VOTE: Thrive Shore Conference Boys Basketball Week 2 Player of the Week

Each week during the remainder of the Shore Conference boys basketball season, Shore Sports Network will present multiple weekly awards for Player of the Week and give the fans the opportunity to vote for the overall player of the week.

Below are the Players of the Week in each of the eight Shore Conference divisions, plus two wild cards. Read about their performances during the stretch of games from Dec. 26 through Jan. 1 and vote for the players who stood out as the Thrive Shore Conference Player of the Week.

Vote once per hour until the poll closes at 10 p.m. on Thursday. The winner will be posted on Thursday and will receive a free recovery session courtesy of Thrive Spine and Sports Rehab.

Note: Shore Sports Network Division Players of the Week for Week 1 (the first 10 days of the season) can be found at the bottom of the post.

Class A North Player of the Week

Aiden Sosinov, Manalapan

Sosinov averaged 23 points over three games at the Huskies Holiday Tournament in Matawan, which helped Manalapan nab a fifth-place finish following a first-round loss to Woodbrige. Sosinov capped his tournament with 28 points in a win over Matawan.

Class A North Honorable Mention: Justin Fuerbacher, CBA; Peter Noble, CBA; D.J. Orloff, Howell; Nick Cardone, Freehold Twp.; Phil Pearlman, Manalapan; Brandon Norero, Freehold Twp.; Dan Elmasri, Marlboro; Zach Padilla, Howell

Class B North Player of the Week

Zayier Dean, Red Bank

Dean won the Albert E. Martin Buc Classic MVP, finishing off Red Bank’s first championship run in nine years with 23 points, 12 rebounds and five assists in a wild, back-and-forth win over Ranney.

Class B North Honorable Mention: Luke Sheehan, Middletown North; Colin Cavanaugh, Red Bank Catholic; Owen Richter, Middletown South; Braydon Kirkpatrick, Red Bank; Dillon Younger, Colts Neck; Vova Trotsko, Colts Neck; Sean Saxton, Red Bank Catholic; Drew Cavise, Rumson-Fair Haven; Pasquale Sabino, Red Bank Catholic; Brady Hahn, Middletown South; Luke Cruz, Rumson-Fair Haven

Class A South Player of the Week

Micah Ford, Toms River North

Toms River North has a lot of weapons with which to dissect opponents and when the lights shine at their brightest, there is no greater weapon in the Shore Conference across multiple sports than Ford. The two-sport star put up 21 points and seven rebounds in the WOBM Christmas Classic Ruhnke Bracket final to claim tournament MVP and help the Mariners upend Manasquan for their first title in nine years.

Class A South Honorable Mention: Rob Peirson, Toms River South; Owen Baker, Toms River North; Sherrod Nelson, Toms River North; Jordan Jones, Toms River South; Jake Sliwinski, Southern; Noah Perna, Southern; Jason McKelvey, Toms River East; Tyler Ellerbrock, Brick Memorial; Austin Braaten, Brick Memorial; Justice Fergus, Toms River East; Anthony Hallihan, Jackson Memorial

Class B South Player of the Week

Jaymire Watts, Manchester

The Hawks won two games at the WOBM Christmas Classic and Watts was a key figure in both. He scored 22 points in a first-round win over Brick and closed out the tournament with 12 points as Manchester earned a third-place finish in the Gepp Bracket with a win over Toms River East.

Class B South Honorable Mention: Jaycen Santucci, Central; Mike Sullivan, Brick; Mason Krey, Barnegat; M.J. Goins, Manchester; Logan Brash, Lacey; Ty Kline, Pinelands; Miles Chevalier, Central; Jon Stabile, Lacey

Class A Coastal Player of the Week

James Vallillo, Holmdel

Last year, Vallillo’s teammates had to pick up the slack while he was sidelined by a foot injury. Last week, Villillo raised his game while fellow senior Nick Seeloch was out. Vallillo averaged 19.7 points and 8.3 rebounds in three Holmdel wins to help lead the Hornets to a Huskies Holiday Tournament championship.

Class A Coastal Honorable Mention: Ben Kipnis, Holmdel; Daxx Corneiro, Holmdel; Aidan Hamlin-Woolfolk, Freehold Boro; Deon Jackson, St. John VianneyColin Chechel, Matawan; Chauncey Brown, Matawan

Class B Coastal Player of the Week

Drew Buck, Ranney

Ranney came up a win shy of a Buc Classic championship, with Buck driving the Panthers to the championship and nearly getting them to the finish line with a win. He averaged 21.3 points, 10 rebounds and 4.3 assists in three games at the tournament.

Class B Coastal Honorable Mention: Bryan Ebeling, St. Rose; Jayden Hodge, St. Rose; Gio Panzini, St. Rose; Griffin Linstra, Manasquan; Jason Larned, Manasquan; Ryan Mulvaney, Manasquan; Bo Pepe, Wall; MeSean Williams, Ranney; Shaan Nayar, Ranney; Liam Killea, Wall; Jake Venturoso, Point Boro

Class A Central Player of the Week

Jack Fitzpatrick, Henry Hudson

Henry Hudson’s memorable start to 2023-24 continued with its first winter-break championship in eight years. As he has for most of the Admirals’ 6-1 start, Fitzpatrick led the way by averaged 22.5 points in the two wins over South Amboy and South River at the Middlesex-Shore Tournament in South River.

Class A Central Honorable Mention: JoJo Newell, Henry Hudson; A’Son Young, Keansburg; Dominico Dispenza, Keyport

Class B Central Player of the Week

Ryan Jacobs, Donovan Catholic

Jacobs was outstanding in leading the Griffins to a second-place finish in the WOBM Classic Gepp Bracket. He averaged 19.3 points in the three games, including 27 in the championship loss to Toms River South.

Class B Central Honorable Mention: Joe Santi, Shore; Lukas Latvys, Jackson Liberty

Wild Cards

Bryan Ebeling, St. Rose

During St. Rose’s first five games, Matt Hodge was a scoring machine. During the winter break, the Purple Roses spread the wealth around, which gave Ebeling a chance to shine on both ends of the court. In wins over Archbishop Stepinac, the George School and Bergen Catholic, the junior guard averaged 15.3 points and 3.3 assists.

Rob Peirson, Toms River South

Toms River South’s guard play has been dynamic, but Peirson’s performance on the interior has been a stabilizing force that has sparked the 6-1 start for the Indians. In Toms River South’s first WOBM title in 32 years, Peirson averaged 20.3 points and 10 rebounds while stepping up to hit several huge shots in the fourth quarter of wins over Freehold Township, Toms River East and Donovan Catholic.

Week 1 Division Players of the Week

Class A North: D.J. Orloff, Howell

Class B North: Mike Belcher, Colts Neck

Class A South: Kai Barckley, Toms River South

Class B South: Jaycen Santucci, Central

Class A Coastal: Alex Garguilo, Raritan

Class B Coastal: Matt Hodge, St. Rose

Class A Central: Jack Fitzpatrick, Henry Hudson

Class B Central: Ahmir Wiggins, Monmouth