This 56th Bergen Jamboree features some of the most intriguing matchups in the Round of 16 that we’ve seen in a long, long time.
Who will win Wood-Ridge vs. Bergen Catholic? Tenafly vs. Ridgewood? Cresskill vs. Pascack Valley? Dwight-Englewood vs. Pascack Hills?
Record writers Greg Mattura, Darren Cooper and Jim McConville convene for a Reporters’ Roundtable to discuss the Jamboree, and click on “Continue reading” to view our insights and predictions:
1. WHAT IMPRESSED YOU ABOUT LAST WEEK’S FIRST-ROUND JAMBOREE WINNERS?
JIM McCONVILLE: I was at the three games at Bergen Catholic, and the most impressive team to me was Ridgewood. Why? Balance. The Maroons showed so many dimensions in the game. At the outset it was Alex Cohen with eight first-quarter points establishing the short-range jumper. The second quarter saw Anthony Balboa take over inside on the boards. Then in the third quarter Jon Edghill ramped up the defense and Ridgewood went from a halfcourt game to a transition game. Evan Bartlik had 18 second-half points and 12 of them came off transition. If this
Ridgewood team shows up the rest of the tournament they are going to
be a very tough out, potentially a Final Four team in their half of the
bracket. Bergen Catholic gets props for blowing out Ridgefield in the
second half and Garfield showed some gumption in holding off St. Mary
in the second half.
DARREN COOPER: I was with Jim at Bergen Catholic and have to second his opinion about Ridgewood. The Maroons may have ended up with a low seed because of their slow start, which was largely due to the injury to Alex Cohen. Ridgewood did have a nice inside/out game, and really picked things up defensively in the 2nd half. Jon Edghill was the defensive catalyst….I think the Bergen Catholic performance was lost in the shuffle a little bit. The game was pretty much over at halftime with Ridgefield, but man, the Crusaders seem to go 12 deep, and they have some slashers and shooters.
GREG MATTURA: I covered the doubleheader at Old Tappan and I liked Ridgefield Park’s athleticism and Lodi’s offensive diversity. Lodi’s starting five all average in double figures and its ability to score from all over the court helped in the 56-43 win over Bergenfield. It’s difficult to defend a team that has five scorers. The Rams are led by junior Donat Gashi, who can hit the three, take it off the dribble and hit a 15-foot pull-up, or go all the way to the basket. But if you overplay him, there are four other players who can hurt you. Ridgefield Park can really run the floor, and that has helped offset the graduation of four starters from a 23-win team. In many respects, I like these Scarlets better than last season’s group because there’s more talent, more potential. We saw Ridgefield Park utilize that potential against Rutherford after a rotten first quarter.
2. WHICH ROUND OF 16 GAME(S)THIS WEEKEND COULD FEATURE AN UPSET AND WHY?
GREG MATTURA: The gap between the No. 3 and No. 15 teams is minimal, so the Round of 16 is ripe with potential upsets. I feel that No. 11 Paramus Catholic, No. 12 Ridgewood and No. 13 Bergen Catholic are better than their seeds indicate. I believe No. 4 Wood-Ridge, No. 5 Tenafly and No. 6 Old Tappan are not as good as their seeds imply. Thus, I can see at least one, if not two, of the lower seeds prevailing. Paramus Catholic, with three transfers recently becoming eligible, is favored to beat Old Tappan. Old Tappan, through no fault of its own, has not played a tough schedule this season, and that hurt in a 64-50 regular-season loss to Ridgewood. Ridgewood vs. Tenafly is going to be a rock-‘em, sock-‘em battle that could come down to the final possession. And Bergen Catholic vs. Wood-Ridge, well, this game is all about tempo. Wood-Ridge is one of the most exciting teams I’ve seen in years. The Blue Devils want to run the floor, shoot three-pointers, and break 80 points. BC must resist the temptation.
JIM McCONVILLE: I can see where Greg feels that the 11, 12 and 13 seeds could have been underrated, but I’m not convinced that Bergen Catholic is going to be able to stay with Wood-Ridge, especially after their effort against Don Bosco. I could say Paramus Catholic as the 11 against Old Tappan at 6, but that would be too easy. The Paladins are a bad matchup for the Golden Knights and this is one case where the styles favor the perceived underdog. It wouldn’t matter what the seeds were, PC is just a better team, so it really isn’t an upset. I’d love to tell you the 1, 2 or 3 seeds are going down, but I don’t see it. The 7-10 and 8-9 games are never upsets in my mind, so that leaves Ridgewood as the 12 against fifth-seed Tenafly. Because of everything I said before, this is a great matchup. Can the Tigers stay in control on offense and not allow the Maroons to transition? Can Chris Orozco find his points and get enough help to push Tenafly to victory? I don’t feel it; Ridgewood in a close one down to the wire.
