Here's what happened at Thursday's 19 Bergen Jamboree, Passaic, BIT boys basketball games

HILLSDALE – Pascack Valley carried its remarkable turnaround into the opening round of the 67th Bergen County Jamboree.

The Panthers opened the boys basketball tournament by defeating Rutherford, 56-44, Thursday night, and that’s eight consecutive wins for an inexperienced team that started the season a discouraging 2-7.

“I think a lot of it had to do with the fact that we really only had two kids back who had varsity experience, so a lot of kids were getting their sea legs under them, so to speak,” Pascack Valley coach Al Coleman said.

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“Balance” is the word to remember for 11th-seeded Pascack Valley (10-7). Seven Panthers scored from five to 12 points Thursday, with Devon Merker scoring 12, including a 3-pointer early in the fourth for a 42-29 lead, and fellow veteran Trevor Kirkby had 11.

Pascack Valley (10-7) gained control with a 13-0 run bridging the first two quarters and a 17-6 lead that never fell below five points. Reserve Liam Higgins beat the first-quarter buzzer with a 3-pointer from the left corner for a 14-6 lead, then opened the second with a trey from the right corner for the 17-6 margin.

“There’s not one guy. We don’t care who scores the ball,” said Merker, whose Panthers face No. 6 Demarest in the Round of 16 on Saturday at 11 a.m. at Tenafly. “We’re just focused on winning, and that’s why we get it done.”

Rutherford (14-3) battled into the final minute. Matt Scheibe worked his way inside for 12 points, as Pascack Valley regularly double-teamed center Matthew Remias (6 points). Noah Pesantez hit a pair of 3-pointers and scored 10 for the 22^nd-seeded Bulldogs, who now compete in the Bergen Invitational Tournament.

(12) Dumont 66, (21) New Milford 43: Freddy Herbst scored 29 and Dino Vasilakis added 14 to pace Dumont (12-5). Jake Johnson scored 15 and Luis Placido 13 as New Milford (14-4) had its winning streak snapped at four. Dumont faces No. 5 Northern Highlands at 11 a.m. Saturday at Northern Highlands.

(9) St. Mary 78, (24) Lodi 45: L.J. Falconi scored 14 and Luke Gaccione and B.J. Cunningham scored 10 apiece for St. Mary (14-3). Will Ndio scored 16 and Jahquin Harrison 11 for Lodi (9-5). St. Mary faces No. 8 Ramsey at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Northern Highlands.

(20) Tenafly 79, (13) Lyndhurst 76 (OT): Tenafly (9-5) became the lowest seed to advance, as Nick Lewin scored 22, Dan Regev 19 and Yuval Guttman 18 in the fourth consecutive win. Anthony Pizzuti scored 28 for Lyndhurst (14-4). Tenafly faces No. 4 Ridgewood at 12:45 p.m. Saturday at Tenafly.

(14) Fair Lawn 66, (19) Dwight Morrow 55: Jianni Moran scored 23, including his 1,000th career point, Tim Smith had 17 and Austin Peluso 13 as Fair Lawn (12-3) stretched its winning streak to seven games. Courtney Howell scored 12 to pace Dwight Morrow (9-6). Fair Lawn faces No. 3 Ramapo at 12:45 p.m. Saturday at Northern Highlands.

Jan 25, 2024; Hillsdale, New Jersey, United States; Rutherford boys basketball at Pascack Valley in the first round of the 67th Bergen County Jamboree. PV #13 Shane Buoye drives to the basket as R #22 Matthew Remias defends.

(10) Teaneck 57, (23) Westwood 47: Mickell Taylor scored 18, Ty Carnegie 14 and Jarrell Harmitt 10 to lead Teaneck (14-5) to its eighth win in nine games.  AJ Batelli scored 11 for Westwood (7-7). Teaneck faces No. 7 St. Joseph at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Tenafly.

