IRVINGTON, NJ – Nasir Johnson scored 33 points, but it wasn’t enough, as the 22nd-seeded Irvington High School boys’ varsity basketball team fell to 23rd-seeded Nutley, 68-64, in the preliminary second round of the Essex County Tournament on Feb. 4 at IHS.
Pious Palmer had eight points; Reggie Tyndall had six points; Kariem Thomas had five points and Stephon Lee and Kimani Dunbar each had four points for the Blue Knights, who lost their sixth straight game to fall to a 2-15 record.
IHS and Nutley each had a bye in the preliminary first round.
In previous action, the Blue Knights lost to Montclair, 53-39, Jan. 31, in a Super Essex Conference-Liberty Division game in Montclair. Thomas scored 12 points; Johnson had eight points, four rebounds and four assists; Palmer had six points and four rebounds; Andrew Sylvestre had five points and Kevin Kilpatrick had four points and nine rebounds.
Jiair Bucknor had 14 points in the 68-51 loss to Barringer on Feb. 2 in Newark in a SEC-Liberty Division game. Thomas had 12 points on four three-pointers; Nelson Gedeon had 10 points; Lee had six points and Nasameir Brooks had four points.