North 1, Group 4 Start Delayed
After Winter Storm Hernando

One of the more unpredictable brackets in the 2026 NJSIAA basketball state tournament could very well be North 1, Group 4 where Montclair is the No. 1 seed, but while any number of teams have a legitimate shot at emerging victorious when the Friday, March 6 sectional final arrives, the start of the action for both Groups 2 and 4 have been pushed back to a Thursday, Feb. 26 first-round start instead of the originally scheduled Tuesday, Feb. 24, due to the cleanup necessary following nearly 2 feet of snow in this past weekend's blizzard called 'Winter Storm Hernando' that blanketed the Garden State.

The first two rounds for both Groups 2 and 4 are now Thursday and Saturday (Feb.28); however, the sectional semifinals and finals remain on schedule for Tuesday, March 3, and Friday, March 6, respectively.

As far as the teams set to go in N1G4, Montclair, which entered this week with a 17-9 record (7-3 for second place in the Super Essex Conference-Colonial Division), has gone a rather pedestrian 4-4 in their last eight regular season games; however, coach Cecil Stinson remains confident about his team’s present standing as it prepares to open N1G4 action hosting 16th-seeded Passaic Thursday night (Feb. 26).

Montclair met Passaic in an independent weekend showcase game on Feb. 1 at Weequahic High School in Newark and roared past the Indians, 76-58.

“We’re not taking anything for granted against any opponent at this point because you have to be well prepared every game, but I think we’re in a pretty good place,” said Stinson, who is a former standout player for the Mounties. “I feel that our schedule has prepared us for this point and we’re healthy heading into the state tournament.

“It’s a tough section, but we can hopefully keep winning on our home court.”

As the top seed in the 16-team bracket, the Mounties enter the NJSIAA event with the potential of hosting four straight state tourney contests if they can continue to emerge victorious. 

Second-seeded Hackensack, third-seeded Union City, fourth-seeded Paterson Eastside, fifth-seeded East Orange Campus and sixth-seeded Bloomfield are among the teams certainly capable of making a deep run in the section, while lower seeds such as 2-time defending champion Ridgewood, a 10th seed, could also factor in.

Although coach Mike Troy’s Maroons graduated 2025 New Jersey Player of the Year Johnny Jackson, the Bergen County team is always a factor to consider come N1G4 state tourney time with five straight appearances in the sectional final.

How vulnerable might the Mounties be? In four games vs. their Super Essex Conference-Colonial Division rivals Bloomfield and Livingston - which is a very capable No. 9 seed in the N1G4 field - the section’s top seed has gone 1-3, including 0-2 vs. the Bengals.

Montclair has not advanced past the sectional quarterfinals in 15 years with the last sectional semifinal appearance being in 2011 which was a 58-51 loss to Paterson Kennedy following wins vs. Vernon and Ridgewood.

Although, Stinson’s team has the potential of having four home games in N1G4, the truth is that state tournament contests do not always go according to form as the Mounties have found out numerous times including when they were last a No. 1 seed in their section in 2013 and were promptly upset by Bloomfield in the quarterfinals.

Looking for a very ‘live’ mid-level seed to emerge as a possible favorite, perhaps fifth-seeded East Orange fits that bill. Coach Gabe Baltimore’s Jaguars, who have gone through the rigors of a very challenging schedule in and out of the SEC’s top division, the American, may have the best credentials entering the 2026 N1G4 tourney even with a rather pedestrian-appearing 13-12 record.

The Jaguars, who feature one of the best players in section in 6-2 junior guard James Roberts plus a number of other quick backcourt performers, will likely have to first get past fourth-seeded Paterson Eastside in order to earn a berth in the sectional semifinals on March 3, perhaps at top-seeded Montclair; however, perhaps working in EOC’s favor is the fact it already owns a 54-41 victory over the Ghosts back on Dec. 29 in the Paterson-based Jingle Bells Jubilee.

For the Mounties to make a deep run in this season’s N1G4 tourney they will have to continue to receive strong efforts from their core rotation players since there is not much depth on the team.

Seniors Mason Determann (15.8 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game), La’Mear Singletary (15.2 ppg, 5.8 rpg and 2.8 apg) and Mez Okaro (5.8 ppg, team-leading 7.2 rpg), juniors Cody Nesbitt (10.9 ppg, 6.8 rpg and 3.2 apg) and Samad Jiles (5.8 ppg) and sophomore Josiah Brown (7.5 ppg) are all important contributors to the success of the 2025-2026 Mounties, who finished just behind Millburn (21-4, 8-2) in second place in the SEC-Colonial Division.

Montclair did defeat the Millers twice (75-71, in 2 overtimes, back on Jan. 6, and then 54-50, Feb. 3, in Millburn. Two losses to Bloomfield and one to Livingston doomed Montclair’s conference title hopes.

Bloomfield (17-8), behind the guidance of veteran coach Mike Passero, has come on strong of late and has a dynamic backcourt led by the high-scoring AJ Cruz, steady all-around contributor Sean Perrotta and Asaad Majuta.

The Bengals host an improved 11th -seeded West Orange, a finalist opposite in the Essex County Invitational Tournament, in their first-round contest.

Livingston (13-11, 6-4), which is led by its coach Joe Gill and top performers in guard Sage Kornreich and forward Daniel Gbadamosi is at 8-Mount Olive in what could be an intriguing 9-8 first-round game.  

Along with 10-Ridgewood another Bergen County school to keep an eye on is second-seeded Hackensack which gave state-ranked St. Mary’s of Rutherford a decent game in a 66-60 loss to the Gaels in the Bergen Jamboree quarterfinals.

Coach Aarn Taylor’s Comets, who are always a team to be reckoned with in N1G4, feature two dynamic seniors in forward Marcos Estrada and guard Jamiko Smith.

North 1, Group 4 Tournament first round, Thursday, Feb. 26:
16-Passaic at 1-Montclair
9-Livingston at 8-Mount Olive
12-Memorial at 5-East Orange Campus
13-Fair Lawn at 4-Paterson Eastside
14-Kearny at 3-Union City
11-West Orange at 6-Bloomfield
10-Ridgewood at 7-Morristown
15-North Bergen at 2-Hackensack

Sectional Quarterfinals, Saturday, Feb. 28; semifinals, Tuesday, March 3; final, Friday, March 6