by Alex Schwartz

The season began with hundreds upon hundreds of teams vying for a state title in New Jersey. That number was cut down to 235 teams that qualified for the NJSIAA state tournament, in 20 different sections across six groups. That was then dwindled all the way down to 40 sectional finalists and then to 20 sectional champs. From there, we got to where we are now, the dandy dozen, the last 12 teams remaining in the NJSIAA playoffs. These squads are the state finalists, the elite teams in the Garden State, but only six of them will be able to say that they are state champs and only they will be playing in the Tournament of Champions for the ultimate crown. The two Non-Public championships will be tomorrow at the Ritacco Center and the four Public title games will be on Sunday at the RAC. Here's a rundown of this weekend's action:

Non-Public A State Championship: Immaculata vs. Christian Brothers Academy, Saturday, March 13, 12:00pm, Ritacco Center
The Spartans of Immaculata are the defending Non-Public A champs and do not plan on giving up their crown without a fight. In what could be the final game in the careers of Gamal Mohamed '09 and Notre Dame-bound (football) Theo Riddick '09, IHS will be heavily motivated. For the Colts of Christian Brothers Academy, UMBC-commit Brian Neller '09 is the go-to guy for a team that may well be the hottest in the state. CBA has just two losses this season, the first of which came way back in the beginning of the season to Union (NJ), while the other was a one-point double overtime loss to St. Patrick's (NJ), the best team in the Garden State and a top 10 squad nationally. The boys from Lincroft hold an impressive win over St. Anthony's (NJ) on their resume. This is going to be a well-played game between two teams with great coaches.
Prediction: Christian Brothers Academy by five, 62-55 . . . Neller & Co. will be too much for 'Lata, despite great showings from Riddick and Mohamed

Non-Public B State Championship: St. Patrick's vs. Trenton Catholic, Saturday, March 13, 4:00pm, Ritacco Center
This is a rematch of one of the best games of the season in the state thus far, and is the matchup Northstar Basketball predicted, between sectional one seeds. On January 10th at the home of Trenton Catholic, the St. Patrick's Celtics were without Kyrie Irving '10 due to transfer, while North Carolina-signee Dexter Strickland '09 was coming off an injury. The Iron Mikes of TCA were without Markese Tucker '10. Trenton Catholic led by as much 10, holding an eight-point lead at the half and a nine-point advantage through three quarters, but then the wheels came off, as the Iron Mikes were outscored 25-6 in the final period, falling by a final score of 58-48. Both teams are now at full strength, with Tucker, Irving, and Strickland all in the lineup, though Michael Gilchrist '11 of St. Pat's is coming off of a bad ankle injury. The Celtics, who have just three losses on the season, two of which are to top 10 teams in the nation (Mater Dei of California and Oak Hill Academy of Virginia), while the other is to a top 15 team in New Jersey, Life Center Academy. Each of those losses came by less than 10 points. TCA also has three losses, to St. Pat's, a one-point defeat at the hands of St. Anthony's (NJ) in the first game of the season, and a to Paterson Catholic (NJ). All three are top 10 teams in the state. The Iron Mikes have not lost in nearly two months and have beaten some good teams since then, including Carmen Sol (PR) and Life Center. This game will be intense and will feature at least 10 Division I players. Neither team has a player over 6'7, with TCA having no one over 6'5, so it will be all about the guards tomorrow. Frantz Massenat '10, Dondre Whitmore '10, and Khalid Lewis El '11 are the starting guards for the Iron Mikes, with Reggie Coleman '09 providing support off th bench. For the Celtics, Dexter Strickland, Kyrie Irving, and Dean Kowalski '09 start it off, with Kevin Boyle, Jr. '10 and Derrick Gordon '11 as more than capable backups. In the frontcourt, TCA starts Markese Tucker and Daquan Basnight '09, with Lafayette Smith '09 their main relief on the bench. Kevin Boyle's group has George Mason-signee Paris Bennett '09 and Michael Gilchrist as the starting forwards, and Chase Plummer '10 coming off the bench. Both squads have an eight-man rotation, but TCA is content to go 10-deep if need be. Expect the game to be heard-fought from the opening tip to the final buzzer.
Prediction: St. Patrick's by twelve, 65-53 . . . The Celtics just have too much firepower, though TCA will hang tough for at least 20 minutes

