Bishop Ahr Raising Its Play To Another Level

Trojans Have Won Seven Straight And 9 Of Last Ten With Victory Over Metuchen On Saturday

NORTH EDISON, NJ–Special things are starting to happen over at Bishop Ahr. A team that had started the season at 1-3 thanks to a tough non-conference schedule that included Union, Rutgers Prep, and Roselle Catholic, is now on the comeback trail. Since losing to Carteret earlier this month, the Trojans have won seven straight, and are now in the driver’s seat once again in the GMC Blue. BGA is looking for at least a share of its fourth straight division title.

Ahr, which has won 9 of its last 10 games, has defeated such teams as #8 Colonia (41-39) on January 3rd, previously ranked J.F. Kennedy (79-59) on Martin Luther King Day, #5 Cardinal McCarrick (72-66) on January 22nd, and previously ranked Carteret (68-60) this past Friday night. The Trojans have also solidly beaten Metuchen twice. BGA, which was unranked two weeks ago, has dramatically jumped into the fourth position in the latest GMC Hoops Top Ten. The Trojans are now 8-1 in conference play including a 6-1 mark in the Blue Division.

The Trojans have a good blend of athleticism and size with the likes of the Kilgore brothers: Rashad and Roger, who both also stood out during football season. In addition, there is seniors Ryan Blakely and Pat Widdoss, and two other football standouts in Kenny Virden and North Brunswick transfer, Dillon Salva. Salva just got into the lineup recently, and hasn’t waited long to make an impact with solid efforts against McCarrick and Carteret. Salva’s addition gives Ahr a good deal of depth down low, and allows head coach, Dennis O’Keefe to rest Rashad Kilgore and Widdoss more.

Blakely, who scored 11 against McCarrick last week, turned in a career high 16 points including three treys in the victory over Metuchen. He also had nine in the win over Carteret while Roger Kilgore, who scored 23 in the win over McCarrick, pumped in 18 against the Ramblers. Widdoss put together a double-double of 10 points and 17 boards against Carteret while Salva, who registered 10 off the bench against the Ramblers, scored 15 including a dunk and a three pointer against Metuchen. The Trojans, which have been averaging over two made threes per game, went 9 of 14 from beyond the arc in the win over Metuchen on Saturday.

Last year, the Trojans earned a third seed in the GMCT with quality crossover wins against East Brunswick and Cardinal McCarrick while winning the GMC Blue. However, their hopes of advancing past the GMCT Elite Eight for the first time since winning it all in 1992 were dashed by a surging 14th seeded North Brunswick. This year, BGA is hoping for a better run in the tourney this year.