Union County Conference Recap

What a year it was for Union County, especially so in the mighty and historic Watchung Conference. A county that has seen its sidelines prowled by legendary coaches like Buzzy Fox, AlLoBalbo, Benny Candelino, Anthony Colletti, Dave Boff and countless others, saw a new, hungry crop of coaches take their programs to the top of the mountain, while a mainstay, Phil Colicchio at Elizabeth, kept his team in the elite and a college name, Mike Rice, began rebuilding a program at Linden.

Let's start at the top. The kings of the county and the state, the Plainfield Cardinals. Michael Gordon knew his team would be good this past winter, but the addition of 6'10" NaJai Hines, who moved back to Plainfield from North Carolina, raised the question "Just how good is NaJai...and how good are they with him?"

That question was answered in Hines first contest, a double-double performance against Paterson Eastside on New Years Day. Hines followed that up by dropping a hammer, the kitchen sink, the entire IKEA Building and just for good measure, the Loreal factory(Are we following along, Union County residents?) on Linden, exploding for 32 points and 30 rebounds, signaling that Plainfield was for real and he was even better than advertised.

Plainfield, led by Hines and sensational sophomore Micah Gordon, blasted their way through the county and Group IV tournaments on their way to championship glory. The only nailbiter was against a scrappy, gritty, emotionally driven Ridgewood team in the North Jersey final at the historic Dunn Center in Elizabeth.

Not alone atop the Garden State heap, Roselle Catholic and coach Todd Decker claimed the Parochial B title, beating Saint Rose in the final. Decker's program had a number of key players transfer out in the summer, but the players who stayed with the Lions, along with newcomer Trevon Lewis, clawed their way to the top of the hill in their classification. Big seasons from junior guards Jalen Grant and Tyrease Hunter gave them a boost, while the unsung hero was Armagh Caldwell, a senior, one of the final players who attended the now shuttered Mater Dei, a player who was in line to see bench minutes....Was thrust into the every day starting lineup, taking tough defensive assignments. Caldwell answered the bell and was the "glue guy" that RC needed on their way to the title.

Elizabeth made a spirited run through the county and state tournaments, falling to the Plainfield buzzsaw in each. They were a senior heavy team led by Felician commit JoJo Torres, Cam McRae, Siraj Abdellah and Luis Cuero. Torres took a big step forward as the season went along as a leader, while Cuero emerged as the Minutemen enforcer in the post. Sophomore Jayden Johnson was unconscious from beyond the arc in a number of games and will return to give the Minutemen serious firepower next year.

Union County Player Of The Year

NaJai Hines, Plainfield

It's not even a question. The high major prospect powered Plainfield's incredible run to the state title...Not just that...He was the most dominant big man in New Jersey since Karl Anthony Towns and may be the best big from NJ, besides Towns, in the last 25 years. He may have been more dominant at the HS level than KAT. That's HIGH praise.

Union County First Team Sensational Seven

Micah Gordon, Plainfield

Trevon Lewis, Roselle Catholic

Jalen Grant, Roselle Catholic

Jayden Johnson, Elizabeth

JoJo Torres, Elizabeth

AJ Altobelli, Union Catholic

Jayden Holman, Linden

Union County Second Team Sensational Seven

Devin Thomas, Plainfield

Rashawn Williams, Plainfield

Tyrease Hunter, Roselle Catholic

Cam McRae, Elizabeth

Malik Moore, Union Catholic

Jekhi Burnam, Linden

Zach Epp, Westfield

Union County Third Team Sensational Seven

Luke Schorr, Union Catholic

Yaw Ansong, Union Catholic

Tyshawn Pearson, Westfield

Dean Yellen, Johnson Regional

Max Cook, Oratory

Isaiah Green, Hillside

David Fix, Summit

Union County Conference Final Rankings

1. Plainfield(29-3)

2. Roselle Catholic(24-6)

3. Elizabeth(20-7)

4. Union Catholic(16-11)

5. Westfield(18-11)

6. Linden(15-12)

7. Scotch Plains(19-7)

8. Oratory(16-10)

9. Rahway(15-12)

10. Johnson Regional(21-4)