Boys Basketball: 2008 Wayne Valley Season In Review

Section I, Group III Semifinals: Scotch Plains 71, Wayne Valley 58: Bryan Dougher, a 6-foot-1 senior shooting guard headed to Division I Stony Brook, hit five 3-pointers, was 10-of-10 from the line and poured in a game-high 33 points as Scotch Plains-Fanwood ended the Indians season. Wayne Valley received strong performances from sophomore point guard Jason Rosenberg, who had 13 points, seven assists and three steals. Senior center Chris Pantale with 13 points and six rebounds. Nick Siljee and Paul Siljee had 13 and 11 points respectively.

Valley, normally a strong three-point shooting team behind the Siljee brothers, managed just one three-pointer (by Paul Siljee) in the first half and three all game against a physical defense. Scotch Plains led practically throughout, but Valley did cut the lead to six early in the 4th period, 51-45. Scotch Plains answered with a 9-0 spurt to push the advantage to 60-45 with 3:48 remaining.

"We got it down to six and then we took some stupid shots," Paul Siljee said.


Valley finished 20-10. It was only the fourth time ever the school eclipsed the 20-win mark. They finished 20-4 in 1987. They finished 21-7 in 1997. Last year, they turned in a 21-9 mark.


"The season was a huge success," Valley coach Joe Leicht said. "The kids played hard right to the end. We won a sectional championship, which was fabulous especially with the competition that we play. I'm very, very proud of the kids."

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3/3/08: Section I, Group III Championship: Wayne Valley 48, West Milford 45, By Skiffo Drake: Sophomore Jason Rosenberg's steal, layup and subsequent foul shot with 5 seconds left broke a 45-45 tie and gave Valley the championship. It was Valley's third such crown ever (1985 & 1997). Wayne Valley was in the sectional final last winter, but lost to Passaic Valley.

Wayne Valley (No. 10, 20-9) held a 45-29 lead with 3:26 left in the third quarter, but was shut out for 11:21 as West Milford ran off 16 straight points.

After Nick Siljee missed a 3-point attempt with 1:50 left, Highlander coach John Finke instructed his team to hold for a last shot. The Highlanders finally called a timeout with 15.1 seconds left, and when they went back on the floor Finke thought his team had the perfect play to win the game. Mac Morando was to enter the ball to Chad Houser on the foul line. Houser would drive to the basket for a potential game-winning basket. But Rosenberg had different ideas. He stole the ball from Morando and drove in for the game winner. Morando fouled him on the way up.

"We had just started the screening process and Rosenberg stole the ball," Finke said. West Milford (No. 1, 21-6) had a chance in the waning seconds, but a 3-point attempt was blocked out of bounds by Nick Siljee with .01 showing on the clock.

"It's a good thing we built that early lead," Rosenberg said. "When they got the ball with time running down, I thought, 'Don't let them score.' This is unbelievable. It's been 11 years since our last championship."

Nick Siljee paced Wayne Valley with 16 points and six rebounds. Paul Siljee added 14 points and eight boards. Rosenberg concluded the action with 9 points and 5 assists. Chris Pantale had 7 points and 9 rebounds. Nick Resavy had 23 points for West Milford, including 11 points during the run. Chad Houser and Jason Sofman chipped in with 7 points apiece.

Wayne Valley will take on Scotch Plains-Fanwood in the Group 3 state semifinals Thursday at East Orange Campus at 7:30. Neither the 1985 nor the 1997 Valley teams advanced past the State Semifinal. The 1985 team beat Englewood in the Sectional final, before losing to Rahway in the State Semifinal. The 1997 team beat River Dell in the Sectional final, before falling to Shabazz in the State Semifinal. Joe Leicht, WayneValley’s head coach, was the Indian Hills coach that year. Valley beat Indian Hills in the Sectional semifinal.

