Times boys hoops notes, Week 6: Trenton and Ewing set for key CVC clash

Tyler Barber (14) of Hamilton West is pressured by Luke Foley (1) and Stesher Mathelier (22) of Notre Dame. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31 held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

Stesher Mathelier (22) of Notre Dame goes up over Hass Cannon (2) of Hamilton West. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31 held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

Chris Vlahos (4) of Notre Dame goes up for a basket as Tyler Barber (14) of Hamilton West defends. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31 held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

John Merluse (10) of Notre Dame and Tyler Barber (14) of Hamilton West battle for control of the ball. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31 held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

Chris Vlahos (4) of Notre Dame gets past Benjamin Boufford (24) of Hamilton West and goes up for a basket. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31 held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

Hass Cannon (2) of Hamilton West. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31 held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

Din Kastrat (1) of Hamilton West closely defends Chris Vlahos (4) of Notre Dame. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31 held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

Stesher Mathelier (22) of Notre Dame looks to score as Hass Cannon (2) of Hamilton West defends. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31 held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

Benjamin Boufford (24) of Hamilton West secures a defensive rebound, during game action. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31 held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

Brandon Johnson, Hamilton head coach. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31 held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

Jake Croce (15) of Notre Dame shoots over Mekhi Lott (4) of Hamilton West. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31 held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

Jake Croce (15) of Notre Dame passes the ball as he is defended by Woo Cannon (5) of Hamilton West. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31 held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

Stesher Mathelier (22) of Notre Dame gets around Tyler Barber (14) and Hass Cannon (2) of Hamilton West. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31 held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

Mekhi Lott (4) of Hamilton West. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31 held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

Hass Cannon (2) of Hamilton West. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31 held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

Stesher Mathelier (22) of Notre Dame is defended by Kim Ross Jr (11) and Tyler Barber (14) of Hamilton West. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31 held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

Hass Cannon (2) of Hamilton West dribbles down court as he is defended by Dylan Nelson (2) of Notre Dame. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31 held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

Hass Cannon (2) of Hamilton West. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31 held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

Jake Croce (15) of Notre Dame passes the ball, during game action. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31 held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

Chris Vlahos (4) of Notre Dame passes the ball, during game action. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31 held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

Notre Dame fans cheer during game action. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31 held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

Stesher Mathelier (22) of Notre Dame goes to the basket and is defended by Tyler Barber (14) of Hamilton West. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31, held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

Tyler Barber (14) of Hamilton West shoots over Stesher Mathelier (22) of Notre Dame. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31, held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

Has Cannon (2) of Hamilton West goes to the basket and is defended by Stesher Mathelier (22) and Luke Foley (1) of Notre Dame. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31, held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

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After a month and a half of boys basketball action, we have finally gotten to the moment so many area fans have been waiting for since December: the Colonial Valley Conference Game of the Year.

It might have been the Game of the Century, or Millennium, but both teams lost last weekend. As it is, though, the two teams will come in with one loss apiece (Trenton is 18-1, Ewing 17-1) making it the top contest on a day that is full of pivotal CVC games.

Congratulations are in order to the Florence Flashes, who rebounded from a tough loss to Burlington City on Thursday to lock up the Burlington County Scholastic League Freedom Division title with a 76-54 win over Riverside.

Here is a look at the best of the area action last week, as well as a look forward to the upcoming week.

AREA GAME OF THE WEEK

Peddie defeats Pennington 84-79 in key area prep battle

The two teams that are fighting to get to .500 played in Pennington, and it was the visitors that came away with a thrilling win. Corey Miller had 36 points for the Red Hawks to keep them in the contest, but Zack Davis (28 points), Raja Coleman (17), Noah Payne (15), and Nyle Coleman (15) did enough to ensure that is was the Falcons who soared to victory.

Pennington boys basketball

BEST OF THE REST: A LOOK AT THE TOP RESULTS FROM LAST WEEK

Ewing finishes off rebound week with 81-64 demolition of BCIT Medford: the Blue Devils will go into Tuesday’s key clash off the back of a 17-point victory over Medford Tech. Darnelle Forrest and Kenny Rankin each had 23 points to pace Ewing.

Notre Dame stifles Hornets to pick up pivotal seeding win: the Irish have played well at times in the CVC, and might be a force to be reckoned with in the upcoming MCT. Notre Dame held the Hornets to just 31 points–including 19 in the final 24 minutes–on the way to a 47-31 win.

