By Darren Cooper – North Jersey Sports Columinist
CRESSKILL – Cresskill girls basketball coach Mike McCourt knew Colleen McQuillen was something special when she was playing in his youth basketball camp and she got a bloody nose, but kept on playing.
“Yes, that’s a good story,” McQuillen said, with a smile. “I wouldn’t stop.”
McQuillen was 6 or 7 years old at the time.
“She was a little spitfire even back then,” McCourt said.
Tuesday, the little spitfire became the all-time leading scorer in Cresskill basketball history – boy or girl – passing Matt Henry with a first quarter free throw and finishing with 29 points as the Cougars downed Waldwick, 46-17. She finished the night with 1,816 career points.
Cresskill junior Colleen McQuillen made a free throw for her 1,792nd point, breaking the school’s all-time scoring record for boys or girls. NorthJersey
With a handful of regular season games left, plus two games in the NJIC tournament and perhaps a long run in the state tournament, McQuillen could become just the second Bergen County player to pass 2,000 points as a junior.
Former Saddle River Day star Michelle Sidor is the only one to do so. Sidor is the all-time leading scorer in North Jersey with 3,268 points. Only 13 girls in Bergen County have ever gone over 2,000.
McQuillen doesn’t keep close track of her numbers. Yes, she knew a little bit about Tuesday, because they were going to stop the game for a picture, with Henry and her family there to witness the moment. Her teammates gave her balloons and a sign.
As far as reaching 2,000 points, McQuillen was nonchalant.
“If it happens, it happens,” she said.
On the floor, McQuillen is always happening. She handles the ball for the Cougars when needed. She hustles. She cuts to the basket when the defense comes out on her. She has good range behind the 3-point line. She’s 5-foot-10 and not afraid to rebound or drive to the basket.
“She could probably play for any school in the county,” McCourt said. “If she went to IHA right now, she’d play there in a second and I know [Blue Eagles coach] Steve Silver. [Jeff] Jasper tells me she is the best kid in the county. She is.”
This is the part though where you wonder, Cresskill, isn’t Cresskill a Group 1 school? That’s a small school playing other small schools, meaning, sometimes there isn’t a lot of competition for McQuillen on the floor.
But it only takes a few minutes to watch her play to see McQuillen has game.
“I think sometimes people already know that even though I go to a small school, it’s still a challenge for me,” she said. “When you go to a small school, not too many people focus on basketball, so you become the target. I see a lot of junk defenses, box-and-ones, triangle-and-twos and those are challenges, so I work to get my teammates open shots which eventually opens things up for me.”
McCourt calls McQuillen “self-made,” and it’s fascinating to find out that there is no basket at the McQuillen house. Colleen’s older sister Erin was a Cresskill basketball standout and her twin brother Brian is on the Cougars boys team.
When they want to play ball, they have to make the short walk over to Bryan Park school or the courts on 3rd Street.
McQuillen plans on playing AAU ball this summer. She said colleges have shown some interest, but doesn’t say much more. “We will see how that goes,” she said.
Of course, she wants to go somewhere and play, then maybe become a coach.
That much was evident when McQuillen came out of the game late in the third quarter. Even though her team had a good lead, McQuillen was still heavily involved in the game, cheering for her teammates, congratulating them for good plays.
Yes, it was her night, and she was happy to get the balloons and the cupcakes afterwards, but she shared the moment happily. There are probably more nights like this to come in the next 14 months. Project it forward and, barring injury, McQuillen will likely finish as the second all-time leading scorer in Bergen County girls basketball history.
“None of this is possible without my teammates, they put in just as much work in the season as I do,” McQuillen said. “They work hard and come every day. This isn’t just a personal accomplishment. They got me here, because if they didn’t trust me with the ball, or to make decisions with it I don’t score as many points.”
Bergen County girls basketball all-time leading scorers
Michelle Sidor, Saddle River Day (2019) – 3,268
Anne Donovan, Paramus Catholic (1979) – 2,582
Kerry Dressel, St. Mary-Rutherford (1984) – 2,566
Laura Dougherty, Pascack Valley (1981) – 2,259
Jodi Porro, Rutherford (1986) – 2,245
Dawn Johnson, Lyndhurst (1990) – 2,244
Samantha Fuehring, Immaculate Conception (2015) – 2,188
Alyssa May, River Dell (2007) – 2,157
Nicole Fleck, Wood-Ridge (2012) – 2,100
Christine Sacco, NV/Old Tappan (1993) – 2,054
Kim Beezer, Pascack Valley (1994) – 2,003
Courtney Keegan, Queen of Peace (2007) – 2,003
Sabrina DeFreese, Dwight Morrow (2016) – 2,000
Darren Cooper is a high school sports columnist for NorthJersey.com. For full access to live scores, breaking news and analysis from our Varsity Aces team, subscribe today. To get breaking news directly to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter and download our app. Email: cooperd@northjersey.com Twitter: @varsityace
