Non-Public B State Tournament Preview

While the Non Public B field has shrunk considerably over the last twenty five years with the unfortunate and sometimes highly controversial shutterings of dozens of parish-affiliated Catholic High Schools, including Saint Patrick's, Saint Anthony's, Paterson Catholic, Saint Mary's of Elizabeth and many more who used to make Parochial B "the place to be".... there are still storylines to be found in the Non Public B classification.

THE HEAVY FAVORITE

Saint Rose

Record: 25-2

Best Wins: Brooklyn South Shore(NY)(65-55), Rutgers Prep(86-70), Bergen Catholic(68-42), Ramapo(56-38), Union Catholic(71-51), Saint Benedict's(52-48), Archbishop Stepinac(NY),(65-55), CBA Twice, Manasquan Twice

The Purple Roses are having one of the best seasons in the history of the Shore Conference and are driven by 6'8" Villanova bound Matt Hodge, the most dominant big man set to graduate from a Shore Conference school since Danny Werner finished up a stellar run at CBA nearly 20 years ago. Hodge may also be the most dominant player overall in that timeframe as well.

It's not just the Matt Hodge show, however. His younger brother Jayden is an electric 6'5" guard; There's 6'6" senior wing Gio Panzini and the backcourt combo of Bryan Ebeling and Evan Romano. With scholarship players at each of the starting spots and a fantastic resume, they're ahead of the pack.

CONTENDERS

Immaculate Conception

Record: 20-7

Best Wins: East Orange Twice, Ramapo(56-51), Newark Arts(45-42)

Immaculate Conception has had yet another banner season under Jimmy Salmon, advancing to the Essex County final. The loss of senior guard TJ Robinson(Louisville) was a big one but they have received help from promising sophomore wing Kole Grandison, 6'3" Summit transfer Myles Blackley and others.

Roselle Catholic

Record:13-10

Best Wins: Immaculate Conception(84-53), Cardinal Hayes(NYC)(79-75), Newark Arts(48-46), Lincoln(NYC)(58-53), Math, Civics and Science(PA)(73-54), Manasquan(77-58), Linden(60-46), Elizabeth(69-53)

Todd Decker has held the fort down at Roselle Catholic after the departure of Dave Boff and a host of outbound transfers. His team is very, very young. They're playing a category 5 hurricane of a schedule and managing their way through it--which bodes well for the next two seasons. They're led by sophomores Jalen Grant, Jonathan Hillsman and Ethan Mgbako. Senior Jaden Kelly has provided senior leadership for the youthful Lions.

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..but all, including the Contenders, will have to play an A+ game with bonus points for their essays to beat Saint Rose.

North Jersey

Saint Mary's Rutherford(21-6)

Morris Catholic(23-3)

St Thomas Aquinas(17-11)

South Jersey

Bishop Eustace(11-16)

Trenton Catholic(16-10)