The early picks to reach the 50th Essex County Girls Basketball Tournament final on Feb. 22 are undoubtedly 3-time defending champion Immaculate Conception and University, which has been the runner-up in each of the past three tourney title tilts.
While the 2025 Non-Public B state tourney favorite and the defending Group 1 champions from the Brick City will most likely be in the Feb. 15 ECT Final 4 at West Orange barring a huge upset, there are still going to be other teams that could figure in the mix and, -perhaps - shake things up enough to create a different championship match-up as the girls’ countywide hoops tourney commemorates a half century of ECT action.
Before even talking about how teams will line up at the Jan. 22 ECT seeding meeting, which is really just right around the corner, there are regular season battles to ensue as the New Year unfolds with IC, University and West Orange the top teams to watch in the Super Essex Conference-American Division, while promising teams such as Caldwell, Payne Tech, West Essex and Nutley look to contend in what should be a very competitive race for the SEC-Liberty Division crown.
Verona, which returns a wealth of talent from its 19-8 squad that went 12-2 in the SEC-Colonial in 2023-2024, appears to be very much the team to beat in the title chase in the conference’s third division.
New head coaches such as Kristina Danella at Glen Ridge and Brian Dorf at Mount St. Dominic hope to have their teams very much in the conversation in what will be weekly rigorous tests in the SEC-American Division.
The veteran-led Ridgers, who own an early season 40-38 win over the Mount, hope to earn a North 2, Group 1 state sectional crown this season after falling decisively to the inevitable presence of University in that title tilt the past two seasons.
At the top of the county remains the IC Lions who were 25-5 last season and concluded by being edged by No. 1 ranked Morris Catholic in the Non-Public, North B final. The Montclair Catholic school, which returns a wealth of talent headed by last season’s Sideline Chatter Essex County Player of the Year Nila Giraud, will be one of the strong favorites in Non-Public B this winter with the opportunity to win it all this time enhanced with the move of state tourney nemesis Morris Catholic, which is once again led by the University of Tennesse-bound Pauldo sisters, Mia and Mya; however, the Crusaders are now in Non-Public A for the 2024-2025 campaign.
Giraud, the top power forward in the state, and fellow senior Camile Wiley, who is a superb all-around backcourt ace, help provide leadership for coach Jimmy Kreie’s Lady Lions who also return experienced standouts led by talented guards Jayah Curtis, Lena Most, Nilah Rivera and London Crawford.
University looks to its 4-year starting point guard Paradise Fisher, one of the state’s top backcourt performers, to lead the way once again. Senior forward Ki-Lin Thomas and junior forward Brian Holt also return for coach Middy Baraka’s Phoenix who finished 27-3 last season with all three defeats coming at the hands of IC before the Brick City school cruised to another Group 1 state title capped by a dominant 85-55 victory over Shore Regional in the overall state final.
