Nutley HS girls’ basketball team falls to West Morris in sectional tourney quarterfinals; All-American Blair Watson completes magnificent career

NUTLEY – The Nutley High School girls’ varsity basketball team’s quest to defend its state North Jersey Section 2, Group 3 tournament championship came up short as the 11th-seeded Lady Raiders fell to third-seeded West Morris, 50-43, in the quarterfinals on Wednesday, March 2.

The loss marked the end of Blair Watson’s magnificent career. Watson, a senior guard and McDonald’s All-American, leaves as the school’s all-time leading scorer for both boys and girls.

Watson was held to a season-low 12 points, after scoring a career-high 48 points two nights earlier in the 57-43 win over sixth-seeded and Union County Tournament champion Cranford in the first round.

It was the second time in three years that West Morris ended Nutley’s season in the Section 2, Group 3 tournament. In 2014, West Morris defeated Nutley in a thrilling 63-60 overtime affair in the Section 2, Group 3 championship game at West Morris, in which Watson had 39 points, 11 blocks, 10 rebounds and six steals as a sophomore.

In the quarterfinals on March 2, West Morris led 19-13 at the end of the first quarter and extended it to 31-23 at halftime. The Raiders cut the deficit to 36-31 going into the fourth quarter, but West Morris maintained control to win it.

Sophomore forward Syndey Kunz and freshman guard Courtney Wilde each had 11 points; freshman guard Rebecca Granata had five points and junior guard Jen Callaghan had four points for the Raiders.

NHS, under fourth-year head coach Larry Mitschow, finished the season with a stellar 19-8 record.

Watson this season the girls’ all-time leading scorer for the Raiders, breaking 1999 graduate Kim DiVincenzo Root’s record of 1,602 points, after scoring 27 points in the 59-43 home win over Newark Tech on Jan. 5. Twelve days later, she was named a McDonald’s All-American.

Watson then became the all-time leading scorer for NHS basketball, both boys and girls, surpassing 1988 graduate Marty Higgins’ record of 1,855 points, when she scored 24 points in the 45-41 win at Fair Lawn on Feb. 8.

Watson scored her 2,000th career point in the 49-34 home win over Marlboro on Feb. 22.

Watson, who will play for national powerhouse University of Maryland, finished her career with 2,127 points. This season, she scored 641 points in 26 games played for an average of 24.65 points per game.

Watson will play in the McDonald’s All-American Game on March 30 at the United Center in Chicago. She is the only player from New Jersey selected for the McDonald’s Game.