MAPLEWOOD/SOUTH ORANGE, NJ — The Columbia High School boys basketball team finished a stellar season.
The sixth-seeded CHS Cougars defeated No. 11 seed Phillipsburg High School 65-54 in the first round of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association’s North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4 state tournament at home on Tuesday, Feb. 21. Sophomore Shelton Colwell had 17 points and eight rebounds; senior Jalen Robinson had 13 points, 10 assists, five steals and five rebounds; junior Jalen James had 12 points, six rebounds and four steals; sophomore Jayden Myers had 12 points, three assists and two rebounds; junior Jared Carlucci had 5 points; senior Chris Berry had 4 points and five rebounds; and senior Nerlens Jean-Pierre had 2 points and four rebounds for the Cougars.
Columbia then lost at third-seeded Hillsborough 48-41 in the quarterfinals on Thursday, Feb. 23. Robinson, the son of CHS head boys basketball coach Eugene “Bam” Robinson, led the Cougars with 13 points; Colwell and Myers each had 11 points, and Carlucci and Berry each had 3 points.
The Cougars finished with a 19-8 overall record, including finishing tied for second place with Irvington High School in the Super Essex Conference–Liberty Division. Columbia and Irvington each went 9-3 in the division. Caldwell High School won the division with a 10-2 divisional record.
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