential Contenders in the fray along with a host of upset specials listed at the bottom.

FAVORITES

Elizabeth

Record: 17-5

Best Wins: Plainfield(63-52), Sanford(DE)(56-50), Linden Twice, Union Catholic(58-47), Colonia(59-56), St Joe's Metuchen(63-53), Brooklyn Collegiate(53-45), Gill St Bernards(75-61)

The Minutemen are one of the most storied programs in the history of New Jersey basketball, going back to the days of pre-EHS when it's predecessor school, Thomas Jefferson(Which still stands in the square as part of the EHS network) ruled the roost in Union County from its earliest days until the construction of the new EHS campus.

They've got a deep, talented backcourt led by 6'4" senior guard London Carson, one of the top uncommitted seniors in New Jersey, along with 6'5" junior JoJo Torres, who has come on strong in the last few weeks. Toss in Cam McRae, Sriaj Abdellah, Kareem Anthony Jr and freshman prospect Jayden Johnson and this team has the depth to compete with any team in the field.

Battle tested coming out of the Watchung Conference, they're high on the list of top favorites.

Lenape

Record: 23-3

Best Wins: Cherry Hill West(52-41), Cherokee Twice, Southern(60-28), Montgomery(56-50), Eastern Twice, Moorestown(49-27), Shawnee(61-41)

The Burlington County Champions are on a roll. They haven't lost since January 11 to Camden Eastside and have since rattled off 15 on the trot. Merrimack commit Tye Dorsett has done heavy lifting offensively for them this season but has help from 1,000 point scorer Myles Primas and other role players who can contribute at both ends.

They have the most impressive resume in the field and are among the favorites to win the title.

East Orange

Record: 20-5

Best Wins: Newark Arts(63-54), RBC(66-49), Payne Tech(69-52), Paterson Eastside(48-46)

Gabe Baltimore has an electric set of guards with multiple years of varsity experience for the Jaguars. They're led by Eugene Byass, Kayiri Barkley and Da'Maree Dyer in the backcourt. Carlyle Adams is the biggest starter at 6'4" but plays taller. Highly heralded freshman James Roberts has set himself up for a 1,000 point career with a great first season.

They've played top tier competition with losses to Manasquan, Arts, Immaculate Conception and Seton Hall Prep--Who made a run in the Essex County Tournament.

They're capable of winning it all.

CONTENDERS

Eastern

Record:23-4

Best Wins: Shawnee(64-60), Moorestown(57-45), Mainland(62-59), Bishop Eustace Twice

Jay Flanagan has an excellent 1-2 scoring punch with Max Portnoy and Damien Edwards and had an impressive 13 game winning streak during the season. They're in the ReportIt Top25 and are in the pack of favorites in spite of losing to Lenape twice--If they can solve that riddle, the door opens to a state title.

Montgomery

Record: 21-3

Best Wins: Pingry Twice, Delaware Valley Twice, College Achieve(78-62), Hillsborough(51-37), Watchung Hills(53-40), Medford Tech(64-52), Gill St Bernards(58-51)

Montgomery's starting five is the best in Central Jersey Group IV. Senior Steve Donahue, who is heading to Franklin&Marshall next fall, has had a great season and the program got its biggest boost from 6'9" junior Bohdan Biekietov, a member of the Ukrainian Youth National Team setup. A supremely talented scholarship level prospect, he was the shot in the arm to put them into the top tier of public school basketball in New Jersey.

They're heavy favorites in Central Jersey Group IV.

Phillipsburg

Record: 23-2

Best Wins: Plainfield(64-63), Ridge(63-55), Colonia(59-55), Gill St Bernards(62-55), Watchung Hills(48-43), Bound Brook Twice, Hunterdon Central Twice

The Stateliners have had what may be the best season in program history. They lost on opening night and took down all comers until an upset by eventual HWS Champion Vernon in the semis of the tri-county tournament.

They're led by multi sport athlete Matt Scerbo, a junior guard who is also a key player on the Stateliners excellent football team. 6'5" senior Jayveon Jackson will be tasked with stepping up in the playoff push, but they have other options available, including Ameer Herran.

They could win the section...and possibly the state...If it all falls together.

On The Fringe

The following teams have had solid seasons and are capable of making a run in the playoffs. If they get hot this week, they'll be Sectional Shakers.

North I

Paterson Eastside(18-8)

Ridgewood(17-8)

Memorial West NY(17-7)

North II

This is the one bracket in Public School Basketball in New Jersey where all 16 teams could cause complete havoc. Don't discount Ben Gamble's Bayonne Bees as the 16 seed going to Pburg. While no game is a lock in the playoffs--North II, Group IV takes this to another level. We could easily list all 16 teams in this bracket, but we'll go with a "Feared Five"

Linden(14-10)

Plainfield(16-7)

Watchung Hills(17-7)

Ridge(15-9)

Franklin(14-11)

Central

Monroe(16-7)

Marlboro(15-8)

Howell(17-10)

South

Central Regional(20-4)

Toms River North(19-7)

Shawnee(17-9)