Boys Basketball – VOTE: Week 6 Player of the Week

Each week, Shore Sports Network senior basketball editor Matt Manley picks the top boys basketball players in each of the six Shore Conference divisions and you, the reader, have a chance to vote for the top performer as the Seaview Orthopaedic Institute Shore Sports Network Player of the Week. In addition to the six divisional players of the week, there are also two “wild card” candidates, who can come from any of the six divisions.

This week’s candidates are nominated based on their play from Monday, Jan. 23 through Sunday, Jan. 29.

Read about this week's candidates and vote at the bottom of the page. Voting will close on Wednesday night at 10 p.m. Vote early, vote often and check back Friday morning to find out the Shore Sports Network Player of the Week from week six of the 2017-18 season.

Class A North Player of the Week

Alex Purzynski, Manalapan

A 6-foot-4 senior forward, Purzynski led Manalapan in scoring in each of the Braves’ three games last week – one of which was a win over Freehold Boro and another a four-point loss to No. 4 CBA. Purzynski scored 13 points in the low-scoring win over Freehold, put up 16 against CBA and also poured in a team-high 17 against No. 6 Colts Neck.

A North Honorable Mention: Sam Fagan, Neptune; Josh Cohen, CBA; Stephen Braunstein, CBA; Liam Kennedy, CBA; Nasiem Brantley, Howell; Brandon Wilson, Howell; Kobe Blake, Neptune; Ben Bosland, Colts Neck; Alex Ratner, Marlboro; Greg Billups, Freehold Twp.; Jared Kimbrough, Neptune; Dan Gaines, Colts Neck

Class A Central Player of the Week

Elijah McAllister, Rumson-Fair Haven

Rumson took a giant step toward locking up another Class A Central title last week by scoring a second win over Matawan, this time at home in dominant fashion. McAllister was a force in that win, posting a triple-double with 10 points, 17 rebounds and 11 blocks. The 6-7 senior approached another triple double on Saturday and settled on 12 points, 10 rebounds and seven blocks in a win over People’s Prep of Newark. McAllister also put up eight points and eight blocks in a win over Raritan.

A Central Honorable Mention: Kyle Koob, Shore; Zach Moran, St. John Vianney; Chris Mikos, St. John Vianney; Tim Zhou, Holmdel; Matt Weidman, Red Bank; Jahmal Garraway, St. John Vianney; Mike Dunne, Matawan; Zach Mojica, Raritan

Class A South Player of the Week

Anthony Argondizza, Brick Memorial

Brick Memorial ended its week with a loss to Donovan Catholic, but handled its business in two divisional games against tough opponents earlier in the week. Argondizza was right in the middle of things throughout the week and his best performance came in another big Mustangs win over rival Brick. Argondizza scored a team-high 21 points to help his team deal the Green Dragons a season sweep and also scored 10 in a win over Central and 14 in the loss to the Griffins.

A South Honorable Mention: Mike Goodall, Toms River East; Matt Bernstein, Brick Memorial; Jalen Jackson, Brick; Shane Williams, Brick; Armani Vasquez, Toms River South; Dan Venezia, Brick; Travis Holland, Toms River North; Tommy Mitchell, Jackson Memorial; Jayson Lee, Jackson Memorial

Class B North Player of the Week

Kerron Holley, Monmouth

Holley has emerged as a go-to scorer as a junior for the Falcons and his efforts finally came in a win this past week. Monmouth picked up its first win of the season last Monday over Shore, led by Holley’s game-high 23 points. He also scored 19 in a 74-65 loss to Middletown North and put up a team-high 12 in a loss to Middletown South.

B North Honorable Mention: Ryan Purcell, Middletown South; Andrew Seager, Ocean; Jack Miller, Ocean; Rob Higgins, Middletown North; Stephen Lubischer, Red Bank Catholic; Matt Ansell, Red Bank Catholic; Emilio Stephenson, Manasquan; Tyree Morris, Long Branch; Steve Geis, Wall; Brad McCabe, Manasquan

Class B Central Player of the Week

Mohamed Traore, Point Beach

Traore has found his scoring touch from the time he became eligible on Jan. 16 and it finally started resulting in some wins for his team last week. He scored a team-high 21 points in a win over B Central rival St. Rose and capped the week with a season-high 23 points and nine rebounds in another rivalry win, this time over Point Boro on Saturday. Traore also pumped in 13 points in a win over Keansburg and is averaging 17 points per game since joining his new team.

B Central Honorable Mention: Jamir Watkins, Mater Dei; Jay Anthony, Henry Hudson; Trevor Covey, Point Beach; Kyle Cardaci, Mater Dei; Bryan Antoine, Ranney; Donte Abrams, Asbury Park; Dave Calloway, St. Rose; Michael Mohr, Henry Hudson; Alex Rice, Mater Dei; Danny Vital, Keansburg; Paul Eckleberry, Keansburg

Class B South Player of the Week

Carson Francisco, Barnegat

The Bengals continued their solid season last week, nearly rallying late to beat Lakewood before finishing the job against both Donovan Catholic and Lacey. Francisco carried a large portion of the scoring load in each game and averaged 18.7 points for the week. After putting up 14 against the Piners, he scored 18 against Donovan Catholic and poured in a season-high 24 in a runaway win over Lacey.

B South Honorable Mention: Carson Francisco, Barnegat; Anthony Silvestrone, Donovan Catholic; Carl Swensen, Lacey; John Duda, Point Boro; Khari Jenkins, Lakewood; Ryan Skeie, Pinelands; Connor Costigan, Point Boro; Daniel Sofield, Jackson Liberty; Jesse Devero, Manchester

Wild Cards

Rob Higgins, Middletown North

For the second time this season, Higgins carved up Ocean’s defense, scoring 39 points to go with six assists in Thursday’s win over the Spartans that temporarily got Middletown North back to .500. That scoring output was the highest of the season for the Shore’s leading scorer and two shy of his career-high. Higgins also posted 28 points and seven assists in a win over Monmouth and scored 21 in a loss to state-ranked St. Peter’s Prep on Saturday.

Phil Mylod, Donovan Catholic

Donovan Catholic scored a big win over Brick Memorial Saturday at the Toms River Winter Hoops Showcase to keep its hopes of a Shore Conference Tournament berth in good standing. Mylod led the way in that game with a game-high 16 points to earn game MVP honors and the 6-6 junior also scored in double figures in a win over Manchester and a loss vs. Barnegat.