Colonia stuns Robbinsville on a last second three-pointer: the Ravens went down to the wire with the defending North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3 champions, before Anthony Gooden drained a buzzer-beater to send the visitors home with a win.

“This was a huge game for us to prepare us for the postseason,” Kapp said. “This was good competition tonight against a very good team. That is why coach scheduled this game. We are trying to do what they did. They are sectional champions, and we put up a good fight.”

A LOOK AHEAD: HERE ARE THE BEST GAMES ON THE SLATE FOR THIS WEEK

Trenton (17-1) at Ewing (16-1), Tuesday, 4 p.m.: the two CVC division title winners will go head to head for conference supremacy, and a probable top seed in the upcoming Mercer County Tournament.

WW-P South (11-8) at Hamilton West (12-7), Tuesday, 5:30 p.m.: both teams will think they have made a case to get into the upcoming MCT, but a win for either would lock up that place.

Notre Dame (12-7) at Robbinsville (13-5), Tuesday, 7 p.m.: the two teams that currently sit second in the CVC division standings behind Trenton and Ewing will face off with huge power point and MCT seeding implications.

Ewing (16-1) at Colonia (15-4), Saturday, 2:30 p.m.: Colonia has already picked up a massive win against a CVC team, and will now look to lock up a top seed in North Jersey, Section, 2, Group 3. Ewing will want to do the same in Central Jersey, Group 3.

Patrick Kapp (23) of Robbinsville looks to make a move as he is defended by CJ Home (3) of Colonia, during game action. Boys basketball, Colonia defeats Robbinsville, 47-45,held at Robbinsville High School, in Robbinsville, NJ on January 23, 2023.

AREA PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Noah Payne, G, Peddie, Jr.: the Falcons soared to a 2-1 record last week thanks to Payne, who has taken over the top spot on the Area Player of the Year watch. He is averaging 23.5 points per game (plus six rebounds, 4.5 assists, and 2.5 steals per game) after he scored 31 Saturday in the 80-64 victory over Mercersberg, and he also leads the area with 446 total points.

Peddie G Noah Payne is averaging 23.5 ppg

AREA PLAYER OF THE YEAR WATCH

1. Noah Payne, Peddie

2. Brandon Russell, Pennington

3. Zach Davis, Peddie

4. Chris Wilson, Trenton

5. Stesher Mathelier, Notre Dame

6. Ben Jaclin, WW-P South

Stesher Mathelier (22) of Notre Dame goes up for a basket against Chris Wilson (22) of Trenton in a game at Notre Dame High School in Lawrence on Jan. 6, 2023.

AREA TEAMS OF THE WEEK

Trenton (18-1, 3-0 last week) and Ewing (17-1, 3-0 last week): both teams rebounded from tough losses last weekend to win their three games during the week, to set up a massive clash Tuesday.

Both also had impressive CVC victories: the Blue Devils beat Notre Dame (54-45) and Notttingham (67-60), while the Tornadoes knocked off Nottingham (67-45) and Hightstown (59-43).

Ewing's Naire Preston (3) goes up for basket during first half action. High school boys basketball, Ewing at Hamilton West, held at Hamilton West High School, January 20, 2023.

MY MERCER COUNTY TOURNAMENT SEEDINGS (IF I HAD A VOTE) PRIOR TO GAMES THIS WEEK

1. Trenton (17-1)

2. Ewing (17-1)

3. Pennington (9-11)

4. Robbinsville (13-6)

5. Nottingham (11-6)

6. Notre Dame (12-7)

7. Hamilton West (12-7)

8. WW-P South (11-8)

Nottingham’s Jordan Raba (2) lays the ball up during Monday night’s game between Spotswood and Nottingham in Hamilton February 28, 2022.

TIMES AREA GREAT EIGHT

1. Trenton (17-1)

2. Ewing (17-1)

3. Hun (11-7)

4. Peddie (7-11)

5. Pennington (8-11)

6. Robbinsville (13-6)

7. Nottingham (11-6)

8. Notre Dame (12-7)

Notre Dame fans cheer during game action. Boys basketball, Notre Dame defeats Hamilton West, 47-31 held at Notre Dame High School, in Lawrence Township, N.J. on January 27, 2023

1. Trenton

2. Ewing

3. Robbinsville

4. Nottingham

5. Notre Dame

Ewing's Kenny Rankin (2) goes up for a basket as Hamilton West's Tyler Barber looks to block the attempt, during first-half action. High school boys basketball, Ewing at Hamilton West, held at Hamilton West High School, January 20, 2023.

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