Boys Basketball – 2024 NJSIAA Tournament Preview: The Shore in Group 3

Last year's NJSIAA Group III Tournament in the southern half of the state was, perhaps the most wide-open competition for a spot in the state final as there was in any group last year. The two sectional champions wound up being two teams familiar with state-tournament success in Nottingham and Moorestown, but defending 2022 champion Camden Eastside's disqualification less than a week before the tournament started gave the rest of the field additional optimism that 2023 could be their year.

That optimism did not help the Shore Conference, which advanced just one team as far as the sectional semifinals and that team (Colts Neck) lost a one-sided game at Ewing. This year's Shore Conference contingent looks far more formidable, led by Red Bank as the No. 1 seed in Central Jersey Group III. There are certainly more imposing No. 1 seeds in the state, but the Bucs are still a No. 1 seed and a team that has proven it can compete with anybody.

No Shore Conference team has been to a Group III championship since Neptune in 2012 and while it won't be easy for one of the Shore squads to break that spell, this year's group looks more capable than last year's, even if the road is more difficult.

Central Jersey Group III

Shore Teams in the Field: No. 1 Red Bank, No. 5 Colts Neck, No. 7 Freehold Boro, No. 10 Matawan, No. 11 Middletown North, No. 15 Brick Memorial, No. 16 Ocean
Top Seed: Red Bank
Defending Champion: No. 2 Nottingham
Bracket Favorite: Nottingham

Bracket Dark Horse: No. 13 Lawrence. Lawrence has lost 13 games this season and nearly half of those (six) were decided by five points or fewer. Two of those close loses were to Hopewell Valley, which is the team Lawrence will play in Thursday’s tournament-opener. If the Cardinals can pull off that win on the road, they could be dangerous as a team with some momentum in a bracket that does not have any overly-imposing teams in it. The Shore has a couple dark-horse candidates, namely Matawan and Middletown North. Since beating Toms River North on Jan. 20, Matawan has looked more like the team it expected to be since the start of the season, but that game vs. Toms River North is still the high point. With 6-foot-8 Jayden Elijah, the Huskies can be a matchup problem, but Freehold Boro is a tough matchup for Matawan as well in round one. Middletown North, meanwhile, has been battle-hardened by a difficult schedule and just won the Shore Conference Coaches Cup.

Bracket Breakdown: For the second straight year, the Central Group III section could go in any number of directions. Last year, it went the way of Nottingham, which had to scrap to get past Red Bank in round one but made it all the way through to beat top-seeded Ewing in the championship game. This year’s bracket could play out similarly, with several teams harboring a legitimate shot to make a run before two top seeds are playing for a championship. Red Bank would welcome that outcome as the Bucs shoot for their first sectional title since 1993, while teams like Colt Neck, Freehold Boro, Matawan and Middletown North would like to turn the bracket on its head. Brick Memorial is the Shore’s ultimate underdog in this section, but even the Mustangs will have some hope heading to play a Nottingham team that has been more beatable than it was a year ago.

Prediction: No. 3 Burlington Township over No. 1 Red Bank. There are two teams that enter the CJ III tournament with 20 wins and they could wind up meeting in the sectional semifinals. Nottingham and Burlington Township are the 20-win teams from the jump and Burlington’s advantage will be athleticism and guard-play. The Falcons, however, will have to overcome potential size disadvantages against both No. 6 Ewing and Nottingham. In late February and March, though, good guards are hard to beat, which bodes well for the Bucs and the Falcons. If it’s the year of the frontcourt, though, Colts Neck and Ewing could be the last two standing.

Round-by-Round Picks

Opening Round

(1) Red Bank over (16) Ocean
(8) Robbinsville over (9) Somerville
(5) Colts Neck over (12) Carteret
(13) Lawrence over (4) Hopewell Valley
(3) Burlington Twp. over (14) Hamilton West
(6) Ewing over (11) Middletown North
(7) Freehold Boro over (10) Matawan
(2) Nottingham over (15) Brick Memorial

Quarterfinals

(1) Red Bank over (8) Robbinsville
(5) Colts Neck over (13) Lawrence
(3) Burlington Twp. over (6) Ewing
(7) Freehold Boro over (2) Nottingham

Semifinals

(1) Red Bank over (5) Colts Neck
(3) Burlington Twp. over (7) Freehold Boro

Championship

(3) Burlington Twp. over (1) Red Bank

South Jersey Group III

Shore Teams in the Field: No. 6 Toms River South, No. 12 Barnegat
Top Seed: Mainland
Defending Champion: No. 4 Moorestown
Bracket Favorite: No. 3 Camden Eastside

Bracket Dark Horse: No. 9 Hammonton. In a top-heavy bracket, it might be hard to find a team that will win on the road, but the first round could provide some drama. Hammonton, No. 10 Absegami, No. 11 Triton and Barnegat all look like they have reasonable opportunities to win on Thursday in the first round. Hammonton has not faired well vs. top-seeded Mainland in two meetings, but the Blue Devils know what they are up against and have a recent close loss to Atlantic City in the Cape Atlantic League Tournament. From the Shore, Barnegat has shown some upset potential over the course of the season and if the Bengals play their best basketball, they will be a tough out for No. 5 Timber Creek and perhaps even No. 4 Moorestown. Another team worth mentioning: No. 16 Westampton Tech. While it is unlikely we seed a No. 16 over a No. 1, Westampton Tech is one of the better No. 16 seeds in the state.

Bracket Breakdown: At least four teams are sectional contenders and No. 5 Timber Creek is a 20-win team that should like its chances. Mainland and Ocean City will have homecourt on their respective sides of the bracket, but Camden Eastside is the 2022 champion that did not get the defend its title after being disqualified from the 2023 tournament, while Moorestown is the more recent reigning champion. Those four teams are likely to battle it out when the semifinals arrive, but there will be some sub-stories to watch. Toms River South is looking for its first state tournament wins since 2015, when the Indians reached the South Group III semifinals.

Prediction: Camden Eastside over Mainland. Eastside and Mainland are two teams that will be on a mission after the way last season ended. While Eastside was disqualified from the 2023 tournament because of a benches-clearing brawl with Camden only days before the NJSIAA Tournament, Mainland suffered a more conventional elimination – at the hands of Moorestown in the sectional final. Both teams are tough, athletic sides that have played championship-caliber schedules. Mainland will have an edge as the No. 1 seed, but Camden Eastside has a group of players and coaches that is familiar with winning it all after capturing the Group III title in 2022.

Round-by-Round Picks

Opening Round

(1) Mainland over (16) Westampton Tech
(9) Hammonton over (8) Delsea
(5) Timber Creek over (12) Barnegat
(4) Moorestown over (13) Deptford
(3) Camden Eastside over (14) Clearview
(6) Toms River South over (11) Triton
(7) Cherry Hill West over (10) Absegami
(2) Ocean City over (15) Pemberton

Quarterfinals

(1) Mainland over (9) Hammonton
(4) Moorestown over (5) Timber Creek
(3) Camden Eastside over (6) Toms River South
(2) Ocean City over (7) Cherry Hill West

Semifinals

(1) Mainland over (4) Moorestown
(3) Camden Eastside over (2) Ocean City

Championship

(3) Camden Eastside over (1) Mainland