St. Joseph’s Alijah Murphy (21 points) and St. Thomas Aquinas’ Dan Jennings (22 points) were chosen GMC Hoops Players of the Game in the contest between the Falcons and the Trojans at Maglio Gymnasium in Metuchen on January 6th.
GMC Hoops got back on the boys basketball trail on Tuesday, January 6th, with a trip to Maglio Gymnasium for the rivalry contest between St. Joseph’s and St. Thomas Aquinas.
In a Greater Middlesex Conference Red American Division clash, St. Joe’s outscored Aquinas by a margin of 16-4 in the third quarter to turn a 25-23 halftime deficit into a 39-29 lead heading into the fourth.
Led by senior guard Alijah Murphy on offense and sophomore center Joel Patrick on defense, the Falcons (7-0) put together a decisive 16-4 run in the third quarter to turn a 25-23 halftime deficit into a 39-29 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Murphy finished with a team-high 21 points, while teammate Imaad Johnson added 14. Andrew Kretkowski had a strong second half to finish with 11 points. Dan Jennings led Aquinas (3-5) in a losing cause with a game-high 22 points. Both Murphy and Jennings were selected as GMC Hoops Players of the Game.
St. Joseph’s: Alijah Murphy
The Falcons’ 6’0” senior guard scored a team high 21 points in a 61-45 victory over rival Aquinas. Murphy tallied his 21 points on 9 field goals and a perfect 3 of 3 from the foul line. Through seven games, Murphy is averaging 15 points per contest. A year ago, Murphy led the team in scoring as a junior. This year, he has plenty of help, but still ranks second on the team in scoring.
St. Thomas Aquinas: Dan Jennings
Jennings, a 6’1 senior guard who played his first two years at St. Joseph’s, wasn’t in awe of the always raucous atmosphere at Maglio Gymnasium. As a matter of fact, he did a lot to keep things quiet in the first half when the Trojans took a 25-23 lead. Jennings scored a game-high 22 points on 8 total field goals, including two threes, and 4 of 6 from the foul line. He also collected 4 rebounds, an assist, and a steal. So far this season, Jennings is averaging 14.6 points per game in 7 contests after suffering an injury against Franklin at the 2025 FOSA Games that sidelined him for two weeks.