Paterson…….. Myles Mack,St. Anthony’s all everything point guard by way of Paterson Catholic has committed to the Scarlet Knights of Rutgers University. The 5’9 guard will join P.C. teammate Derrick Randle for the 2011 season. Mack,(pictured right) who transferred to St. Anthony’s after the closing of Paterson Catholic is considered the top guard in his class in the state and ranked the #72 player in the country by Rivals.com. Myles said the difference in Rutgers and the numerous other schools that were offering was the relationship he developed with  Mike Rice, the new Rutgers coach who led Robert Morris University into the N.C.A.A. tournament this past season and his coaching staff. Now he can concentrate on his senior season at Anthony’s and his pursuit of a state” Chip”. Randle,(also pictured) the 6’9 big man who committed earlier in the summer will be at South Kent Prep in Connecticut this upcoming season and also put Rutgers ahead of other teams due to how comfortable he felt with Rice. Mack and Randle’s A.A.U.director Jimmy Salmon of the Playaz Basketball Club said” It’s great that they will be able to spend the next 4 years together and they are very excited! I’m happy for the both of them”

Paterson……. Paterson Catholic’s freshman Reggie Cameron, a Max Preps top 50 player in the class of 2013 has decided to lace them up for the Hawks of Hudson Catholic. In an exclusive interview with Reggie, He said ” I just feel like it was the best fit with Hudson Catholic and I’m excited to play for Coach Nick Mariniello next season”. Cameron had a strong list of schools that he was interested in, including St. Anthony’s, St. Patricks, Don Bosco Prep and St. Benedicts but in the long run chose Coach Mariniello’s young squad.” What he and the kids at Paterson Catholic had to go through was very unfortunate and I sympathize with them all. Fortunately, we are getting a kid who we hope we can build socially, acadamically and athletically. He’s a high character individual who is the kind of player we want in our program” Coach Mariniello said. Reggie’s A.A.U. director Jimmy Salmon of The Playaz Basketball Club also likes Reggie’s decision. ” We have a large number of great coaches in New Jersey and Nick Mariniello is one of the best. He should be a great fit for Reggie and Kavon(Stewart who also is going to Hudson Catholic)” Cameron had moments last year for a tremendous Paterson Catholic team and made the most of his opportunities when called upon. He scored 21 points in a game last year but will always be remembered for his play last year in The City Of Palms Classic in Florida that was won by the Cougars. He helped them comeback against Monteverde when they were down by 20 by hitting a couple of three’s to start the rally and in the finals against Winter Park Florida and Austin Rivers came off the bench in the 4th quarter to knock down another three to tie the game and ignite the Cougars to the Chip! While the 6’6 Cameron had opportunities to go to other places, his father Reggie, put it like this” I feel honestly, it’s extremely hard to turn away from an opportunity to play for a Hall of Fame coach in Bob Hurley and St. Anthony’s and also a powerhouse nationally such as St. Patricks and it was also hard not to go to Don Bosco Prep, a great academic school and close locally, but I feel extremely comfortable with my son’s choice of Hudson Catholic and Coach Nick and him not being afraid to be the beginning of a New!”

Paterson….. In a NJHoops Journal exclusive, Paterson Catholic junior Myles Mack(pictured) has decided to continue wearing maroon and gold as a St. Anthony’s Friar. In a one on one with the highly talented point guard Mack said it wasn’t easy,but in the end he bonded better with the  coaching staff and he gets to play for a Hall of Famer in Bob Hurley, St. Anthony’s legendary coach. He also will be reunited with his Paterson Catholic teammate Kyle Anderson, who also is taking his talents to Jersey City. Mack, who has competed against the Friars the last three years also feels he has a legitimate chance at winning the New Jersey T.O.C. with St. Anthony’s and that is definitely still a big goal of his. Mack’s Playaz A.A.U. Director Jimmy Salmon is pleased with the decision. ” I’m very comfortable with this decision and feel it will payoff in the short term and long term for Myles and the people who are in his inner circle are also comfortable with his decision” Salmon said. Mack said he had a great three years at Paterson Catholic, but understands that he has to move on and do what’s best for him. Coach Hurley said ” In my mind Myles Mack is the best guard in the state and I feel bad that he can no longer play for Paterson Catholic. But I am excited for the opportunity to coach him and to continue his development into being a great player in highschool and eventually on the college level”