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3/1/07: Section I, Group IIII Semifinals: Wayne Valley 63, Jefferson 39, By Skiffo Drake: Paul Siljee scored 20 points and Chris Pantale and Nick Siljee scored 15 apiece as Wayne Valley (No. 10, 19-9) advanced to the State Sectional final for the second straight year. Pantale also ended up with 14 rebounds. Jason Rosenberg had 9 assists. Valley will take on top-seeded West Milford in the final Tuesday at Passaic Tech. The Highlanders beat Mount Olive in the other semifinals. Derek Hall had 13 points for Jefferson


"The Wayne Hills (quarterfinal) game Thursday night was as exciting as it was supposed to be," Wayne Valley coach Joe Leicht said. "It lived up to expectations and then some. The kids got to revel in it for one day. Then they had to come out here and play again two nights later. I'm happy about the way they kept their focus."

West Milford center Nick Mellina says that he's looking forward to the game. "It's going to be a test, it definitely is," he said. "We know them well and I'm looking forward to meeting up with their center, (Chris) Pantale. We've been going at it for four years now. Wow, what a finish to senior year, the state finals."

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2/28/08: Section I, Group III Quarterfinals: Valley 52, Hills 47: Two months after the Wayne Hills football team defeated Wayne Valley in the Section I, Group III football championship, the Indians exacted revenge on the basketball court with a victory in the Section I, Group III quarterfinals at Wayne Hills.

"It doesn't really match up with the football game, but we're just glad to get out of here with a win," said Chris Pantale, a tightend on the football team and a center on the basketball team.

"It's a big rivalry," Valley coach Joe Leicht said. "I don't teach at Wayne Valley, but the kids said that's all anybody talked about Thursday. It was a wonderful game. It was a high school atmosphere like it used to be."

Over 1,000 screaming fans crammed into the Hills gym. Chants of "Lets Go Valley" and "Lets Go HIlls" echoed throughout the night.

"It was crazy to just come out here and play in front of all of these people," said Valley's Paul Siljee. "It was the best game of the year atmosphere wise."


Paul Siljee finished with 22 points and 6 rebounds to lead Valley (No. 10, 18-9). Pantale added 11 points, 5 blocks and 6 rebounds. Nick Siljee and Mike DeMoor chipped in with 9 and 8 points respectively. Jason Rosenberg had 6 assists and 4 rebounds. DeMoor had 4 assists.

Chris Fonti led Hills (No. 2, 19-8) with 20 points and 8 rebounds. Justin Hourihan and Joe Russo tallied 10 and 9 points respectively. Hourihan finished with 6 assists. Steve Lequerica, the leading scorer for Hills, was held to just 3 points.

Hills led the back-and-forth struggle by three at the half. But the tone of the game turned for good in the third quarter, when the Indians outscored the Patriots, 14-6, to turn a three-point halftime deficit into a 38-33 lead after three.

Valley pushed its lead to eight points, 45-37 at the 3:06 mark of the fourth, but Hills went on an 10-3 run -- getting 3-pointers from Hourihan and Travis Della Volpe -- to cut the lead to 48-47 with 38 seconds left. But after Nick Siljee made 1-of-2 free throws to extend the lead to 49-47, Della Volpe tried a hard bounce pass to Fonti under the bucket that resulted in a turnover. DeMoor hit 3-of-4 clutch foul shots in the final 9.3 seconds to push the lead to 52-47.

"We lost our poise," Hills coach Jim Catalano said. "We just made bad decisions and got ourselves in trouble passing and screening away from the entry (pass)."

With the win, Valley returns to the sectional semifinals for the second year in a row. They will play at Jefferson (No. 3) on Saturday night.

2/26/08: The Wayne Bowl II: It's Valley Vs. Hills Again, Wayne Valley 53, Old Tappan 43, Overtime, By Skiffo Drake: The months after squaring in the State Sectional Football Finals, Valley and Hills will meet up on the hardwood. The Section I, Group III quarterfinal game between the two schools will take place Thursday night at Wayne Hills (No. 2), the higher seed. The date was made when Valley (No. 10) knocked off Old Tappan (No. 7) in the first round. Hills earned a first round bye.

"That will be fun because I'm best friends with everyone on that (Wayne Hills) team. My mom lives on that side of town so I'm always seeing them, hanging out with them. It's going to be fun," said Valley sophomore point guard Jason Rosenberg.

If Hills beats Valley, they will host either Jefferson (No. 3) or Morris Hills (No. 6) in the semifinals on Saturday. If Valley beats Hills, they will play at either Jefferson or Morris Hills.

