North Jersey Top 25 girls basketball rankings as division races heat up
Greg TartagliaThe storylines leading up to county-tournament time for North Jersey girls basketball are plentiful.
Immaculate Heart just secured the No. 1 seed in Bergen County – and the top spot in this week’s Top 25 rankings – with a Jan. 22 victory over second-ranked DePaul. The Spartans, who entered the game unbeaten, remain the favorite in Passaic County.
Division races are heating up. Demarest is in control of the Big North National after going 5-0 the first time through the divisional slate. After some early losses to elite competition, Teaneck is back in the picture at 4-1 thanks to a Jan. 20 win at Old Tappan (3-2).
And over in the NJIC, Secaucus emerged atop the Meadowlands Division after winning a battle for first with Eastern Christian, 65-52, on Jan. 23 in North Haledon. That evened the teams’ season series and left the Patriots (6-1 division) one game ahead of EC (5-2) and Hasbrouck Heights (rematch on Feb. 2).
Secaucus now has one of two active North Jersey girls basketball coaches with more than 700 wins. State leader Jeff Jasper of Pascack Valley is nearing 1,150 as his 53rd season rolls on. Longtime Holy Angels coach Sue Liddy (822 wins from 1974-2025) retired last year.
John Sterling entered the week third on the North Jersey list – which includes Big North and NJIC schools – at 708-190. His first 269 wins came at Bogota (1990-2003), followed by 20 more at Wood-Ridge (2005-07) and 419 in 19 seasons at Secaucus (2007-present).
“He’s meant a lot to us,” Patriots senior Gianna Torrillo said after the win at Eastern Christian. “He pushes us really hard, and we really appreciate him in every aspect, on the court and off the court.”
Sterling’s staff also got a boost this season from another former Bogota coach. Assistant Jay Mahoney came to Hudson County after accruing 702 wins leading the Bucs’ boys program.
Top 25 rankings
- Immaculate Heart (12-3)
- DePaul (10-1)
- Demarest (12-2)
- Teaneck (8-5)
- Old Tappan (10-3)
- Ramapo (13-3)
- River Dell (10-3)
- Ridgewood (10-4)
- Glen Rock (12-3)
- Saddle River Day (10-6)
- Pascack Valley (10-6)
- Westwood (10-4)
- Fair Lawn (8-7)
- Northern Highlands (8-6)
- Mahwah (9-5)
- Eastside (10-5)
- Ramsey (9-4)
- Rutherford (9-6)
- Secaucus (11-4)
- Eastern Christian (8-4)
- Ridgefield Park (11-4)
- Passaic Tech (10-5)
- Emerson (13-2)
- Leonia (7-6)
- Dwight-Englewood (10-1)
Also considered: Butler (9-4), Hasbrouck Heights (7-8), Midland Park (11-3), Paramus (13-4), Paramus Catholic (6-8), Waldwick (9-6).
Records through Sunday’s games