Paterson……The Playaz 6th Annual Blow Up for 13u and 14u finished with a classic battle between the Gauchos of New York and the Playaz 14u team. the game was nip and tuck the entire way, but in the end, the Playaz overcame a 5 point lead with 21 seconds left in regulation to tie and send it into overtime and eventually win it 71-64! Marques Townes scored all 18 of his points in the second half and Isaiah Briscoe(pictured below), the tournament M.V.P. scored 17 and sent the game into the first overtime on a slick dribble drive layup. The Gauchos, behind the play of Isaiah Ice, Chris Robinson and Steven Bush seemed to have the game in control late when the Playaz relentless defense created turnovers late that proved to be their undoing. The Playaz also got strong contributions from point guard Nassir Barrino( 10pts), post man Nadi Beciri (14pts) and Juwann Carter who played strong defense when called upon in the contest. Robinson and Ice were named to the All Tournament team as well as Townes. The 13u game was won by Rhode Island over New Heights 67-53. Donovan Love(21pts) was named M.V.P. while point gurd Austin Paiui was named All Tournament along with New Heights Willie Barnes and Hakeem”Slue” Brown.

 Los Angeles, California…..  The Playaz 17u team concluded the Nike EYBL 13-1 and will be the #1 seed in the upcoming Peach Jam Tournament to determine the top A.A.U. team in the nation. The Playaz went out to Los Angeles, California to conclude the EYBL regular season by playing 5 more games during the weekend. They finished it up 4-1 taking their only loss in the EYBL season.They beat Friends Of Hoop from Seattle 85-69 behind Myles Davis 29 points and 5 rebounds, Kyle Anderson’s 15 points and 6 assists and Desmond Hubert’s 14 points and 5 boards. The next game was against the Arkansas Wings as the Playaz started the game down 19 -0 before pulling it out 65-59 behind 25 points from Myles Mack and 18 from Davis, all coming on threes, including 4 in the 2nd half. Derrick Randall brought the energy with 11 points and 10 rebounds. They continued the next day blowing out D-1 Sports of North Carolina 104-61 which is led by 6’10 wing Quincy Miller, who’s ranked #5 in the class of 2011. Anderson had 21 and 13 assists, Davis 21 on 5 threes and Mack 17. Vaughn Gray chipped in 16. The lone loss came from Georgia’s Southern Kings team as the Playaz took it on the chin in overtime 66-62. The Playaz rebounded by defeating the N.Y. Gauchos 64-51 as Gray led a balanced attack with 18 points. The result is the regular season champs in a strong EYBL league. The Playaz 17′s will now try to finish it up in North Augusta, South Carolina July 12-15 in The Peach Jam.

                          Meanwhile, The Playaz 15u team( pictured )made their presence felt in L.A. by going out and winning  The Adidas Magic Memorial Festival at U. of California Dominguez Hills College. The Playaz, playing without Shacore Edwards were led throughout the weekend by 6’6 Reggie Cameron, 5’10 Kavon Stewart, 6’2 Josh Marquez and also got strong play from 6′ DeAndre Noble, 6’8 Mike Young, 6’7 Amir Maddred, 6’2 Geno Thorpe and 6’4 Connor Cuccinelli. The Playaz 15′s won the “chip” 64-52 over The Las Vegas Prospect. Stewart led them in scoring with 17, while Cameron added 16. They won their 6 games by a 20 point margin in the tournament with the championship game being their closest contest. The Playaz 16′s also played well this weekend as they played in the Adidas Festival against the 17u group. They reached the semi finals behind the play of Dallas Englin, Tariq Carey, Grant Ellis and Davon Jacobs before losing to The Las Vegas Prospect 17u team in overtime.

