It’s a good thing Gerry O’Connor loves basketball.

Over the past month or so, he has been ticket broker, order taker, media relations liaison and all-around organizer for the Scholarship Fund for Inner-City Children Basketball Festival this weekend.

“It’s a lot of work,” said O’Connor, now in his third year of the SFIC, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping inner-city youth attend private and parochial elementary and high schools. “There’s a lot of time I wish the world would just stop so I could catch up. But it’s a fun thing and working with the schools and the people from the schools has been great.”

The SFIC basketball festival is in its eighth year and features some of the best talent not only from around New Jersey but from around the nation. Scotch Plains' own Sterling Gibbs, a prolific scoring point guard for Seton Hall Prep and the younger brother of University of Pittsburgh standout Ashton Gibbs, will lead the 13th-ranked Pirates on Sunday.

St. Patrick’s is rated No. 1 in the country in the Freeman Rankings and No. 2 by MaxPreps. St. Anthony’s, another team that will be on hand for the four-game slate at Kean University on Sunday, is ranked No. 4 in the MaxPreps poll.

The girls play on Saturday at Paramus Catholic High School, starting with a 1 p.m. tip between St. Anthony’s and Holy Angels. At 2:45 Paramus Catholic takes on Roselle Catholic, and the day concludes with a battle between 15th-ranked Immaculate Heart and Mount St. Dominic.

On Sunday at Harwood Arena on the campus of Kean University, 13th-ranked (in the state) Seton Hall Prep takes on No. 15 Hudson Catholic at noon. Powerhouse St. Patrick takes on St. Benedict at 2 p.m., followed by St. Peter’s prep and defending state champion Trenton Catholic at 4 p.m. St. Anthony’s and St. Joseph’s-Montvale close out the action at 6 p.m.

While the tournament revenues represent an infinitesimally small percentage of the organization’s needs, O’Connor says it is a thoroughly worthwhile endeavor.

“Last year we brought in around $21,000,” O’Connor said. “Over the year, we need $3 million. But what it does for us is bring us exposure. It helps with awareness for people who normally don’t know about us. It brings new people in. The casual basketball fan will see what we’re all about, that we help thousands of inner city kids. They say, ‘What a great mission. We can support this.’" He later added, the tournament is "more of a friend-raiser than a fundraiser.”

SFIC, which began operations in 1983, provides scholarships (usually amounting to $1,000) to qualifying students to help offset the cost of private schools. Parents may apply for funds from Oct. 1 through Dec. 31. Scholarships are awarded explicitly on financial need. But as O’Connor is quick to point out, that money represents only a fraction of the cost of private educations. The average yearly tuition at a Catholic elementary school is $3,800, while tuition at the high school level is nearly $8,500.

“The families have to make a significant partnership in this,” O’Connor explained. “We wish we could give more, but as it is we have 1,700 students on the waiting list. That’s 1,700 letters I have to write to kids saying, ‘Sorry, but we have no more money.’”

That money comes from a variety of sources, with the organization listing on its Web site "The Star Ledger," Hudson City Savings Bank, White Castle, Investors Savings Bank, the Speedwell Foundation, Knight Capital Group, Acorn Financial Services, the Amelior Foundation, the MCJ Foundation, the Walsh Family and JAG Physical Therapy. The 24-member board also solicits donations from business leaders and corporations. There is an annual dinner that raises more money, and events such as the basketball festival provide other sources of revenue.

Because of the prominence of the teams involved, the SFIC Basketball Festival has grown exponentially, O'Connor said. Last year, for example, people were turned away from the St. Patrick’s-Trenton Catholic game after the 2,700-seat Harwood Arena reached capacity.

It has also helped, O’Connor said, that the venue has changed from St. Peter’s College to Kean.

“St. Peter’s is a great facility to watch a game,” O’Connor said of the Jersey City school. “But there just wasn’t enough parking and it’s not as easy to get to as Kean. You’ve got a train station right there by the school; it’s right off the Garden State Parkway; there’s plenty of parking. Kean has been an incredible partner with us. They’ve bent over backward to make this a first-class event.”