DARREN COOPER: You know, everyone is saying the same thing, this is basically a two-team tournament, it will come down to Bosco and Teaneck, but after those 2, you could throw a blanket over a bunch of teams, so I think we will see some upsets this weekend. I agree with the group and think Paramus Catholic should get the upset over Old Tappan … but something about PC worries me. They always seem to run into trouble somewhere with foul trouble. If OT gets a lead early, well, it could be interesting. I was at Tenafly last night to watch the Tigers play Indian Hills … and the Tigers seemed pretty flat in the first half. I’m not sure they have the offense to beat Ridgewood (Chris Orozco, notwithstanding), but I’m eager to find out.
3. IF YOU COULD ONLY SEE 1 OF THE 8 GAMES, WHICH WOULD IT BE AND WHY?
JIM McCONVILLE: Gotta go with Tenafly-Ridgewood, considering how much I’ve already talked up the Maroons. Wood-Ridge-Bergen Catholic is not far behind, simply because I want to see how the Blue Devils react to playing one of the ‘big boys.’ Cresskill-Pascack Valley is another interesting one, two teams that can score the ball and aren’t afraid to ramp up the tempo. I know, only one. I’ll stick with the Maroons and the Tigers.
GREG MATTURA: This is like going to an all-day barbecue and only being allowed to have EITHER hot dogs or hamburgers. OK, I’ll bite. Serve me up a heaping helping of Wood-Ridge vs. Bergen Catholic. Wood-Ridge is like Devil’s Food Cake and the Blue Devils want opponents to grab a fork and exchange as many bites/shots as possible. As shown by BC’s 72-31 loss to Don Bosco on Tuesday night, the Crusaders are at risk of suffering Round 2 Diabetes/Elimination if they overindulge.
DARREN COOPER: This is an easy one, doesn’t everyone like to watch Wood-Ridge play? No matter where and no matter against who? You have the classic small school against big bad parochial school in this round as Wood-Ridge takes on Bergen Catholic. I think the Blue Devils are athletic enough and smart enough to get the win, but you just never count out a Bergen Catholic team, I was surprised too by the score against Bosco, and think the Crusaders will feel like they have something to prove. I’m going to say something else too, but the Bosco-Ridgefield Park game…. Bosco will get the Scarlets’ best shot. Remember last year what Bergenfield did to Bosco in this round? Weren’t the Bears up by like 9 at half? Then Bosco just pulled away. I’m also looking forward to seeing Teaneck, well, just because they are Teaneck.
4. PICK THE WINNERS OF EACH OF THE 8 GAMES.
JIM McCONVILLE: Teaneck (1) over Lodi (17) going away in the second half by 20 or more; Don Bosco (2) over Ridgefield Park (15) in a game that will be closer than you think; Hackensack (3) over Garfield (14) by two dozen, a bad matchup for the Boilermakers; Wood Ridge (4) over Bergen Catholic by double digits; Ridgewood (12) over Tenafly (5) in a game that will be decided in the final 90 seconds; Paramus Catholic (11) over Old Tappan (6) wire to wire by 15 or more; Pascack Hills (10) over Dwight-Englewood (7) in a nip and tuck battle with Jared Shill outscoring Wesley Dickinson; and Cresskill (8) over Pascack Valley (9) in game that could see both teams go over 75 points.
GREG MATTURA: Teaneck (1) puts a couple of big runs on Lodi (17) and wins by at least 20; Don Bosco (2) has it under control in the final few minutes against Ridgefield Park (15); Hackensack (3) is a bigger, better version of Garfield (14) and gradually pulls away; Bergen Catholic’s avenging 63-58 win Thursday over Kennedy leads me to reverse field and pick a win over Wood-Ridge (4); Ridgewood (12) over Tenafly (5), because Jon Edghill’s defense can make Chris Orozco work extremely hard; Pascack Hills (10) survives Dwight-Englewood (7) despite a big performance by Wes Dickinson; I already liked Cresskill (8) over Pascack Valley (9), and PV coach Al Coleman’s promise to shave my head if I picked his team really hit home for me.
DARREN COOPER: Wait, what is this about you shaving your head Greg? Will it work if I pick Pascack Valley? What if instead of shaving your head, you have to make 10 straight free throws at halftime of the Jambo final or else you have to shave your head? I will work backwards here. I like Cresskill as well, in a defensive battle. I like Paramus Catholic, although I think this one is closer than you guys think. I think OT is able to hang in there and control the pace. Bosco pulls away from Ridgefield Park in the 2nd half ….Wood-Ridge wins a shootout, because, I mean, that’s what Wood-Ridge does. On Sunday, I am going to go with Dwight-Englewood, just feel like they are ready for a good performance…. I am going to ride Tenafly at home. I think that extra edge helps in a real close one….Hackensack and Garfield ought to be fun, a lot of young talent on the floor in that one, but the Comets prevail, and Teaneck wins and everyone rushes home for that football game in Indianapolis.