Nick Siljee scored a team-high 17 points and 8 rebounds in Valley's win over Old Tappan. Paul Siljee added 14 points and 7 rebounds. Jason Rosenberg had 10 points, 7 rebounds and 9 assists. Chris Pantale had 8 points and 5 rebounds. Valley extracted a measure of revenge for a 2006 State Sectional loss to Old Tappan.

With the game tied at 41, both Rosenberg and teammate Nick Siljee had an opportunity to win the game at the end of regulation. Siljee missed a 3-pointer off the rim, and Rosenberg collected the rebound before missing a short putback jumper in the paint.

"When I missed, it was so frustrating because I knew it was on me," Rosenberg said. "And then my coach (Joe Leicht) said, 'Keep your head up. You're going to kill them this overtime,' so that's what I did."

Rosenberg scored on a driving layup off the opening tip of the overtime. He then added two foul shots to put Valley up, 45-41.

The Indians went into their delay offense with about two minutes remaining, and Rosenberg then alertly found a cutting Nick Siljee for an open layup that pushed the lead to 47-41.

Valley hasn't played Hills since 2004, when the Indians won an independent matchup, 77-70, at VAlley.

"Right now, I'm just happy we got out of here," Leicht said, "but it should be a heck of a game on Thursday."

2/22/08: Wayne Valley 57, Montville 30: Chris Pantale led WV (16-9) past Montville with 18 points and 16 rebounds. Paul Siljee had 16 points. Jason Rosenberg dished out 11 assists. Travis Warech scored 10 points for Montville. Ryan Gajdos added 7.

2/20/08: Wayne Valley 56, Millburn 38: Nick Siljee finished with 27 points and 13 rebounds. Paul Siljee had 15 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists. Mike DeMoor added 7 points. Jason Rosenberg fired off 9 assists.

2/16/08: Passaic County Semifinals: Eastside 77, Wayne Valley 58: Wayne Valley's (No. 10, 14-9) goal of reaching the Passaic County Finals for the second year in a row fell short. Chris Pantale led Valley with 15 points and 9 rebounds. Mike DeMoor and Nick Siljee tallied 13 points apiece. Jason Rosenberg dished out 8 assists. Valley's leading scorer Paul Siljee was held to 8 points, well below his average. Paul Siljee also accounted for 8 rebounds. Nick Siljee collected 6 boards.

A staggering number of fouls were called. Eastside was 21 of 26 from the foul line and Wayne Valley was 19 of 24 in free throws.

Eastside (No. 6) got 20 points from David Robertson. The Ghosts will play top seeded Paterson Catholic in the final Saturday. The Cougars clobbered Kennedy (No. 4) in the semifinal.

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2/15/08: Wayne Valley 60, Newark Westside 56: Paul Siljee poured in 26 points to lead Wayne Valley (14-8). Nick Siljee and Chris Pantale had 14 and 11 points respectively. Pantale and Paul Siljee collected 9 and 8 rebounds respectively. Jason Rosenberg had 5 rebounds and 5 assists.

2/13/08: Passaic Valley 66, Wayne Valley 52: Matt Piccarelli sank five 3-pointers and scored a career-high 22 points for PV (13-7). Shane Lebiedz added 20 points and grabbed eight rebounds for the winners. Mike DeMoor and Nick Siljee paced Wayne Valley (13-8) with 14 points apiece. Paul Siljee added 12 points.

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2/9/08: Passaic County Tournament Quarterfinals: Wayne Valley 54, Passaic 45: Wayne Valley (No. 10, 13-7) is going to the Passaic County semifinals for the second year in a row and for just third time since 1997. They did it by thumping Passaic (No. 2, 15-5). Paul Siljee led the way with 25 points. Chris Pantale had 12 points and 14 rebounds. Nick Siljee had 12 points and 8 rebounds. Jason Rosenberg had 7 assists.

Valley will join three Paterson teams in the semi-finals. They will take on Eastside (No. 6) in the semifinals next Saturday at Kennedy. Eastside beat DePaul (No. 3) in the quarterfinals, spoiling an all-Wayne semifinal matchup between Valley and DePaul. Valley lost to DePaul in last year's final. Paterson Catholic (No. 1) and Kennedy (No. 4) will play in the other semifinal game. This tournament has long been dominated by Paterson schools, last year not withstanding.