Great Teams, Great Players
The real star power will be showcased at Kean on Sunday. Sterling Gibbs leads No. 13 Seton Hall Prep (5-2) against Hudson Catholic on Sunday. The Maryland-bound 6-2 combo player has scored 20 or more points in six games, including 30 in the season opener. He is a physical and hard-nosed 3-star rated point guard who began as an off-guard. Though a prolific scorer, he has great court vision and runs the offense well. He is especially adept on the fast break. Gibbs is also a tough defender. He chose Maryland over Indiana, Florida, Seton Hall and Pittsburg, where his brother Ashton currently plays.

Teammate Dallas Anglin has also scored in double figures in five games, while Spencer Weisz dished out 10 assists in a game earlier this season.

Top-ranked St. Patrick’s feature’s Kentucky-bound Michael Gilchrist, a 5-star rated, 6-foot-7-inch forward who is ranked as the No. 3 high school player in the nation by rivals.com. Gilchrist has led the Celtics offensively, erupting for 34 points and 13 rebounds in a game this year. But St. Patrick’s is hardly limited to Gilchrist. Plainfield’s Derrick Gordon is a 6-foot-3-inch guard who is also ranked in rivals.com’s top 150 and has garnered a 3-star rating. He poured in 37 in a game this season.

Celtic point guard Chris Martin is being recruited by George Mason, Colorado State and LaSalle.

St. Anthony’s (5-0) features 5-10 point guard/off guard Myles Mack, who will play at Rutgers next year. Mack has scored in double figures in all five Friars’ games. St. Anthony’s has a couple of other dandies in Kyle Anderson and Lucious Jones, each of whom has cracked double figures in four of five games. Anderson is also a potent rebounder and assist man, as well as a shot blocker.

Reggie Cameron is the man to stop for 8-1 Hudson Catholic, ranked 16th in the state. Cameron has hit double figures in all but one game, and is averaging nearly 10 boards a game. Rakwan Kelly is also a prolific scorer, while Travis Flagg is a dish dealer.

St. Benedict (5-2) boasts 6-7 North Carolina State-bound forward Tyler Harris, who has scored 29, 25 and 21 points and has reached double figures in six games. Vaughn Gray and Mike Young also provide plenty of scoring punch.

St. Peter’s Prep (4-2) features three dynamic scorers in Rutgers-bound Keith Lumpkin (on a football scholarship), Division I prospect Kevin Walker and Stephon Whyatt. Lumpkin is a force on the blocks with his 6-8, 300-pound frame. Walker has scored 20 or more three times and is averaging 20 per game. He’s also handed out 11 and 10 assists in a pair of games, and is a solid rebounder. Whyatt has reached double figures in all six games.

Such is the talent overload at this event that defending state champion Trenton Catholic (3-1) is consigned to being just another among an outstanding group of teams. Third-ranked Trenton is led by Ronnie Payden, Brandon Taylor and Charles Cook.

On the girls side, Immaculate Heart brings a 5-0 record into the tourney. That includes handing Holy Angels its only two losses of the season. The 15th-ranked Eagles are led by Raquel Scott. Holy Angels (5-2) is led by Nicole Pepe, but players such as Jaclyn Jerkovich, Jillian Crawford and Melanie Lockett pack plenty of offensive wallop.

Roselle Catholic (6-1) is another premiere team, its only loss coming to unbeaten Morris Catholic by a single point. Melissa Tobie, high on national recruiting lists, leads the way and has scored 20 points or more in four of the Lions’ contests, including a 34-point/10 rebound outburst in a win over Summit.

Paramus Catholic (4-2) is led by sharp shooter Lauren Milligan, who can light it up from beyond the arc.

General admission tickets are $10 and may be purchased by visiting the Web site at http://www.sfichoops.com/tickets.html. Student tickets are available for $5.