NJ Girls Basketball: Players of the Week for Jan. 26-Feb. 1
Photo by Bob Shwalb This is the best time of the year for girls basketball in New Jersey. County tournaments have begun and the state tournaments are right around the corner. As the teams finish their regular season schedules, the…
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This is the best time of the year for girls basketball in New Jersey. County tournaments have begun and the state tournaments are right around the corner. As the teams finish their regular season schedules, the big time performers are starting to come out. Here are the top performers from a week ago.
Dayna Tirado (2020) | Demarest
Tirado led Demarest to a couple wins last week. First, they overcame a 12-point deficit to upset rival Old Tappan. She finished with 28 points and made 18 free throws during the game. She followed that up with 13 points and 10 rebounds in a win over Northern Highlands and 26 points and 10 rebounds against Tenafly.
Gabby Loftin (2023) | Florence
Loftin has been a scoring machine for Florence in her first season. She has scored in double-figures in 12 of her team’s 15 games. She scored 30 points in a blowout win over Asbury Park. She has been Florence’s most consistent scorer this season.
Mackenzie O’Brien (2020) | South Plainfield
O’Brien has been a walking double-double for South Plainfield this season. She is averaging 14.6 points and 14.6 rebounds per game this season and that was the narrative last week. O’Brien turned in 17 points and 18 rebounds against Colonia. She followed that up with 18 points and 14 rebounds against New Brunswick.
Erika Mercedes (2022) | Union City
Mercedes had a 40-point game back in December and has been a dynamic scorer since. Last week Union City went 3-1 behind Mercdes. She finished with 25 points and 10 rebounds against Hoboken. She followed that up with 24 points and 11 rebounds in a game against Ferris. She added 13 points in a loss to Bayonne. Mercedes is the type of scorer that can carry a team if she heats up.
Colleen McQuillen (2021) | Cresskill
This is not McQuillen’s first time on this list. She has been one of the best scorers in the state this season. Cresskill played just one game last week but that was all McQuillen needed to make her mark. She scored a career-high 41 points in an upset victory over Paramus Catholic. 11-seeded Cresskill upset the sixth-seed in Paramus Catholic in the Bergen County Tournament. McQuillen is scoring 25 points per game in her junior season.
Kya Joseph (2022) | Barnegat
Joseph set a new season-high with 39 points against Donovan Catholic. She followed that up with 12 points and 13 rebounds against Jackson. Barnegat ended the week with a win over Monmouth led by Joseph who finished with 23 points and nine rebounds. The sophomore took a huge step this season which was expected. She is living up to every expectation.