Separated by just five miles, the rivalry between Fort Lee and Ridgefield Park grows large in just the small amount of space that divides the two New Jersey towns.

It is a rivalry where the Scarlets and Bridgemen simply do not like each other, and on Tuesday night, it was Ridgefield Park that walked away with bragging rights in a 52-40 win.

One of the key components of the victory was the play of Nelson Mendez, the Scarlets' senior forward.  Mendez utilized his inside presence and post-up maneuvers to lead all players with a game-high 24 points.

"Mendez is the best player in the league," said Fort Lee head coach John Ziemba. "He made some unbelievable shots."

"He just gets free and gets open," added sophomore center Anthony Rafes. "He's a good player."

But the upperclassman also had help from a fellow teammate. When the Scarlets looked to Mendez and passed inside, the Fort Lee defense would drop down, leaving senior forward Thomas Gerken open for long-range jumpers. Gerken hit most of his deep shots as he contributed for 15 more Ridgefield Park points.  

"The kid who killed us was Gerken," Ziemba said. "[He] had a couple good looks early and got his confidence."

Gerken and Mendez combined for 12 points in the first quarter, doubling the  Bridgemen's point total at that juncture in the game.

Throughout the night, Fort Lee worked on establishing a new half-court offense in hopes of adding more scoring. In the early games this season, the Bridgemen have scored in the high 30s and low 40s, and the team is looking to add more pop on the offensive end of the floor.

"We have to work on our half-court offense," Rafes said. "We're good on the break but need to work on our half-court offense."

The long-time Fort Lee coach is looking to a spread offense the team ran a few years ago in hopes of opening up some more scoring.

"If we can get up to the mid-40s and play the defense we're playing, we are going to be successful," Ziemba said.

The offense for Fort Lee slowed down in the third quarter, however, as the Bridgemen posted just four points. On the other end of the floor, Gerken rallied for another eight points during that period as Ridgefield Park built a 17-point lead.

Despite trailing by that margin, the Fort Lee Bridgemen continued to play until the final seconds ticked away. Freshman point guard Dashaun Washington scored all 10 of his points in the final quarter, including a cross-over move that brought most of the Fort Lee fans to their feet.

"He is going to be one of the best point guards we've ever had here," Ziemba said of the ninth grader. "He is only fourteen and probably weighs about 90 pounds out there. He's going to be one of the best players at that position that we have ever had."  

After falling to 1-6, the Bridgemen have finished the early part of their schedule and now look forward to a Dumont team that Coach Ziemba says is a lot like his.

"It's two teams that have the same kind of stature," he said. "We just have to go beat them on the road."

That game will be played at Dumont High School beginning at 7 p.m. on Thursday.