Shore Sports Network Boys Basketball Preview Central

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It was not until January of this year that the boys basketball teams of New Jersey convened to prepare for what was a 2021 season that could only be described as maddening. Fans were not allowed in any gym for the first half of the six-week season and when the doors were finally opened to non-essential personnel, it was basically limited to parents and close family of the players.

There was no NJSIAA Tournament and while there was a version of the Shore Conference Tournament, it was not official and only included eight teams in the "Championship Pod."

Throw in the dozens of program stoppages at the Shore and around the state either for precautionary reasons or for flat-out COVID outbreaks, and the 2021 season was one that should remain entirely unique to its place in time.

It should also remind us of another thing: We need basketball. Maybe we shouldn't need it so much that we'll go to play or watch games in the midst of a global pandemic, but there was a hunger to play something resembling a 2021 season and -- as best as the parties involved could under the circumstances - they made it happen.

Now that it's over, let's bury it into the dark recesses of sports history, along with every other season played between the summer of 2020 and, roughly, this summer. We needed the fix, we got it and now, let's have something resembling a real season -- with as much regard to safety as possible, of course.

To walk you through everything happening Shore Conference boys basketball heading into a full-yet-fluid 2021-22 schedule, a list of links from the Shore Sports Network Boys Basketball Preview is posted below. Enjoy.

Shore Conference Divisional Previews

Class A North (CBA, Freehold Twp., Howell, Long Branch, Manalapan, Marlboro, Midd. South)

Class A Central (Holmdel, Matawan, Raritan, RBC, Rumson, Shore)

Class A South (Brick Mem., Central, Jackson Mem., Southern, TR East, TR North, TR South)

Class B North (Colts Neck, Freehold Boro, Midd. North, Neptune, Red Bank, SJV)

Class B Central (Asbury Park, Henry Hudson, Keansburg, Keyport, Mater Dei, Pt. Beach, Ranney)

Class B South (Barnegat, Brick, Donovan Catholic, Lacey, Lakewood, Manchester, Pinelands)

Class C North (Jackson Lib., Manasquan, Monmouth, Ocean, Pt. Boro, St. Rose, Wall)

Shore Sports Network Preseason Top 10

Returning All-Shore and All-Division Players

Burning Questions Heading Into the 2021-22 Season

15 Can't-Miss Games at the Shore