NJAC Conference Recap

Northwestern New Jersey had several interesting storylines emerge this past winter, especially around the highway interchanges.

Season Recap

Morris County Champions Delbarton finished 22-5 under first year head coach Matt Crane. The Green Wave were led by 6'4" senior guard Michael Van Raaphorst, who will continue his basketball endeavors at Georgetown. Van Raaphorst averaged 16ppg and played his best ball down the stretch and in the biggest games. He led the fourth quarter push in the county final win over Mendham(15), had a big game vs Regis from NYC(18), kept Delbarton within punching distance of Hudson Catholic(20) and had a season high of 30 against West Morris. His classmate Lincoln Zimmerman also had a banner year, matching Raap with 15 in the County Final and netting a season high 29 against Wayne Valley. They depart, as do Will McGinty and Johnny Riley. That leaves some big shoes for Patrick Mahoney, Anthony Palumbo and the others to fill next winter.

Morris Catholic built for this winter for several years. In spite of finishing 25-4, they may find themselves thinking that they underachieved when it mattered most. An upset loss in the Morris County tournament to Chatham and a close loss to Immaculate Conception of Montclair in the states leave the Crusaders with a sour taste in their mouth but there were also positives throughout the stellar year. 6'10" Penn commit Michelangelo Oberti may be the best big man in the state regardless of class and he had a "video game" senior season, averaging 19 points and 13 boards per game, including an unconscious 22&22 against Roselle Catholic in the state tournament. Replacing Oberti is almost impossible and Davide Rossini also graduates. That said, they have more than enough coming back next year to contend once again.

In Sussex County, the story of the season was Vernon. After losing 3 of their first 4 to open the season, they shook off the ring rust and continued to improve as the season went along, playing their best basketball in the playoffs. The high water mark for them was a Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex title, beating high flying Phillipsburg(56-54) and Hunterdon Central(47-42) along the way. They also made it to the North I Group II final, losing to Ramsey. Junior guard Alex Fessel drove the bus and got help from seniors Dhamir Morfe-Chess and Ben Jurewicz this season.

Player Of The Year

Michelangelo Oberti, Morris Catholic

An imposing force in the paint at both ends, Oberti averaged a double-double and performed at a high level in their biggest games. He's off to the Ivy League next year as a commit to the University of Pennsylvania. A refined big man, he could make an immediate impact at the college level.

NJAC First Team Sensational Seven

Michael Van Raaphorst, Delbarton

Alex Fessel, Vernon

Christian Nicholson, Morris Catholic

Lincoln Zimmerman, Delbarton

Kevin King, Mendham

Ryan Kress, Randolph

Michael Amador, West Morris

NJAC Second Team Sensational Seven

Austin Workman, Morris Catholic

Kyle Dixon, Morris Catholic

Christian Otufale, North Warren

Evan Colao, Madison

Dhamir Morfe-Chess, Vernon

Justin Hanson, Morris Knolls

Carson Culuko, Pequannock

NJAC Third Team Sensational Seven

Brayden Franko, High Point

Mattia Bacchelli, Morris Catholic

Ben Jurewicz, Vernon

Gavin Randall, Madison

Jeff Evans, Jefferson

Anthony Kali, Lenape Valley

Kieran Durkin, Morris Knolls

Final Rankings

1. Delbarton(22-5)

2. Morris Catholic(25-4)

3. Mendham(19-8)

4. Vernon(20-7)

5. Madison(22-7)

6. Morris Knolls(18-9)

7. High Point(19-7)

8. Jefferson(16-8)

9. Morris Hills(16-11)

10. Chatham(13-12)