The Shawnee Renegades won their first Group 4 state championship since 1996 with a 54-50 defeat of Passaic. Free throw shooting was the key as the Renegades scored all 18 of their 4th quarter points from the free throw line in their championship conquest.

"The gods of basketball turned things around for us," said Shawnee coach Joe Kessler after carrying his team to their fourth state title since 1992. "We were only a 65 percent free throw shooting team from the line this year, and the kids realized that this was crunch time. They got the job done."

Junior Zach Martin's 17 points carried the Renegades. Henriek Nielsen added 11 points, and Brett Johnson and Bill Kurtz each added 9 to the offensive.

After the Renegades jumped out to an 11-1 lead on Passaic midway through the first quarter, Passaic trailed just 21-18 at the half. Shawnee extended that lead to 9 points, taking a 36-27 lead into the final quarter. After Passaic made a 6-0 run in the middle of the fourth quarter, but Shawnee kept their composure and hit their free throws when Passaic sent them to the line.

"We had really been working hard on our free-throw shooting because Coach (Kessler) kept telling us that one of our games could come down to this," said the 6'5" Martin, who took home MVP honors. He was right."

The Group 4 champion Renegades will now take on Group 1 champ Florence on Friday night in the first round of the Tournament of Champions. The Renegades won the TOC crown in their first appearance back in 1992.

Congratulations to Camden Catholic! The Fighting Irish dethroned the 5-time defending Group A state champion Seton Hall Prep Pirates to win their first ever state crown.

The Fighting Irish were led to the title by 6'8" junior Will Bakanowsky, 6'4" sophomore twins Nick and Eric Cangelosi, 5'10" guard Pete Adams, and steady Brian Gallagher. Camden Catholic also boasts coach Jim Crawford, who is as good as they come in the state.

"The kids have learned lessons all season long," said coach Jim Crawford. "For such a young group, I'm so proud of these kids and what they've accomplished. If we win the Tournament of Champions crown, I won't know what to say."

The Fighting Irish begin that quest on Friday versus Weequachic, the state Group 2 champions who defeated Pleasantville for their crown.

The Florence Flashes became back-to-back Group 1 state champions with a 41-35 victory over Cresskill at the Louis Brown Athletic Center at Rutgers University. The Flashes overcame a 3-point halftime deficit to snatch the championship with strong second half play.

Florence was led by another amazing performance from 6'9" senior Dave Keeley. Keeley scored 19 points and pulled down 18 rebounds in earning MVP honors. Sophomore Jorron Jenkins scored 10 points in the win, and guard Steve Ordog scored just 4 points, but 2 of those came on free throws after Cresskill cut Florence's lead to 36-35 with 1:15 left in the game. Warren Miller and Jeff Dankanich each also scored 4 points in the contest.

"This one was tough tonight," said Florence coach Art Bobik, with exhausted enthusiasm. "Our kids had me scared to death, but they came through in the second half. They really came through. Unbelievable!"

"We couldn't get into a rhythm early in the game," said Keeley. "They played us tough and frustrated our offense. They were double teaming me and I wasn't seeing the ball too much, but I knew Coach (Bobik) would make changes in the send half."

Florence outscored Cresskill 28-19 in the final two quarters after trailing 16-13 at the half to lift themselves to the 6-point victory. The two-time defending Group 1 state champions will now face Group 4 champion Shawnee in the first round of the Tournament of Champions on Friday.

Congratulations Coach Bobik and the Flashes on a job well done.