East Orange Campus HS boys’ basketball team tops Orange at 10th Annual OHS M.L.K. Classic

Photo by Steve Ellmore,
East Orange Campus High’s Mario Gunn looks to drive around a Columbia player in the season opener last month. The Jaguars improved to 6-7 with the win over Orange on Jan. 21.

ORANGE, NJ – Izaiah Poole scored 13 points with five rebounds and four assists and Mario Gunn had 11 points and eight rebounds to lead the East Orange Campus High School boys’ varsity basketball team to a 50-47 win over Orange High School during the 10th Annual Orange High School M.L.K. Classic on Jan. 21 in a Super Essex Conference-Liberty Division game.

Nasir Owens had eight points; Justin Singh-Smith had six points and Kaleb Harmon and Kevin Louine each had four points for the Jaguars, who won their third straight game and fourth in the past five games to improve to a 6-7 overall record.

Kyle Robinson led the Orange Tornadoes with 17 points. Rasheed Johnson had 12 points and Rhalik Reid had 11 points for the Tornadoes, who had their two-game winning streak snapped and moved to a 3-9 overall record.

The Jaguars have won both meetings with the Tornadoes this season. EOCHS beat Orange 54-53, Dec. 27 in the Joe Silver Holiday tournament in Hillside for its first win of the season after going 0-5 to start the campaign.

The Jaguars fell to Barriner, 49-39, Jan. 15, at home in a SEC-Liberty Division game. Gunn scored 14 points with 12 rebounds and three blocks; Owens had 11 points; Singh-Smith had six points and four rebounds; and Harmon, Rahmere Kinney, Louine and Shelder Racine each had two points. Xavier Stamps also had three rebounds.

EOCHS defeated Millburn, 62-50, Jan. 17, in a division game at Millburn. Gunn had 12 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks; Singh-Smith had 14 points and five rebounds; Owens had 12 points and three assists; Louine had six points and nine rebounds; Darren Coote had four points and Harmon and Abdul Waggeh each had three points.

Singh-Smith had 15 points and 17 rebounds and Gunn had 13 points and 12 rebounds in the 66-58 home win over Cristo Rey of Newark on Jan. 18 in a SEC crossover game. Owens had 16 points and Poole added 14 points, six assists and five rebounds.

Giovanni Peterkin had 14 points and 16 rebounds to lead the Tornadoes to their second win of the season with a 39-33 home victory over Millburn on Jan. 15 in a SEC-Liberty Division game. Johnson had seven points and six rebounds; Robinson had six points and seven rebounds; James Simeon scored six points and Hassan Hester had three points and four assists.

The Tornadoes then defeated Columbia, 35-33, Jan. 17, at home in a divisional game. Johnson had 17 points; Peterkin scored seven points with seven rebounds; Lou Julien posted four points and 14 rebounds; Hester had three points and three steals; Reid had two points and three steals and Elijah Thompson added two points. Columbia fell to 6-5,

EOCHS will host OHS on Jan. 29 in the third meeting of the season at 7 p.m. Prior to that game, the Tornadoes will host Bloomfield, Jan. 24, at 7 p.m.; visit Union, Jan. 26, at 1 p.m. and host McNair, Jan. 28 at 7 p.m.

EOCHS will host Montclair, Jan. 24, at 7 p.m. and visit Bloomfield, Jan. 26, at 1 p.m.

The OHS girls’ basketball team lost to West Side, 32-28, in the first game of the OHS M.LK. Classic.