2021-22 New Jersey HS GBB Season In Review

It’s crazy to think that after four months or so of constant coverage across the state of New Jersey, the 2021-22 season has officially ended. There were some fantastic high school girls basketball played in the Garden State and we were beyond proud to bring you as much of it as possible. Here are some of our takeaways from the year as we transition into the AAU season in the spring and summer. <strong>We witnessed one of the best seasons of any team in St. John Vianney</strong> After a very interesting spring season that featured a maximum of 15 games and no state championships, we really had no idea what was in store for this year. One thing we did know is that St. John Vianney was going to be good, really good. They weren’t just good; they were one of the all-time greats. Behind a cast of superstar talent in [player_tooltip player_id="134626" first="Madison" last="St. Rose"] and [player_tooltip player_id="134644" first="Zoe" last="Brooks"], the Lady Landers lapped the competition in New Jersey as no team really got closer than 15 points. Not just that, but their 32-1 season, capped off with a Tournament of Champions title, included the lone loss, which was to Sidwell Friends, the No. 1 school in the nation. We might never see a team this dominant again in the Garden State. <strong>New state champions were crowned and decade-long droughts were ended</strong> Not only did teams take home state titles for the first time, but we saw some lengthy title droughts snapped as well, specifically Westfield and Sparta. Westfield entered the Group IV state title game against Cherokee without a state championship to its name. Facing a team like Cherokee, that task would be incredibly tough, but the Blue Devils overcame a tough defense, winning 43-37 for its first state title in program history. The other was Sparta, a team that took on Mainland in the Group 3 state title game, and won in commanding fashion, a 62-41 blowout, for its first state title since 2001. <strong>Rutgers Prep reached the TOC final for the first time</strong> We’ve heard a lot of buzz from this program, the Argonauts, full of D1 talent with the namesake of New Jersey’s state school. That can bring with it higher expectations and after winning its first Non-Public B title since 2017, the Argos had the No. 3 seed in the TOC. Behind a trio of talented players in [player_tooltip player_id="325201" first="Mikayla" last="Blakes"], [player_tooltip player_id="319013" first="Antonia" last="Bates"] and [player_tooltip player_id="321576" first="Katie" last="Ledden"], plus a great cast of players like Morgan Ryan, [player_tooltip player_id="325188" first="Zahra" last="Alexander"] and others, Rutgers Prep took down University and Manasquan for a date with St. John Vianney in the TOC final. It was Rutgers Prep’s first TOC final appearance and despite eventually losing to the Lady Lancers, this is the kind of statement a program can build on moving forward. <strong>There were breakout players throughout the state this season</strong> The first full season in two years produced breakout stars across the state, names that you might not have heard of before or names that popped up out of nowhere. [player_tooltip player_id="404218" first="Kyla" last="Glasser-Hyman"], a junior out of Hightstown, joined the 1000 point club and averaged well over 20 points a game this season. Shore guard [player_tooltip player_id="155445" first="Rylee" last="Drahos"] had an incredible junior year herself and put up a 40-point performance late in the year. Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id="325182" first="Taylor" last="Derkack"] posted a double-double average and nearly scored 20 points a game. Performances like that caught our eye in a big way and many others across the state. <strong>The magic of high school basketball once again captured the minds of those in New Jersey</strong> From the games we saw and attended this season, it always felt like there was something just a little bit extra in the air. It might have been the fact that we had a full season once again, but high school girls basketball was fantastic to watch in New Jersey. In the games we witnessed in South Jersey, the competition has been intense, especially between rivals in Cherokee, Shawnee, Lenape, Eastern, etc. Games between teams from different areas have felt like playoff-like atmospheres with great fanbases on either side. It’s really been a banner environment and we can’t wait to see what’s in store this coming fall.