Group IV State Championship: Paterson Eastside vs. Lenape, Sunday, March 14, 12:00pm, RAC
Many people thought that Plainfield and Cherokee would be facing off in this game, but the Paterson Eastside Ghosts and Lenape Indians had other ideas. Lenape ousted Cherokee in the South Jersey Group IV sectional semifinals by one on a buzzer beater in overtime, while Paterson Eastside defeated Plainfield in the Group IV state semifinals, 70-67. This will be a game with a lot of talented guards, including Mike Celestin '09 of Lenape and David West-Robertson '09 and Robert Morris-bound Karon Abraham from Paterson Eastside. Isiah Dixon '09 is a quality big man for Lenape. Both teams have had fantastic years and are on great runs right now that have included victories over teams that had previously defeated them. Eastside began the year 0-4 and since then has been one of the top teams in the Garden State, while Lenape has been amongst the top public school squads in the state pretty much all season long. Expect this to be a good game, as both teams are on major rolls that they don't want to have end.
Prediction: Paterson Eastside by eleven, 61-50 . . . The game will be close throughout, but Abraham and West-Robertson will help the Ghosts pull away in the fourth quarter

Group II State Championship: Science Park vs. Camden, Sunday, March 14, 2:00pm, RAC
This is the game that Northstar Basketball predicted would decide the Group II state champion, and its a matchup of traditional Garden State powerhouses who were both seeded first in their sections. Science Park, which has just one loss (Newark Eastside beat the Chargers in the Essex County Tournament) won the Group I state title last year—the moved up in class for this year—and made a run to the TOC championship before falling to the undefeated mythical national champion St. Anthony's Friars. As for Camden—the alma mater of Dajuan Wagner, one of the greatest high school basketball players of this era—the Panthers have been one of the top teams in the state all year. Kenneth Ortiz '09 and Rameel Johnson '09 lead the way for Science Park, an undersized, but tough squad. Aaron Walton-Moss '09 is the main for Camden. This should be a fast-paced, hard-nosed basketball game that will be tight from start to finish.
Prediction: Science Park by three, 76-73 . . . Ortiz and Johnson will lead their squad to the TOC in spite of a big game from Walton-Moss in a game that could be an instant classic, and may even go to OT

Group I State Championship: University vs. Asbury Park, Sunday, 5:00pm, RAC
The Phoenix of University will be looking to make it two Newark schools headed to the TOC, should Science Park do its part in the 2:00 game. The Asbury Park Blue Bishops, who defeated Woodbury in OT to get to this game, will be looking to stop there from being any chance of threat happening. The Phoenix, who won the Essex County Tournament, fly under the radar in Newark due to all the talent at Shabazz and Science Park, but University is no slouch. Asbury Park, which won its sectional semifinal game 109-50, is a team that can score a lot of points and also stop opponents from scoring. The Blue Bishops are an athletic and senior-laden team led by Lamar Young '09 and Joseph Anderson '09. This game should also be tight throughout, as both teams have been amongst the top public schools all season.
Prediction: University by seven, 64-57 . . . AP's athleticism won't be enough to stop UHS, who will make it two Newark schools in the TOC

Group III State Championship: Teaneck vs. Neptune, Sunday, March 14, 7:00pm, RAC
The final game of the day at the RAC will be a matchup of teams seeded third in their sections. The Neptune Scarlet Fliers is led by a number of talented seniors, including Jabari Joyner '09 and Dwayne Gutridge '09, and actually starts five players in the class of 2009. For Teaneck, Javae King-Gilchrist '09 is the go-to guy, and the Highwaymen will need him to have a big game if they want to win a state title. Teaneck has come on strong of late, though the team has not received as much publicity as Neptune, or many other schools no longer playing, for that matter. Much like the five games that precede it, the Group III state title game will be competitive and hard-fought. This is an affair that can really go either way, as their is no clear-cut favorite. Neptune has the tradition and is well-coached, but Teaneck has been great recently.
Prediction: Teaneck by two, 62-60 . . . This one will be back-and-forth from the get-go, but Teaneck will sneak by with a W and head into the TOC

Note- school websites, http://blogs.app.com/insidethepaint/, and http://wikipedia.org/ used as sourced for information