(16) Hackensack 68, (17) Glen Rock 54: Nasir Hudson scored 20 and Jamiko Smith 17 to guide Hackensack (9-9) and snap Glen Rock’s six-game winning streak. Mason Mangione and Jack Hattersley scored 13 apiece for Glen Rock (12-5). Hackensack plays No. 1 Don Bosco at 4:15 p.m. at Northern Highlands.

(15) Cliffside Park 46, (18) Dwight-Englewood 40: Jamil Gonzalez led a balanced attack with 13 points for Cliffside Park (10-7). Cliffside Park plays No. 2 Bergen Catholic at 4:15 p.m. Saturday at Tenafly.

Bergen Invitational Tournament

Old Tappan 67, Saddle River Day 63: Isaac Shrager scored 29 and Dylan Drullinsky 24 to carry Old Tappan (6-11). Jackson Reicherz scored 25 and Shawn Spencer 17 for Saddle River Day (5-9). Old Tappan plays New Milford at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Garfield.

Park Ridge 51, Ridgefield 30: Sam Fasola scored 22 and Deron McLaughlin 17 for Park Ridge (10-7). Jason Masarciulo scored 15 for Ridgefield (8-8). Park Ridge plays Westwood at 3 p.m. Saturday at Garfield.

River Dell 39, Bergen Tech 36: In the BIT’s premier first-round matchup, Sean Golden scored 16 and David Nunez 12 to lead River Dell (8-7) to its fifth win in its last six games. Miguel Manalang scored 12 for Bergen Tech (6-11). River Dell plays Dwight-Englewood at noon Saturday at Garfield.

Cresskill 52, Ridgefield Park 45: Omer Tal scored 17 and Jack Hayward 13 to pace Cresskill (9-8) to its fourth win in its last five games. Jordan Impalli scored 15 for Ridgefield Park (7-11). Cresskill plays Glen Rock at 9 a.m. Saturday at Garfield.

Indian Hills 57, Bergenfield 52 (OT): Michael Caso scored 21, Connor Matthews 17 and AJ Franchina 10 to carry Indian Hills (7-8) to its third win in four games. Anthony Vicioso scored 13 for Bergenfield (7-11). Indian Hills plays Lodi at 4:30 p.m. Saturday at Garfield.

Pascack Hills 79, Becton 65: David Weidmuller scored 28, Nick Lukmann 27 and Austin Ellman 16 to guide Pascack Hills (7-6) to its fifth win in six games. Adrian Rozon scored 19 and Cole Thomas 18 for Becton (8-9). Pascack Hills plays Lyndhurst at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at Garfield.

Waldwick 61, North Arlington 53: Andrew Del Rey scored 26 to pace Waldwick (10-7) to its fourth consecutive win. Ibrahim Gabr scored 18 for North Arlington (8-9). Waldwick faces Dwight Morrow at 6 p.m. Saturday at Garfield.

Mahwah 58, Garfield 25: Brian Appiah scored 18 and Mahwah (10-9) dominated the first half. Mahwah plays Rutherford at 1:30 p.m. Saturday at Garfield.

Passaic County Tournament

(15) Manchester 46, (18) Hawthorne Christian 42: Ashawn Johnson scored 15 and Dan Nashed 12 7in the fourth consecutive win for Manchester (9-8), The Falcons next play at No. 10 Pompton Lakes. Joel Walker scored 14 for Hawthorne Christian (3-13).

(14) Passaic Tech 65, (19) Paterson ASA 17: Yohan Nunez scored 13 and Kaiden Rex and Jhoswel Sanchez 12 apiece for Passaic Tech (2-13). Passaic Tech plays at No. 11 Passaic ASA at 1 p.m. Saturday.

(17) Lakeland 72, (16) Eastern Christian 52: Noah Pagan scored 17, Justin Meakem and Tyler Lynn scored 12 apiece and Joe Zonis had 10 to pace Lakeland (3-10). Caleb Chae scored 17 and Lucas Genuario 15 for Eastern Christian. Lakeland plays at No. 9 Clifton at 11:30 a.m. Saturday.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Here’s what happened at Thursday’s 19 Bergen Jamboree, Passaic, BIT boys basketball games