"We proved we belong," Paul Siljee said. "Now we want to make a run at the title."

2/8/08: Wayne Valley 70, Orange 63: Nick Siljee knocked down 25 points for WV (12-7). Paul Siljee added 16 points. Chris Pantale had 11. Nick Siljee and Pantale pulled down 7 rebounds each. Jason Rosenberg had 7 points and 10 assists. Mike DeMoor had 8 points, including a key 3-pointer down the stretch.

2/6/08: Wayne Valley 79, West Milford 63, By Skiffo Drake: Jason Rosenberg scored 16 points and dished out 10 assists to lead Valley (11-7).

""He's the fastest point guard I've ever had," coach Joe Leicht said. "And I've had some good ones."

"He got everybody the ball in the right spot," West Milford coach John Kinke said. "He was blowing by us."

Paul Siljee led Wayne in scoring with 27 points. Mike DeMoor added 14 points. Nick Siljee and Chris Pantale had 12 and 10 points respectively.

West Milford (14-3) got 13 points from Chad Houser and 12 from Jason Sofman and Nick Mellina. Nick Solicito and Nick Resavy had 11 points and 10 points respectively.

2/2/08: Passaic County Tournament, First Round: Wayne Valley 66, Passaic Tech 62: Nick Siljee scored 23 points and tore down 8 rebounds as Valley (No. 10) knocked off PCT (No. 7). Paul Siljee had 18 points and 8 boards. Chris Pantale added 17 points. Larry Burroughs had 19 for Tech. Asmar Edwards and Maynard Freeman chipped in with 13 and 12 points respectively. WV will meet up with Passaic (No. 2) in the quarterfinals. WV beat Passaic earlier in the season.

"We played well against them the first time and we didn't have Chris (Pantale, who was nursing a sore knee)," Nick Siljee said. "We're confident we can do it again."

1/26/08: Wayne Valley 59, Hoboken 46: Mike DeMoor knocked down 18 points as WV (9-7) triumphed. Paul Siljee and Chris Pantale contributed 11 and 10 points respectively. Jason Rosenberg and Nick Siljee had 7 points apiece. Vinny Graziani added 6 points. Rosenberg passed out 9 assists. Nick Siljee and Pantale had 8 and 7 rebounds respectively. With the win, Valley clinches a berth in the Section I, Group III State playoffs.

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1/24/08: Wayne Valley 51, Passaic Tech 46: Chris Pantale returned to the Valley lineup and helped the Indians defeat PCT (8-5) by scoring 8 points and pulling down 5 rebounds. The 6-foot-6 center hadn't played since the opener, when he aggravated a knee injury suffered during the football season. Valley was led by sophomore Jason Rosenberg, who tallied a career high 20 points, while dishing out 11 assists. Nick Siljee, another sophomore, added 11 points and 8 rebounds. Paul Siljee contributed 8 points and 7 rebounds. Larry Burroughs led Passaic Tech with 19 points.

Valley will play at PCT again on Feb. 2 in the first round the Passaic County Tournament. Tech beat Valley earlier this season.

1/22/08: West Orange 63, Wayne Valley 54: Paul Siljee had 22 points and 7 rebounds, but Valley (7-7) still lost. NIck Siljee had 11 points and 7 rebounds. Mike DeMoor added 11 points. Jason Rosenberg had 7 points and 10 assists. More Photos

1/20/08: Wayne Valley 61, Ferris 49: Paul Siljee had 19 points 12 rebounds to lead WV (7-6). Jason Rosenberg had 15 points and 9 assists. Mike DeMoor also had 15 points.


1/18/08: Wayne Valley 50, Millburn 30: Paul Siljee had 19 points to lead Valley (6-6). Vinny Graziani added 9 points. Phil Canfield had 7 points.

1/16/08: Newark West Side 57, Wayne Valley 53: Mike DeMoor had 21 points, but WV (5-6) still lost to Newak West Side (7-4). Paul Siljee chipped in with 19 points.

