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BE TARGETS SHINE IN JERSEY STATE PLAYOFFS

by Matt Whitfield

Paterson Catholic Too Young, Inexperienced for St. Patrick’s

Although he was expected to be out for the entre season, Michael Gilchrist returned nearly three weeks after going down with a foot injury. He returned in a big way igniting his St. Patrick’s squad and helping them roll to a relatively easy 79-54 victory over Bergen County powerhouse Paterson Catholic in the North Non-Public B title game on the campus of Rutgers University.

Paterson Catholic came out looking real aggressive in this game. They went on a 6-0 run, that turned into an 11-2 run. This obliviously didn’t please Coach Kevin Boyle in the least as he called a timeout. Entering the game after the timeout was the ‘equalizer and the sparkplug’ as Coach Boyle called him in 6’7 sophomore phenom Michael Gilchrist. From here on in despite not being 100 percent, Gilchrist and his St. Patrick’s squad outplayed and outscored Paterson Catholic in every quarter and facet of the game. This game was over by the start of the fourth quarter as St. Patrick’s led handedly and Paterson Catholic showed no real signs of life.

“We played them in South Carolina [and] we were up 19 at halftime, coach Boyle said remembering back to a meeting in the Beach Ball Classic back in December. “In the second half they came back and I was disappointed, I thought we’d be able to stretch them and we didn’t. I thought they were a very good team that just came off a great win, an emotional win. I think with our experienced guard play that we should be able to get some separation from them and not be a 3, 4, 5 point game. It eventually happened you know at this point we just have better guards, experience, all that stuff,” said Boyle.

On his star sophomore Michael Gilchrist, Coach Boyle said, “He provided a tremendous lift, not just emotionally, but on the glass and defensively.” Boyle also said to NBE that, “I still don’t think [Gilchrist’s bone chipped fragment in his leg] is 100 percent right.”

In the game, St. Patrick’s had four players in double digits, with UNC-bound Dexter Strickland netting 18 and fellow senior Paris Bennett, who is committed to George Mason, adding 17 points. The celtics star underclassmen Kyrie Irving added 14 with Gilchrist chipping in 10.

Fuquan Edwin led the way for Paterson Catholic with 22 points, their lone double-digit scorer in the game.

Brief Player Notes:

Michael Gilchrist
Running with a slight hobble, yet still effective. Good in the paint today, not as good as usual but still hard to stop. Nice blocked shot, followed up with a rebound despite being surrounded by three Paterson Catholic players.

Kyrie Irving
Started off somewhat slow. Tuned it up in the second half. Didn’t play as much as usual yet still highly effective. Told NBE that Florida has now also offered and that North Carolina is now showing interest as well and that he has a planned visit to Notre Dame in the works for the near future.

Myles Mack
Has speed that St. Patrick’s defenders can’t guard, just shots weren’t falling Mack’s way today. Had a nice jumping blocked shot on Kevin Boyle on the backboard in the first quarter.

Fuquan Edwin
Edwin remains a coveted target of schools such as Seton Hall, Providence, UMass and others. Although he scored 22 points against St. Pat’s, Edwin didn’t seem like his typical self.

Jayon James
In better shape than the last time NBE saw him in action. Good handle and good court awareness for a player with his size. Several times tonight James set players up for open looks.

Kyle Anderson
Undersized but sure doesn’t play like it. Is a top rated freshman. Time will tell, but looks to have a ceiling that is potentially as high as anyone who stepped on this star-studded court Wednesday night. Played pretty much the entire game against New Jersey’s top ranked squad.

Immaculata Withstands North Jersey Foe Seton Hall Prep

The undercard of the St. Pat’s/Paterson Catholic battle was the finals of the NJSIAA/ShopRite Non-Public A North tournament last night at the Rutgers Athletic Center in Piscataway between Immaculata and Seton Hall Prep.

Immaculata and Seton Hall Prep split last year’s series, but this time around Seton Hall Prep was without the services of now Pittsburgh Panther Asthon Gibbs, while Immaculata was with the services of five seniors, including dual sport athlete Notre Dame-bound RB Theo Riddick.

In Wednesday’s game, Immaculata led the whole way. The school went on a 6-2 run going into the fourth quarter holding a comfortable 43-32 lead. Immaculata finally put the game on ice late in the period due in part to John Mack’s six made free throws and Immaculata went on to win by a final of 58-50.

Gamal Mohamed lead Immaculata with 16 points. Teammates Theo Riddick and Jon Mack also both added in 14 a piece. Stephon Treadwell had a game high 17 points for Seton Hall Prep. Sterling Gibbs, the Prep’s star sophomore, was limited to 12 for the Pirates. Gibbs scored 33 in a 90-70 victory over St. Peter’s Prep in the sectional semifinals on Saturday, but the Immaculata defense was stout all evening.

Earlier this week, NBE caught up with Gibbs who mentioned that Maryland, Florida, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Indiana, Pittsburgh, Seton Hall, Connecticut and Louisville were the schools he was hearing from on the recruiting front.

“Pitt and Seton Hall have offered,” said Sterling.

Entering the playoffs, Gibbs estimated that he was averaging about 16.5 points and 5 assists a game. He indicated that he hoped to visit all the school recruiting him after the season, but not in preparation of a visit anytime soon.

“I plan on taking my time in making my decision and I just want to have fun with the whole process and hopefully more schools begin to show interest,” said Gibbs.

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