Shore Conference Boys Basketball NJSIAA Semifinal Scoreboard, Feb. 28 — Powered by HiLYTE

NJSIAA Tournament

Sectional Semifinals

Central Jersey Group IV

(1) Montgomery 60, (4) Marlboro 46

Steve Donahue led a well-rounded effort with 16 points and the Cougars (24-3) downed the Mustangs (17-9) to advance to the sectional final Friday against No. 2 Monroe.

Seniors Dan Elmasri and Steve Scimone each scored 12 points and classmate Brave Haugh contributed nine for Marlboro, which could not get closer than eight points in the second half while trying to chase down Montgomery.

(2) Monroe 47, (3) Manalapan 44

Senior Anthony Leger scored 18 points and junior Aiden Sosinov netted 13 as the Braves (17-11) chipped their fourth-quarter deficit down to one score, but the Falcons (19-7) held on to beat Manalapan and reach the sectional final for the first time since 2006.

Senior Tristan Ulrich added nine points for Manalapan, which was playing in the sectional semifinal round for the first time since 1999.

Nick Cicchetti scored a game-high 24 points to lead Monroe, which has won its three NJSIAA Tournament games against Freehold Township, North Brunswick and Manalapan by a combined total of 11 points.

The Falcons will travel to play top-seeded Montgomery in Friday's sectional final.

Central Jersey Group II

(3) Rumson-Fair Haven 60, (2) Holmdel 37

Senior Nick Rigby led an all-around effort by Rumson with 15 points, five rebounds, five assists and two steals and the Bulldogs (20-6) turned in a statement win on the road over the Hornets (20-4) to reach the Central Group II championship game for the fifth time in the last 10 NJSIAA Tournaments.

The Bulldogs dominated the paint with 6-foot-6 senior Andrew Goodes and 6-8 sophomore Luke Cruz, with the two combining for 24 rebounds and three blocked  shots. Goodes scored all 11 of his points in the second half while hauling in 16 rebounds, dishing out four assists and blocking two shots. Cruz poured in 13 points with three three-pointers and also nabbed eight boards.

Junior David Carr also hit double-figure scoring with 10 points and junior Riley Gill hit a pair of first-quarter threes to account for his six points while also guarding Holmdel point guard Ben Kipnis, who finished with six points.

Rumson jumped out to a 19-9 lead through the end off the first quarter behind 5-for-7 shooting from three-point range. Holmdel held Rumson scoreless for the first five minutes of the second quarter and clawed to within 24-17 at the half.

Goodes took over in the third, scoring his first nine points of the game while grabbing seven of his 16 rebounds in the period to help the Bulldogs take a 43-28 lead to the fourth.

Senior Nick Seeloch scored a game-high 16 points to lead Holmdel, while Rumson held Holmdel's other top scorer, 6-3 senior James Vallillo, to four points. Vallillo did contribute six rebounds and five assists in the loss.

(1) Manasquan 45, (4) Delaware Valley 43

Senior Alex Konov scored nine of his 12 points on three first-half three-pointers and the Warriors (22-6) fought off a serious challenge from the Terriers (21-8) to reach the sectional final round of the NJSIAA Tournament for the fifth straight season that the tournament has been contested.

Freshman Rey Weinseimer poured in 10 points, including a three-pointer in the final two minutes of the third quarter to give Manasquan some breathing room with a 33-27 lead heading to the fourth quarter. The Warriors freshman also handed out five assists and picked up three steals.

Senior Luke Roy contributed seven points and junior Griffin Linstra scored five of his six points in the fourth quarter, including a three-pointer to make it 37-31 after Delaware Valley cut the deficit to three. Linstra also grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds.

Manasquan led, 26-17, at halftime and the closest Delaware Valley got in the second half was two points on a 30-foot three-pointer by Eric Klemmer just before the final buzzer.

Francis Denvir led Delaware Valley with a game-high 20 points.

Manasquan will host No. 3 Rumson-Fair Haven in the Central Group II final on Friday at 6:30 p.m., which will mark the fourth time the two rivals have met in the Central Group II Playoffs since 2016 and the first time the two will clash in a sectional final.

South Jersey Group IV

(2) Eastern 59, (3) Central 48

Junior Jaycen Santucci scored 20 points but the Golden Eagles (22-5) could not extend what was very likely its best season in program history in a loss to the Vikings (26-4).

Kaedon Haper Myricks led Eastern with a game-high 21 points, while Max Portnoy contributed 17 points, four assists and four steals in the win. Damien Edwards also had 16 points and four assists in the win.

Eastern will travel to top-seeded Lenape for the sectional final on Friday.

Central, meanwhile, ended its season vs. Eastern in the South Group IV Playoffs for the third straight year. The 2023-24 season marked the first time Central has won 20 games, won a Shore Conference division title, reached the Shore Conference Tournament quarterfinals and the NJSIAA sectional semifinal round all in the same year.

(1) Lenape 62, (4) Toms River North 59

Seniors Sean Gathers, Jeremiah Pruitt and Tareq Council led a furious fourth-quarter comeback by Toms River North that cut a 14-point deficit to one, but the top-seeded Indians (26-3) held on to top the Mariners (21-8) and reach the sectional final for the third straight season.

Gathers scored eight of his 14 points in the fourth quarter, while Pruitt scored five of his 13 in the final eight minutes, including one of his three three-pointers. Pruitt hit Council for a layup to cut Lenape's lead to 60-59, followed by a pair of free throws by Caleb Lundy to push the Indians lead to 62-59.

Toms River North got off a potential game-tying three-point attempt but the shot missed the mark.

Council scored six of his seven points in the fourth quarter and also posted 12 rebounds and six blocked shots to help key the comeback. Senior Owen Baker and junior Sharrod Nelson each added nine points and senior Micah Ford finished with seven points while dealing with foul trouble throughout the game before ultimately fouling out early in the fourth quarter.

Tye Dorset scored 14 of his game-high 23 points in the third quarter, during which Lenape outscored Toms River North, 21-11, to take a 47-33 lead into the fourth.