After a year away due to COVID-19, summer league basketball returns to Hudson County - nj.com

The familiar sights and sounds of spectators around the gates and basketballs pounding off the outdoor tiles have returned to Hamilton Park in Jersey City.

After a year away due to the COVID-19 pandemic, high school summer basketball leagues have returned across the state. As the country continues to re-open amid dropping positive test results, the return of this summertime staple to Hudson County has been much appreciated for players and spectators alike.

"Everybody looks forward to this — the teams and especially the community," said Pat Devaney Sr., who runs the Hamilton Park Summer League, which is now in its 18th season. "The community loves this. They all come up to us and say 'Thank god you're back and things are coming back to normal. We love it when you guys are here.' They just put a new court down. This park is gorgeous and the people here open up their arms to us."

"It feels great to get back to things returning to a little more normal," said Lincoln High girls basketball head coach Tom Best, who runs the Jersey City Recreation high school girls basketball league. "Everybody's happy to be there and getting back to normal. I know the kids are happy, the coaches are happy and the parents, too."

The 17-team league, which started play on June 21 and runs through Aug. 20, once again features nearly all the county's top girls basketball squads, including Hudson Catholic, Bayonne, Union City and St. Dominic, as well as a strong group of nearby North Jersey squads headlined by Montclair Immaculate and Teaneck.

With some coronavirus restrictions still in place, the league has found a new home at Berry Lane Park after holding games indoors in previous years. Best knows some might prefer the climate-controlled environment, but the potential discomfort pales in comparison to the benefits players and coaches are enjoying by having a more normal offseason.

The absence of summer and fall leagues a year ago were felt last winter when teams entered the abbreviated high school season without the chemistry and added experience normally gained during this time.

"I always felt the summer league was really important for us and other urban kids that don't really get the chance to play AAU," Best said. "It really helps us to get together in the summertime and get that chemistry. Summer league is very important to us."

"The summer was pretty much non-existent last year for everyone," said Bayonne High boys coach Ben Gamble. "It's refreshing that the kids are back out there, and I like it because it's the old school. It's playing outdoors at a unique environment and playing really hard at sometimes-adverse conditions."

Gamble is also the director of the new Hudson County Basketball League (HCBL), which is commissioned by the Hudson County Board of Commissioners and the Hurley Family Foundation.

Gamble, and Bayonne girls coach James Turner are hosting multiple boys and girls leagues at Stephen Gregg Park in Bayonne and Lincoln Park in Jersey City. Among the leagues is a boys varsity league that will play on Wednesday nights from July 6 to Aug. 25 and includes Bayonne, North Bergen, Memorial, Ferris and McNair.

Hamilton Park began its season on June 7 and remains one of the state's most competitive high school summer leagues.

County powers St. Peter's Prep and Hudson Catholic headline a loaded league that includes Patrick School, Gill St. Bernard's, St. Joseph of Metuchen, Irvington, Watchung Hills, Westfield and Union. Local squads Lincoln, Dickinson, Snyder and Memorial are also a part of the 22-team league, which runs through Aug. 12.