State tournament time will commence Wednesday (Feb. 26) when some teams’ seasons – for all intents and purposes- can end while others survive and advance into the next round while always maintaining their state sectional title hopes.
One factor for certain when it comes to high school hoops: there will be plenty of drama to go around leading up to the NJSIAA group finals on the March 14-16 weekend at Rutgers University.
It all begins Wednesday with Groups 1 and 3 and continues Thursday as Groups 2 and 4 have their first-round contests along with the non-publics.
Essex County’s best hopes for a state sectional title could be Arts or Newark Tech in Group 1, Caldwell or Newark Collegiate in Group 2, Payne Tech in Group 3 and East Orange Campus in Group 4, although no one gets a free ride, and -as per usual – expect some lower seeds to pull the proverbial upset.
An Arts-Newark Tech sectional final showdown in North 2, Group 1 is a real possibility since both the fourth-seeded Jaguars (14-11) and second-seeded Terriers (18-4) have the pedigree and talent to reach that contest, which would come at the higher seed’s home court on Friday, March 7.
Arts, which has had its share of stumbles along the way this season, including a 55-43 Essex County Tournament semifinal loss to Payne Tech, has reached the last two Group 2 state finals and is now in Group 1 where veteran standouts such as Kevin Freeman and Shelton Colwell are boosted by the presence of former Newark Tech and Orange standout Tyshaun Boyd, a 6-foot-6 junior, who became eligible at his third school in three years in January and is just hitting his form as evidenced by his 21-point, 10-rebound performance in this past Tuesday’s (Feb. 18) 72-67 SEC-American Division victory vs. Immaculate Conception.
Veteran-led Newark Tech, a Group 1 state runner-up the last two seasons, has a veteran squad with the brothers Malcolm and Marcus Bragg heading a talented backcourt while Jalen Baker is a force up front as the Terriers appear to be at full octane as the most important juncture of the winter hoops campaign.
Caldwell (19-2) won a North 2, Group 2 state sectional title two seasons ago and reached the 2023 Group 2 state final vs. Manasquan. This Chiefs team may not be as talent-laden as that group which won 48 games in two seasons, but it is a chemistry-laden and deep squad superbly guided by veteran coach Mike Fess and with two very reliable starting senior guards in Joe Giannetta and Brodie Cook.
The top-seeded Chiefs have won their share of close contests this season which is a tribute to their late-game toughness, and they know not to take anyone lightly with potential matchups with perhaps West Morris and Lyndhurst, which are both dangerous teams, and with the lower bracket featuring a 10th-seeded Newark Collegiate (15-7), which despite the presence of solid Madison and Rutherford squads, could ultimately be a team to reach the sectional final.
The Brick City school has a dynamic backcourt in juniors Jayden Solomon and Mejwad Dixon and coach Jyron Brooks does a good job of mixing and matching his options in a talent-rich rotation.
