Boys and girls public state championships were up for grabs on Saturday. JSZ has complete coverage of all eight games from Jersey Mike’s Arena and RWJ Barnabas Health Arena. Check back throughout the day as the highlights come in.
JSZ’s State Championship Coverage is brought to you by RWJ Barnabas Health!
Camden 93 Newark Central 52 | Boys | Group 2 State Final
Camden’s chase for the 12th state championship in program history is officially complete. The Panthers (30-2) dominated from the opening tip to the final whistle in a blowout win over the Blue Devils. D.J. Wagner led all scorers with 20 points, while chipping in nine rebounds. Aaron Bradshaw was dominant in the paint and finished with 14 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks. Newark Central (27-6), who was playing in its first title game since 2011, got 16 points and 10 rebounds from Jakai Irby.
JSZ’s Jay Cook has the highlights and reaction from Jersey Mike’s Arena in Piscataway:
Woodrow Wilson 43 Ramapo 42 | Boys | Group 3 State Final
James Proctor’s short jumper gave Woodrow Wilson the lead with 21 seconds to go and the Tigers made two key defensive stops to win the school’s first state championship since 1985 and a second state title for the city of Camden. Ramapo stormed back from an 11 point deficit late in the third quarter to take the lead in the fourth quarter on a Nate Burleson, Jr. three-pointer before Woodrow Wilson began its late comeback. JSZ’s Rich Chrampanis has the highlights from a thrilling state championship game at Rutgers:
Elizabeth 70 Marlboro 63 | Boys | Group 4 State Final
Sebastian Robinson had 16 of his 22 points in the first half and London Carson scored all 21 of his points in the final two quarters to give the Minutemen their first state championship since 1991. Phil Colicchio, who won six state titles at Linden, gets his seventh title as a coach, the first at his alma mater. JSZ’s Rich Chrampanis has the highlights from Rutgers:
Paterson Charter 91 Burlington City 67 | Boys | Group 1 State Final
Paterson Charter won its first ever Group 1 State Title with a dominating 91-67 victory over Burlington City. The Lions took control of the match up early, going ahead 34-22 at halftime and extending the lead to as many as 30 in the fourth quarter. Senior Asim Jones led all scorers with 30 points. JSZ’s Nery Rodriguez has the highlights and postgame reaction from Rutgers:
Sparta 62 Mainland 41 | Girls | Group 3 State Final
The Spartans pulled away from the Mustangs in the second quarter and ever looked back, winning their first state crown since 2001. Richmond commit Ally Sweeney led the way with a game-high 17 points for Sparta (26-3). Bailey Chapman added 11 points, while Brynn McCurry scored ten points in the win. Ava Mazur led Mainland (28-3) with ten points in the loss.
JSZ’s Mike Frankel has the highlights and reaction:
Manasquan 65 Jefferson 36 | Girls | Group 2 State Final
The Warriors led by just four at the half, but quickly put the game away in the third quarter to capture the state championship. Hope Masonius led all scorers with 16 points for Manasquan (30-4). Holy Cross commit Mary Donnelly and Dartmouth commit Brooke Hollawell added 12 points and ten points respectively. Amanda Nwankwo scored a team-high 12 points for the Falcons (26-5) in the loss.
JSZ’s Mike Frankel has the highlights and reaction:
Westfield 43 Cherokee 37 | Girls | Group 4 State Final
Westfield weathered an early storm from the Chiefs, but settled in to bring home the first state championship in program history. Annie Ryan scored ten of her team-high 16 points in the first half as the Blue Devils erased a 13-7 deficit after the first quarter. Paige Gorczyca chipped in with 14 points in the win for Westfield (28-5). TCNJ-commit Katie Fricker finished with a game-high 19 points in the loss for Cherokee (27-4).
JSZ’s James Mooney has the highlights and reaction from Toms River:
Coverage of Westfield is brought to you by Senator Jon Bramnick.
University 66 Shore Regional 33 | Girls | Group 1 State Final
After overcoming a slight opening lead by Shore Regional, the University Phoenix regained the lead before the end of the first quarter and never looked back. Destiny Bynum-Johnson was on fire from start to finish as she compiled a double-double with 29 points and 14 rebounds while also nabbing 5 steals. Rylee Drahos lead Shore with 16 in the loss.
JSZ’s Kenneth Bradley has highlights from Toms River:
JSZ’s coverage of the New Jersey state basketball championships is made possible by RWJ Barnabas Health.