Paterson……. The Playaz 15u basketball team(pictured below) beat a game New Heights(N.Y.C.) team 79-72 to win the Tuneup A.A.U. Tournament ” CHIP’. The Playaz got a huge game from 6’4 Shacore Edwards who lit Heights up for 35 points in the contest. Edwards offset the hot shooting of New Heights 6’1 guard Isaiah Lewis who rang up 31 points himself. Edwards(pictured),who was named M.V.P. of the tournament got it done inside and out. The Playaz reached the chip by defeating Team Philly of Philadelphia 74-66 behind balanced scoring led by 6’6 swingman Reggie Cameron’s 21 points, Josh Marquez 16 and 11 apiece from Gino Thorpe and Edwards and got strong guard play from 5’10 point Kavon Stewart.. Dominick Reid led Philly with 21 points and Hanif Sutton added 12. Heights reached the finals by beating the New Jersey Pirates 57-53 as 6’7 power forward Jordan Washington scored 14 points to lead Heights. Raekwon Kelly led the Pirates with 14. Lewis won the Sportsmanship Award while Washington, Marquez, Stewart and Shamiek Sheppard all made the All tournament team. The addition of Thorpe and 6’8 ”big” Mike Young has made the Playaz 15 team even more imposing. The Playaz 16u team played respectable throughout the weekend, losing to the eventual champs,The Gauchos of N.Y.C. the 16′s showed signs behind the play of  Dallas Englin, Davon Jacobs, Grant Ellis, Zaire Williams and newcomer Tyreke Carey. The Playaz program will take their show on the road, traveling to Los Angeles, California Memorial Day Weekend as the 17u team will join the other squads to the west coast. 

 Paterson…….. The Playaz Club A.A.U. basketball hosts it’s 2nd annual Tune-up Tournament for it’s 9th/ 15u and 10th/16u teams at Kennedy Highschool in Paterson, N.J. The games will begin Saturday at 9am and go on throughout the day culminating in the championship for each age group Sunday. Some of the teams involved in the tournament are New York A.A.U. powerhouses New Heights, N.Y. Panthers, The Gauchos and The Long Island Lightning and Washington D.C. A.A.U. power D.C. Assault. Some of the local talent in the tournament from the Playaz are for the 15u team, Josh Marquez #23( Depaul H.S.) and Reggie Cameron and Kavon Stewart(both pictured), who are both undecided on their next Highschool due to the closing of Paterson Catholic. The 16u team consists of Dallas Englin(Seton Hall Prep) and Paterson’s Davon Jacobs( Depaul) and Zaire Williams(Newark Academy).The 15u team in particular are considered one of the best around after winning the Boo Williams tournament in Virginia early in the A.A.U. season. Come see some of the best young talent in the metropolitan area this weekend!

Paterson, N.J…………. Paterson’s Tarik Robinson(pictured left) held a recruitment day showcase for area kids that are still unsure of their college basketball situation. Robinson, who has played professionally overseas invited Division 2 and 3 schools and Junior Colleges in the area to attend the event. Many Bergen and Passaic County highschool stars decided to show their wares in front of the coaches in hopes of catching one of the scouts eyes.

Here are a few of the area players that shined in the games.

Shondell Stewart -Kennedy H.S.-  Probably attending Miami Dade Juco for a year. Shondell was his usual high powered self doing it from inside and out! 

Tyshawn Pickett- Passaic H.S.- Showed his entire repertoire showing his outside shot to go along with his inside power game

Andre Blackwood- Paramus Catholic H.S. – Can flat out shoot the rock! And showed that to the schools that were in attendance!

Najee Salaam- Passaic H.S.-  Showcased his athleticism with couple of strong moves to bucket and finishing with dunks!

Owen Barnes- Teaneck H.S.- Showed his ability to run the show, specifically on the break! Underrated outside shooter!

Kyle Steinbergin – Teaneck H.S.- Showed his long range capabilities the entire night. Unlimited! Also above average defender!

Chris Albuquerque – Eastside H.S.-  Showed nice post moves around the basket, but must finish more consistently. Good rebounder!

Other notable Players In Showcase:

Marquis Matthews -Eastside, Terrell Spaulding – Eastside, Janif Green – Eastside, Alex Brown – Formerly Paramus Catholic,  Jaemille Barnes- Kennedy H.S.,  Jordan Wade- Paramus Catholic