Big performances at Bergen Jamboree and Passaic semis

Little Paterson Charter will finally have its chance to play for a big-time title.

The Lions looked every bit like a champion in a 7150 victory over Eastside in Saturday’s semifinals of the 51st Passaic County boys basketball tournament at Clifton.

“We’ve just got to keep working — it’s not over yet,” Paterson Charter senior Asim Jones said.

Jones and the Lions bucked Saturday’s North Jersey trend of perennial powers winning county semifinals to advance to next weekend’s championships.

Paterson Charter will make its first trip to the Passaic final and be joined by Kennedy, a semifinal winner seeking its record 15th Passaic title.

Meanwhile, at Saturday’s 65th Bergen County semifinals, Don Bosco and Bergen Catholic were semifinal winners and each will return to Hackensack seeking an 11th Jamboree title.

Here’s a look at Saturday’s Passaic and Bergen semifinals:

(1) Paterson Ch. 71, (4) Eastside 50

Paterson Charter grabbed control early and never looked back en route to snapping Eastside’s North Jersey-leading 17-game winning streak. The Lions were patient in their half-court offense, opportunistic in transition and played stellar defense.

Jones scored a team-high 23 to help build a 36-20 halftime lead. Senior Jamir Belfield hit a quartet of three-pointers and scored 18 to help the Lions (21-1) open a 59-32 lead and secure their 13th consecutive win.

“All kudos to my boys,” said coach Jerry Wimberly, whose 2020 Lions were within one win of a Group 1 title when COVID halted the state tournament. “They really worked hard, they really played hard, and they followed the process.”

Junior Bryce Stokes joined Jones in bolstering the case for All-North Jersey honors, scoring a game-high 27 for Eastside (20-3).

(2) Kennedy 60,

(3) Wayne Valley 54

Kennedy rode a 10-0 run in the fourth quarter to pull away to a 54-44 lead. Senior JayQuan Briggs (game-high 29 points) and freshman Z’yaire Simmons

(14 points) led the way.

Simmons started the run with a layup off a feed from senior Yasen Crawford and turned it into a three-point play and

47-44 lead. Briggs followed with two free throws, then Simmons scored on a transition put-back for a 51-44 lead for Kennedy (19-5).

“He’s a very good talent and he’s considered one of the top freshman in the state through AAU,” Kennedy coach Tommie Patterson said. “He’s a freshman, but he’s probably playing like a junior or senior.”

Wayne Valley (17-6) stayed in it by hitting 10 three-pointers. Senior Nick Ender hit six treys and scored 20. The Indians tied the score, 44-44, on a press-breaking layup by junior Krenar Shaqiri.

(2) Bergen Catholic 77,

(3) Ramapo 69

After four possessions, Ramapo owned a 10-0 lead. While a bit back on its heels, Bergen Catholic never wavered.

“This is playoff basketball and we know that we’re going to get the best of every team we face,” Bergen Catholic senior Julian Brown said. “We just had to keep our composure and stick with the plan and we knew we’d have our opportunity.”

That meant a heavy dose of Brown and senior Will Richardson for three quarters before the Crusaders went ‘big’ at the start of the fourth. Up 54-52, they went down low to sophomore Brandon Benjamin, who scored nine of the first 12 Crusader points in the quarter, the last a three-point play to make it 66-59. Ramapo got within four in the final minute but could not get it down to a single possession.

Brown and Richardson each had 25 points and Benjamin added 17 for Bergen Catholic (17-8). Ramapo sophomore Peyton Seals led all scorers with 27 points along with seven rebounds, four assists and two steals. Sophomore Wyatt Eglinton-Manner added 16 points and junior Nate Burleson 14 for the Raiders (16-6).

Both teams were red hot, with Bergen Catholic shooting 29 of 47 (62 percent) and 10 of 14 from three-point range. Ramapo countered with 26 of 43 (60 percent) and 13 of 20 from behind the arc. The 23 combined three-point field goals in a game set a new tournament single-game record.

(1) Don Bosco 58,

(4) Ridgewood 36

Don Bosco took control in the second quarter with a 16-2 run to extend its lead to 30-15 at halftime. Sophomore Dylan Harper scored all nine of his points during the spurt.

Junior Evan Cabral and senior Isaiah Edmond scored 11 apiece as Don Bosco (22-3) stretched its winning streak to 13 games. Cabral got off to a hot start with eight points in the first quarter.

Ridgewood, making its first semifinal appearance since 1994, got 14 points from senior Nicky Crane. Don Bosco’s defense was stellar, holding the Maroons to 34 percent shooting from the field (15-for-44).

“It’s kind of what we expected, a defensive battle,” said coach Kevin Diverio, whose Ironmen swept two regularseason games from Bergen Catholic. “They’re really, really good defensively, and we turned up our defense at the end of the first quarter, early second quarter.”