1/12/08: Wayne Valley 49, Clifton 28: Nick Silgee scored 18 points and to grabbed 14 rebounds to lead Wayne Valley (5-5). Paul Siljee added 10 points and 7 rebounds. Vinnie Graziani had 7 points. Jason Rosenberg had 6 points and 10 assists.



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1/10/08: Wayne Valley 68, Passaic Valley 51: Paul Siljee dumped in 26 points and collected 11 boards for victorious Wayne Valley (4-5). Jason Rosenberg had 10 points and 10 assists. Mike DeMoor had 12 points. Phil Canfield added 10 points.

"It came together tonight," WV head coach Joe Leicht said. "When it comes together we can beat good teams like Passaic and like Passaic Valley. We've just got to focus on having things come together each night." The return of injured Chris Pantale, the team's 6-foot-6 center, should help. Leicht wouldn't put a date on the senior's return, but did say it should be "soon."

Shane Lebiedz paced PV (6-3) with 17 points. Joe Mourad added 9 points. Dom Coiro chipped in with 7 points.

1/9/08: Orange 55, Wayne Valley 42: Paul Siljee scored 24 points and Nick Siljee added 14, but Valley (3-5) still lost.

1/6/08: West Milford 83, Wayne Valley 65: Nick Mellina scored 34 points and ripped down 20 rebounds as West Milford (5-1) toppled Wayne Valley (3-3). Chad Houser knocked down 16 points for the winners. Rob Nyland contributed 12 points. Mac Morando dished out 7 assists and scored 8 points. Nick Resavy had 7 points and 11 rebounds. Valley got 32 points from Paul Siljee. Mike DeMoor and Nick Siljee added 10 points apiece. Valley is still-suffering from the absense of 6-foot-6 Chris Pantale, who has been experiencing a discomfort in his knee since football season.

1/4/08: Wayne Valley 68, Caldwell 43: Paul Siljee led the way with 27 points. Brian Carlucci chipped in with 14 points. Jason Rosenberg had 9 points.

12/29/07: Northern Highlands Christmas Tournament: Northern Highlands 64, Wayne Valley 61, OT: Paul Siljee had 25 points and Jason Rosenberg had 19, but Wayne Valley (2-3) still lost in overtime. Mike DeMoor knocked down 11. Siljee ripped down 9 boards. Rosenberg had 8 assists and 3 steals. Nick Siljee had 8 rebounds. David Reyneke had 23 points for unbeaten Northern Highlands (6-0). Taylor Barrise added 20 points.


12/28/07: Northern Highlands Christmas Tournament: Wayne Valley 65, Paramus 36: Paul Siljee and Mike DeMoor had 18 and 17 points respectively to lead Wayne Valley (2-2). Nick Siljee chipped in with 13 points. Vinny Graziani added 8. Jason Rosenberg had 7.

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12/23/07: Wayne Valley 59, Passaic 52: Sophomore Nick Siljee exploded for 29 points to lead Valley to its first win of the year. Paul Siljee contributed 16 points. Jason Rosenberg had seven points and five assists. Passaic's Elvin Morales came in averaging 20-plus points. Against Valley, he was held to 9.

"We had Jason (Rosenberg) on him for the most part," said Valley coach Joe Leicht. "He did a tremendous job slowing him down."

12/17/07: Passaic Tech 61, Wayne Valley 53: Larry Burroughs and Maynard Freeman taillied 12 points apiece as PCT began coach Mike Borman's career with a win. Franklin Reynoso chipped in with 11 points. Asmar Edwards and Jonathan Rodriguez hit for 10 apiece. The Siljee brothers, transfers from Eastern Christian, led Wayne Valley (0-2). Nick, a sophomore, led with 23 points. Paul, a senior, hit for 15, including a 3/4 court heave at the end of the first period. Brian Carlucci added seven points. Valley was playing without its standout center Chris Pantale, who is suffering pain in one of his knees. The senior just signed to play football for Boston College. More Pictures

12/15/07: West Orange 66, Wayne Valley 54: Senior Paul Silgee had 19 points and six rebounds, but Valley still dropped its opener. His sophomore brother, Nick Silgee, had 13 points and six rebounds. Chris Pantale added 12 points and six rebounds. Jason Rosenberg had eight