HAMILTON — The doors were shut on the battle for Mercer County supremacy. No more fans were allowed into the building at 175 Leonard Avenue with more than an hour until tip-off between archrivals. It was a completely packed house for the showdown between Trenton and Thrive Charter Academy. And by the time the fourth quarter ended, the door also shut on who is the best NJSIAA boys basketball team in Mercer. That title belongs to Thrive Charter, the defending Group I state champion, which smothered Trenton in the second half to pull away for a 72-59 win Monday night at the Iron Palace. “We’re looking for the top teams in the state right now, so that’s who we’re really preparing for,” said junior guard Sean Turner, who led Thrive with 17 points. “This game is gonna get us closer there and just show them we’re not the same level of these types of teams from around here.” The hype coming into the game was that Trenton (9-4), clearly the top team in the CVC after beating Ewing by double digits 11 days earlier, had more than a puncher’s chance. The Tornadoes’ only three losses were to teams ranked in the top 13 in New Jersey. But Thrive (11-2) has also played a tough schedule in the BCSL. The Titans’ two losses are to top-seven teams. And more than being battle-tested, they simply had too much depth for Trenton to counter — and they knew it coming into the game. “They were talking crazy before the game,” said senior forward Javion Cesar-Jones, who had 16 points and came up with huge offensive rebounds for Thrive. “We were just quiet, laughing. We don’t give nobody any reactions. We just play basketball.” Thrive Charter’s Sean Turner puts up a shot against Trenton High during a NJSIAA boys basketball game on Monday, Jan. 19, 2026 at the Iron Palace in Hamilton Twp. (Kyle Franko/ Trentonian Photo) Asked for what separates Thrive from Trenton, Cesar-Jones didn’t hold back. “They do internet; we don’t do the internet,” Cesar-Jones said. “We work hard, we don’t talk, and we just play our brand of basketball.” They showed it by forcing a whopping 21 turnovers and holding Trenton to about 40 percent shooting from the field. The key was to play a “heavy gap” defense, Cesar-Jones said, in which Thrive covered open spaces to prevent Trenton stars Aivaye Ingram and Juan Sanchez from getting shots off. Those two players combined for just 21 points. Jaydon English-Fulton had a team-high 18 points for Trenton, but he didn’t have enough support and Thrive had too much weapons. Tyler Hammond complemented Turner and Cesar-Jones with 15 points including three 3-pointers. “We work hard in practice,” Turner said. “We knew they had two players — Juan and Aivaye — averaging 20 points. So our main goal was to stop them and let the other ones beat us.” On the other end, Thrive seemed to always have an answer for Trenton’s traps and double teams with fluid ball movement. The Titans practice against that, too, Turner said. While missed shots slowed the team down at times, Thrive clung to a six-point lead at halftime and then stepped on the gas with an 18-8 third quarter. The Titans led by as many as 23 points when Marjon Skillman flushed a dunk off a steal and assist by Turner with 4:44 left in the fourth quarter. “We came up here (the locker room) and we had a long talk about how they’re not gonna let up,” Turner said. “Just because we’re up, they’re not gonna let up. So we had to come out even harder with more momentum, more energy, and we just had to step on their throat and finish it.” “We stayed together,” Cesar-Jones added. “We knew we were going to win, and we knew it was going to get worse and worse. And we knew they were going to quit. That’s what we wanted them to do — quit.” Thrive Charter’s Marjon Skillman dunks the ball against Trenton High during a NJSIAA boys basketball game on Monday, Jan. 19, 2026 at the Iron Palace in Hamilton Twp. (Kyle Franko/ Trentonian Photo) In addition to Thrive’s stingy defense, another key was Cesar-Jones’ craftiness in the paint. He was the one Thrive player who consistently drew fouls, shooting nine free throws and knocking down six. “Our coach preaches ball fakes when we get to the rim,” Cesar-Jones said. “Every time we get to the rim, pump fake, so I put that in my head every time I got to the rim.” He had help from Turner, who netted 13 points in the second half and was a key ball-handler against Trenton’s pressure. The Hamilton West transfer has earned a spot in the starting lineup and is loving every minute of his new school. “Get in the spotlight, better opportunities, better teams to play,” Turner said. “Win more, basically.” “He’s a good player,” Cesar-Jones said. “He definitely helps in the backcourt to help me bring the ball up. I definitely love my boy, and we’re only going to keep taking steps and steps.” Thrive wants to keep taking steps toward repeating as Group I champion. The Titans are ranked 18th in New Jersey and want to reach at least the top 10 by the end of the season, Cesar-Jones said. So in their minds, Trenton — despite all the hype — was merely a speed bump. “We knew that we were going to come in here and do what we had to do to get rid of them,” Cesar-Jones said. Trenton High’s Aivaye Ingram, center, tries to rip the ball away from Thrive Charter’s Jamar Young, right, and Germain Bryson, left, during a NJSIAA boys basketball game on Monday, Jan. 19, 2026 at the Iron Palace in Hamilton Twp. (Kyle Franko/ Trentonian Photo) TRENTON (59) English-Fulton 5-8-18, Ingram 2-4-9, Sanchez 2-2-12, Smith 5-2-12, Ramos 2-0-4, Cummings 1-0-2, Graffie 1-0-2. Totals — 20-16-59. THRIVE CHARTER (72) Page 3-0-8, Skillman 4-0-8, Cesar-Jones 5-6-16, Hammond 5-2-15, Young 3-2-8, Turner 7-3-17. Totals — 27-13-72. Trenton (9-4) 15 16 8 20 — 59 Thrive Charter (11-2) 22 15 18 17 — 72 3-point goals: Sanchez 2, Ingram (T), Hammond 3, Page 2 (TC). ...read more read less