Once a team looking to bust into the conversation as a top ten team in the county, Pascack Valley is now just looking to get back in the win column.

The boys’ basketball team has now fallen to 10-7 on the season, and they have fallen from 15^th to 19^th in the recent Bergen Record ranking of the top 25 basketball teams. However, the numbers do not tell the whole story.

PV has faced some tough tests recently, as they have matched up with some of the better teams in North Jersey, such as Wayne Hills (#6 in the Bergen Record), Bergen Catholic (#4), and Teaneck (#3). The Indians’ do their best to keep the games close, but they have lost to these teams by considerable margins.

“When we play teams that have an big athletic advantage on us we need to play smart basketball,” said senior forward Colin Dedrick.

Valley saw another tough opponent in the second round of the Bergen County Jamboree. St. Joseph (#9), who boasts an 11-7 record and a #4 seed in the tournament, took down the Indians, 77-64. Junior guard Legend Dominguez contributed 19 points in the loss, while other leading scores included fellow junior guard Matt Vasel (13) and senior forward Jon Piccinich (12).

Despite losing, PV proved they could compete with the best of them, keeping the game within single digits for most of the game before entering the fourth quarter. Piccinich played another great defensive game and gave Joe’s a tough time in the paint.

Within all the defeats there was, however, a triumph, and it was an important one for the Indians. Valley took down their greatest rival, Northern Valley Old Tappan, getting their revenge for a 54-51 loss in the season opener.

The junior backcourt duo of Vasel and Dominguez combined for 31 points in the 51-50 win. Dominguez was the big performer down the stretch, hitting the two game-winning free throws.

PV will look to return to their old winning ways, playing as they did against OT. Their upcoming matchups feature two opponents they have beaten earlier in the season in Bergenfield (64-55) and Northern Valley Demarest (63-53).

Vasel has a reputation of being a sharpshooter, especially from beyond the arc. No stat proves that more than his 52 3-pointers made, which is the 4^th best in North Jersey.

Eric Ziccarelli, usually praised for his effort and leadership on defense, has been performing well both ways, backing up his great defensive play with almost 8 points per game over Valley’s last four games.

Dominguez has been on a scoring tear in his last four games, reaching double digits in points in all four contests. Over that stretch he is averaging 13.8 points per game, with his best performance coming against St. Joseph, in which he scored 19.

Alex Lin is an important contributor off of the bench for PV, and his 4.8 points per game in the team’s last five games have been much needed.

Note: The Pascack Valley boys basketball team defeated Bergenfield 66-61 in an overtime thriller, read in next week’s article about a big win for the Indians.