(Nov. 1, 2002) ?C Fordham University freshman guard John Blackgrove (River Vale, NJ/Pascack) was named to the 2002-03 Atlantic 10 Men??s Basketball Preseason All-Rookie Team. Blackgrove, a 6-2, 180-pound shooting guard, was named New Jersey??s 2000-01 Gatorade Player of the Year. At Pascack Valley Blackgrove was twice named All-State, including a First Team selection in his senior year, while becoming the first Bergen County player in ten years to be named First Team All-State by the Associated Press and the first to earn consecutive all-state honors since 1990. He averaged a county-high 28.6 ppg as a senior, shooting 90.4% (217-240) from the free throw line, and led the Indians to the their first sectional title, in Group 3, North 1. As a junior, Blackgrove was named Third Team All-State, averaging a county-best 27.4 ppg, shooting 92% (114-124) from the charity stripe, en route to his second county scoring title. Over his high school career, Blackgrove scored 2,237 points, fifth all-time in Bergen County, becoming the first Bergen County player to go over 2,000 career points since 1991. Blackgrove??s father, John, was an All-County player at Bogota in the 1960s who scored 57 points in a 1964 contest which remains the Bucs?? single-game record.