HS Boys Basketball Notebook: WWPN the lone unbeaten CVC team entering holiday tourneys
Dec 26, 2024
Although the Colonial Valley Conference moved its best teams into the Colonial Division this year, the conference’s only undefeated boys basketball team through the first few games of the season resides in the Valley Division.
West Windsor-Plainsboro North is off to a 3-0 start including impressive wins over Robbinsville and Hopewell Valley. The Knights led by 14 points entering the fourth quarter against Hopewell last Thursday and then hung on to win at the final buzzer when Malachi Jeffers-Viera buried a shot from beyond mid court.
WW-P North also defeated Jackson Memorial last Saturday in the CVC-Shore Challenge held at Hightstown.
The Knights, led by Blake Amos Whitfield’s 16.3 points per game, hosts Delran on Friday at 2:30 p.m. in the second game of the Knights Holiday Tournament. WW-P South faces Somerville at 12:45 p.m. The winners of those games will meet the winners of Delaware Valley-Palmyra and Spotswood-South Hunterdon, respectively, on Saturday at 4:15 p.m. and 2:30 p.m.
Elsewhere in the CVC, Lawrence and Hopewell Valley play in the Molinelli Classic against Ocean Township and Harry S. Truman, respectively, Friday at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., with the winners clashing in the final Saturday at 2 p.m.
Thrive Carter, formerly known as Trenton Catholic, hosts the ESCIT including a game Friday against Hamilton West at 3 p.m. Thrive Charter will also play Hunterdon Central on Saturday at 3 p.m. and Ewing on Sunday at 3 p.m. Hamilton West will take on Kingsway Regional on Saturday at 1 p.m.
Robbinsville hosts the Winter Classic Tournament. The Ravens face Bordentown on Friday at 3 p.m. and then take on North Brunswick on Saturday at 11 a.m. Bordentown faces Deptford on Saturday at 9:30 a.m.
The other CVC teams will be playing Friday in holiday tourneys further away.
Princeton Day takes on Barnegat at 9:30 a.m. at Cinnaminson; Nottingham faces Jackson Liberty at 11 a.m. at Point Pleasant Boro; Princeton High faces North Hunterdon at noon at Montgomery; Allentown plays at Neptune at 1 p.m.; Trenton plays at Southern Regional at 1:45 p.m.; Hightstown faces East Brunswick at 3:30 p.m. at Red Bank Regional; Steinert plays at New Egypt at 3:30.; and Notre Dame tackles Norristown (Pa.) at 5:15 p.m.
Announced game times for Saturday in those tournaments include PDS vs. Bishop Eustace at 9:30 a.m., Princeton vs. North Hunterdon at noon and Notre Dame vs. Bensalem at 5:15 p.m.
Here are the CVC’s top-10 leaders in points per game as of Christmas: Princeton’s Michael Bess Jr. (24.3), Notre Dame’s Will Foley (20.4), Lawrence’s Marvin McNeil (19.8), Ewing’s Davion Morton (18.0), PDS’ Gary Jennings (18.0), Amos Whitfield (16.3), Robbinsville’s Tyler Bunnell (16.2), Trenton’s Juan Sanchez (16.0), WW-P South’s Cameron Jones (15.8) and Steinert’s Anthony Santucci (15.0).
Here are the current CVC standings:
Colonial Division
Team (Overall) W L Pts
Hightstown (3-1) 1 0 2
Robbinsville (3-1) 1 0 2
Hopewell Valley (2-2) 1 0 2
Trenton (2-2) 1 0 2
Notre Dame (4-1) 0 1 0
Nottingham (3-1) 0 1 0
Ewing (2-2) 0 1 0
Princeton (1-2) 0 1 0
Valley Division
Team (Overall) W L Pts
Lawrence (3-2) 1 0 2
PDS (1-2) 1 0 2
WW-PS (1-4) 1 0 2
WW-PN (3-0) 0 0 0
Allentown (0-2) 0 1 0
Hamilton West (0-4) 0 1 0
Steinert (0-4) 0 1 0