NJSIAA North Jersey Section 2 Group 1 Final: Shabazz 95, Arts 72

The NJSIAA Sectional Tournament is nearing a close with a handful of brackets reaching the final rounds and several teams now headed towards playing for a group title. Amongst the more intriguing sectional finals was a matchup Saturday afternoon at Malcolm X. Shabazz High in Newark, NJ between two of Newark's best programs — Shabazz, a program who's endured a turnaround season and plenty of success this year and Arts, one of Newark's most consistent programs. With that being said, let's dive into those prospects who delivered standout performances in this sectional final matchup.    A strong and savvy instinctive left handed point guard who is extremely reliable impacting the game by combining scoring aggression with steady facilitation while also embracing the responsibility of setting the tone defensively. Erupting for an explosive scoring performance that saw him pour in 37 points, Blackmon took advantage of his own scoring opportunities— attacking the basket with physicality, using his strong and bruising frame to finish through defenders at the rim while also flashing his outside movement shooting ability. Coming out hot in the second half and settling into an insane rhythm offensively to help Shabazz get out to a large lead, Blackmon caught fire from three point range knocking down a plethora of perimeter looks off the bounce with deep range accuracy while also mixing in some finishing at the rim attacking driving angles, sprinting the floor in transition, and turning opposing ball handlers over with intense ball pressure to turn defense into easy offense at the basket. With his strong shouldered frame and reliance on physicality, Blackmon was also really impactful in the rebounding department, crashing the glass with purpose and winning a number of battles on the boards.       [player_tooltip player_id='2201949' first='Ayyub' last='Wilson'] is a lightning quick point guard whose end to end speed, quick change of pace and aggressive downhill approach constantly put pressure on Shabazz's defense in this sectional final matchup. Wilson attacked driving lanes with confidence, using his explosive first step to get by defenders on straight line drives, with physicality too, and with his creativity off the bounce to break his defender down and get to the rim, ultimately finishing with craftiness through traffic. As the primary ball handler in Arts' offense, he also showed some strong playmaking instincts— reading different PnR coverages, essentially creating clean scoring opportunities out on the perimeter for open shooters.     Amid Shabazz's deep and versatile backcourt rotation this season, [player_tooltip player_id='1775139' first='Zaim' last='Barnes'] has continued to emerge as a poised and reliable scoring option, demonstrating his offensive attack by contributing primarily off the ball with his potent perimeter shooting. Catching fire from three point range, he was ultra effective as a legitimate catch and shoot threat from three, showing a compact release and natural shooting instincts stepping into in rhythm looks from outside. Making a scoring impact in more ways than one, Barnes also showed an ability to finish at the rim running the lanes in transition and attacking driving angles while also contributing on the offensive glass and cutting off the ball.     Amongst a crowded group of guards who all pretty much provide steady guard play in their own ways, [player_tooltip player_id='2966260' first='Christian' last='Gray'] continued much of what's helped Shabazz get this far this season with his reliable and stable production. Gray showed a lot of potent intangibles particularly with his scoring ability in this sectional final against Arts this past Saturday— showing poise against opposing ball pressure to put pressure on the rim on strong drives when driving angles opened up, mid range area shot making, and strong finishing in transition when Shabazz was able to force turnovers and get going in the open floor.     A steady guard in Arts' backcourt, [player_tooltip player_id='2628208' first='Nyaad' last='Walters'] provided excellent guard play in the minutes of he was provided, reflective of his ability to play with tremendous effort and energy and to be a strong finisher at the rim. Aggressive in attacking driving angles both in half court action as well as in transition, Walters generated an immense amount of rim pressure— ultimately evading defenders for strong and crafty finishes in traffic to supply a legitimate scoring punch offensively.     Having thrived as a consistent contributor in Shabazz's backcourt throughout the course of his entire junior season, [player_tooltip player_id='2201950' first='Elijah' last='Colon'] once again put together a performance that happened to display multiple strong moments of his ability to attack driving angles and finish strong around the basket. Colon did an impressive job of doing so particularly in the flow of Shabazz's offense whenever the offense called for it, providing steady and timely scoring on the ball.     A young freshman point guard that has brought steady ball handling and smart decision making to this Arts backcourt, [player_tooltip player_id='2887112' first='Idriss' last='Grimsley'] impressed particularly at the rate in which he was able to generate paint touches for this offense. Quick off the bounce paired with solid feel for the game, Grimsley routinely got two feet in the paint and showed flashes of being able to covert on both strong two foot finishes and crafty soft touch finishes at the rim while also showing an ability to utilize his sound court vision to find open teammates in the right spots.     Providing excellent depth for this Arts group with not only his physical tools but also stable offensive production off the bench, [player_tooltip player_id='2342641' first='Greg' last='Reyes'] put together some strong moments, particularly early on, that highlighted his ability to be impactful on both the offensive and defensive ends of the floor in this sectional final action. To get things started, Reyes leveraged his length coupled with his effort and energy to make some key defensive plays, forcing deflections and walling up against shot attempts. Reyes later showed on what his off ball shooting from the outside looks like, particularly as a spot up shooter from three point range, knocking down a pair of open looks.

The NJSIAA Sectional Tournament is nearing a close with a handful of brackets reaching the final rounds and several teams now headed towards playing for a group title. Amongst the more intriguing sectional finals was a matchup Saturday afternoon at Malcolm X. Shabazz High in Newark, NJ between two of Newark's best programs — Shabazz, a program who's endured a turnaround season and plenty of success this year and Arts, one of Newark's most consistent programs. With that being said, let's dive into those prospects who delivered standout performances in this sectional final matchup.