Top Opening Round Matchups in S.J. Groups 3 & 4

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The NJSIAA Girls Basketball playoffs start on Wednesday! Check out my top five games to watch in the South Jersey Group 3 and 4 brackets.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">South Jersey Group 3</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>No. 10 Ocean City @ No. 7 Mainland</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Just six miles separate these two CAL rivals, who are set to meet for a third time this season. In the first meeting on January 18, Mainland defeated Ocean City on the road, 45-40. However, the Mustangs fell to the Red Raiders in the first round of the Cape-Atlantic League Tournament, 43-38 at home not too long ago on February 12. Mainland, the defending Group 3 state champions, is led by sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='835904' first='Brielle' last='Smith'], who's averaging 13.2 points per game. Senior forward Naomi Nnewihe is averaging 12.4 points and 8.9 rebounds per game for Ocean City. Attached below are some highlights from the first matchup between the two.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><a href="http://www.hudl.com/v/2Rm0nT">http://www.hudl.com/v/2Rm0nT</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Prediction: Mainland 43, Ocean City 39.</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>No. 11 Shawnee @ No. 6 Hammonton</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Shawne enters the tournament with a lousy 12-15 record, but don't let that fool you. 14 of the 15 Renegades' losses have come from teams that are currently ranked in the South Jersey top 25, and some of those games were pretty competitive. Led by junior forward [player_tooltip player_id='871325' first='Maggie' last='Lutz'], the 11th-seeded Renegades have a real chance to contend with sixth-seeded Hammonton. It won't be an easy task though as the Blue Devils have a 17-8 record entering the tournament. Hammonton is led by senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='879644' first='Kiley' last='Kozlowski'], who is averaging 13.2 points per game this winter.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Prediction: Shawnee 51, Hammonton 46.</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>No. 9 Lacey @ No. 8 Timber Creek</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Led by senior 1,000-point scorer [player_tooltip player_id='522661' first='Nicholle' last='Green'], eighth-seeded Timber Creek welcomes ninth-seeded Lacey in what should be a competitive clash. Lacey enters the postseason with a 17-10 record, while Timber Creek is 15-11. A member of the Shore Conference, Lacey is led by senior [player_tooltip player_id='583959' first='Reece' last='Paget'], who's averaging 14.1 points per game, and junior [player_tooltip player_id='1134560' first='Brooklynn' last='Bell'], who has 13.1 per contest this winter. Expect this to be a back-and-forth affair, but the edge goes to the home team in this one.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Prediction: Timber Creek 47, Lacey 45.</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">South Jersey Group 4</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>No. 9 Williamstown @ No. 8 Gloucester Tech (GCIT</strong>)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This is arguably the most intriguing first-round matchup in all of South Jersey. In two previous games this season, the Tri-County Royal Division rivals spilt. In the first meeting on January 3, Williamstown blew out Gloucester Tech, 71-22. In that game, West Chester commit [player_tooltip player_id='414394' first='Alivia' last='Mauz'] went off for 36 points on eight three-pointers. However, in the most recent meeting on January 28, Gloucester Tech downed Williamstown 46-31 and limited Mauz to just 12 points and two long-range shots. Mauz recently reached 1,800 career points and is easily a top-five player in the region. This season, she has a career-high 613 points, good for a 22.7 average. The key to the game for GCIT is to limit Mauz, and the key to the game for Williamstown is just, well--- [player_tooltip player_id='414394' first='Alivia' last='Mauz']! This one will be close, but I'm taking the visitors.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Prediction: Williamstown 58, Gloucester Tech 50.</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>No. 10 Cherry Hill East @ No. 7 Pennsauken</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Cherry Hill East enters the tournament as the tenth seed and isn't exactly coming in with momentum, dropping seven of its last nine games. The Cougars still have some decent wins this season against teams like Woodstown, Camden Catholic, and Timber Creek. Seventh-seeded Pennsauken on the other hand, enters with a 16-6 record and has won nine of its last ten games. The difference is the Indians' strength of schedule has been easier. Regardless, expect this to be a competitive Group 4 matchup. Narrow edge to the home team.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Prediction: Pennsauken 39, Cherry Hill East 32.</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->