Boys Basketball – NJSIAA Tournament Preview: The Shore in Non-Public A and B

The Shore Conference has the No. 1 seeds in both South Jersey Non-Public sections and they are also both the last Shore Conference program to reach the state final in both Non-Public A and Non-Public B.

St. Rose is after its second straight South Non-Public B title and will be heavily-favored to win it. Beyond that, anything less than a 29-2 finish and Non-Public B championship would be a disappointment for the Purple Roses, who still have the inside track to finish No. 1 in New Jersey this season.

CBA has not been in the Non-Public A final since 2015, but that was also the last time any Shore team won the South Jersey Non-Public A section. Red Bank Catholic had its chance two years ago in a heartbreaker loss to Rutgers Prep and the Caseys will get another chance to make the run this year as a No. 6 seed in a balanced, competitive field without an obvious favorite.

South Jersey Non-Public A

Shore Teams in the Field: No. 1 CBA, No. 6 Red Bank Catholic, No. 7 Donovan Catholic, No. 12 St. John Vianney
Top Seed: CBA
Defending Champion: No. 2 Union Catholic
Bracket Favorite: Union Catholic

Bracket Dark Horse: No. 9 Camden Catholic. Since Jan. 23, Camden Catholic is 10-4 with its only losses coming to Camden (twice), Middle Township and Paul VI. Camden and Middle are likely the top two favorites to win Group II and the Irish also beat Paul VI – the No. 5 seed in this field – during that 10-4 stretch. The wins were no gimmes either: Manasquan, Eastern, Camden Eastside and Haddonfield were among the teams Camden Catholic has taken down in the last month. No. 10 St. Augustine could win a game and there are teams good enough to knock off Camden Catholic throughout the bracket, but the Irish are a hot team that is playing well enough to win this section as a No. 9 seed.

Bracket Breakdown: The Shore Conference has a major opportunity to impact the Non-Public A Tournament, both because there are four intriguing Shore teams in the field and because there is no unbeatable team in the field. CBA will be home until the sectional final and has had enough good performances in big games to believe in their chances, but also enough slip-ups (Randolph, Red Bank, Mainland to pause when considering the Colts the favorite in the field. Red Bank Catholic, meanwhile, has played a tough schedule and should be well-prepared for what is to come, although the Caseys will either have to raise their defensive game or shoot the lights out to survive the likes of No. 3 Rutgers Prep and Union Catholic. Donovan Catholic goes into the tournament on a five-game losing streak and will have to deal with a capable St. Augustine squad in round one, followed, potentially, but defending champion Union Catholic. St. John Vianney is another Shore team that has been through enough regular-season battles to spring an upset, but the Lancers are still searching for the kind of consistency it takes to string multiple wins together in a field this deep. Between those four, there could be a Shore Cinderella in Non-Public A, but Union Catholic remains a dangerous, well-rounded team that just beat Roselle Catholic for its first Union County Tournament title and could again challenge for a second straight Non-Public A title.

Prediction: Union Catholic over Camden Catholic. The ninth-seeded Irish have looked legit over the last month and it’s a tough break for CBA that the power-point formula wasn’t kind to Camden Catholic, because now the Colts will have to play a hot team in the sectional quarterfinals – assuming the Irish get past Pingry. Union Catholic, meanwhile, has the size, athleticism and shooting to be a tough out for any team, but getting by the Rutgers Prep-RBC winner could be tricky. Just as the Vikings got hot last year in winning the title, there could just as easily be a hot team elsewhere in this field, whether it is a top seed like CBA or Rutgers Prep, or someone from the middle like RBC, Paul VI or No. 4 St. Joseph Metuchen.

Round-by-Round Picks

Opening Round

(9) Camden Catholic over (8) Pingry
(5) Paul VI over (12) St. John Vianney
(4) St. Joseph Metuchen over (13) Immaculata
(6) Red Bank Catholic over (11) Notre Dame
(10) St. Augustine over (7) Donovan Catholic

Quarterfinals

(9) Camden Catholic over (1) CBA
(5) Paul VI over (4) St. Joseph Metuchen
(3) Rutgers Prep over (6) Red Bank Catholic
(2) Union Catholic over (10) St. Augustine

Semifinals

(9) Camden Catholic over (5) Paul VI
(2) Union Catholic over (3) Rutgers Prep

Championship

(2) Union Catholic over (9) Camden Catholic

South Jersey Non-Public B

Shore Teams in the Field: No. 1 St. Rose, No. 9 Ranney
Top Seed: St. Rose
Defending Champion: St. Rose
Bracket Favorite: St. Rose

Bracket Dark Horse: No. 6 Trenton Catholic. No team in this bracket looks capable of getting within 30 points of St. Rose and that might be a generous figure. If you are looking for a team outside of the top four seeds to do some damage, you would have to start on the opposite side of the bracket from St. Rose, where Trenton Catholic remains a solid program that should give 2023 sectional-runner-up Bishop Eustace a challenge in what might end up being the best game of this particular sectional tournament.

Bracket Breakdown: St. Rose is the No. 1 team in the state and this Non-Public B bracket is one of the weaker sections in the state, which means there won’t be much to see here. The Purple Roses will just try to stay healthy, keep sharp and handle their business in getting to the state final at Rutgers for a second straight year, where they would meet much more resistance from the North Jersey champion. The harder Shore-related question in this bracket is does Ranney have one more win in them? The Panthers know they are set up to play St. Rose if they win and that can be a dark cloud hanging over the head of a team that has already lost to the Purple Roses by 40 – and that was after a promising first quarter. A win for Ranney would guarantee a .500 season, so while the inevitability of St. Rose might squash some motivation, getting to .500 to finish the season is a goal worth fighting for, even if it is for one game.

Prediction: St. Rose over Trenton Catholic. The Purple Roses will cruise in this one and the only question is who they will beat along the way. Their greatest challenge will be to keep sharp after dominating the Shore Conference Tournament and, eventually, three games in this tournament so that they are ready for the state final and one final audition for the No. 1 spot in the final state rankings.

Round-by-Round Picks

Opening Round

(8) Wildwood Catholic over (9) Ranney
(5) Holy Cross Prep over (12) Doane Academy
(4) Calvary Christian over (13) Moorestown Friends
(6) Trenton Catholic over (11) Holy Spirit
(7) St. Joseph Hammonton over (10) Princeton Day

Quarterfinals

(1) St. Rose over (8) Wildwood Catholic
(4) Calvary Christian over (5) Holy Cross
(6) Trenton Catholic over (3) Bishop Eustace
(7) St. Joseph Hammonton over (2) Gloucester Catholic

Semifinals

(1) St. Rose over (4) Calvary Christian
(6) Trenton Catholic over (7) St. Joseph Hammonton

Championship

(1) St. Rose over (6) Trenton Catholic