Garden State Friday Notes

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With a big weekend of showdown games and showcase matchups looming, Friday was an opportunity for some teams to score a tune up while others kicked off their big weekends with wins. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>At the highest level of the NJ scene, Camden High defeated Kenwood High from Illinois behind 24 points from Kentucky commit <strong>DJ Wagner</strong>. Camden sits at #1 in the state and remains one of the top teams in the entire country--<strong>[player_tooltip player_id='992524' first='Aaron' last='Bradshaw']</strong> has also had an elite year and is Kentucky bound--He may have the highest ceiling of any player in New Jersey at the moment. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A very balanced attack saw Saint Thomas Aquinas dominate Miami Northwestern(FL). With 5 players in double digits, it was <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1153996' first='Jaden' last='Kelly']</strong> leading the way with 17. Guards <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1269732' first='Kamal' last='Lee']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='992525' first='Terrell' last='Pitts']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1050395' first='Deuce' last='Jones']</strong> all were in double digits, as was 6'4" junior wing <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1050392' first='Samir' last='Thomas']</strong>, who will be a key piece of the Trojans puzzle next year. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Down the Shore, Raritan moved to 13-0 with a 45-39 win over Matawan. <strong>Jack Coleman</strong> and <strong>Billy Tigar</strong> each scored 13 for the Rockets and senior backcourt leader <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1206523' first='Jack' last='O'Leary'] </strong>scored 10 to send Raritan into a Saturday matchup with Shore Regional, who just picked up their first loss at the hands of Mon Don the other day. It will be a good test for both teams on Saturday afternoon. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1206543' first='Colin' last='Haluska']</strong>, a 6'3" wing committed to Muhlenberg, added 11 in the loss for Matawan. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Cinnaminson also remained undefeated with a 67-64 nailbiter over Burlington City. Sophomore guard <strong>Drew Harvey</strong> continued his torrid scoring pace by hitting for 24 in the victory. They'll take on 11-2 Pemberton on Monday as they continue their quest to be one of the final undefeated teams in New Jersey.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Speaking of unbeatens, Trenton breezed by West Windsor South as they get set to take on a Newark East Side team that is trying to punch its way out of the corner and back into the mix in Essex County as the season turns towards its final half. 5'7" junior guard <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1547457' first='Kabrien' last='Goss'] </strong>had 26 in the Tornadoes win. A noon trip to East Side could be, in soccer terminology, the "Sticky Wicket" for Trenton--It's less than 24 hours after a game, it's a trip to Ironbound and its a frustrated Raiders team...Could it be the recipe for disaster or another statement win? </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>South River continued its dominance as the Rams improved to 13-1 with a dominating 73-51 win over Spotswood. 6'5" seniors <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1401568' first='Roman' last='Santos'] </strong>and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1269717' first='Lazaro' last='Rodriguez']</strong> combined for 35 in the contest. Sophomore guard <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1472517' first='Alex' last='Grospe']</strong> paced the Rams backcourt with 15 points and 10 assists. He'll be a player to watch the next two years and he will be the go to guy for South River as this senior class graduated. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Yesterday we mentioned 6'3" Manalapan junior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2111534' first='Anthony' last='Leger']</strong> as a player to watch. Well, the wing who came back to Manalapan after the abrupt shuttering of Mater Dei has shown the full range of his skillset and did so on Friday by leading the Braves to a 58-56 rivalry game win over Marlboro. Leger hit for 29 points and went 1114 on the free throw line. He's going to be a college prospect to watch as he can score in multiple spots and also put the ball on the floor. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->