CALDWELL, N.J. -- All season long, Caldwell men's basketball has been led by its frontcourt tandem of senior Derrick Bueno (Palisades Park, N.J.) and junior DeAngelo Horn (Castle Rock, Colo.).

Tonight, with a CACC Tournament berth on the line, it was the guards' turn to take center stage.

Paced by junior guard Kirk Parsons (Newark, N.J.), who had a career-high 22 points, and senior backcourt mates Mark Heber (Paterson, N.J.; 20 points) and Melvin Evans (Bronx, N.Y.; 18 points, eight assists), Caldwell earned the final spot in the CACC North with a hard-fought 91-82 triumph over a feisty Wilmington squad (9-19 overall, 6-9 CACC) at the Newman Center on Tuesday night.

The Cougars rallied from an early deficit to take 37-30 halftime lead, finishing the first on an 11-4 run on a three by Heber, jumpers by Parsons and sophomore swingman Jaiden Williams (New York) and layup by freshman guard Jaryn Bull (Bronx, N.Y.). They extended their advantage to as much as 16 at 71-55, a 12-3 run capped by Evans' layup bolstering the Cougars' edge with 8:25 to play.

But the Wildcats rallied, twice getting their deficit down to seven, the last time at 77-70 with 4:02 left before a backbreaking three by Parsons, capping seven straight points by the sharpshooter, re-established a double digit lead. Parsons then went six of six from the line down the stretch to salt away the game.

Caldwell (17-10, 8-7 CACC) will take on South #1 Jefferson in Philadelphia on Tuesday, March 4, at 7:30 p.m. in the CACC Tournament quarterfinals, after completing the regular season on Saturday vs. Bloomfield at 3 p.m. on Senior Day, when Bueno, Heber, Parsons and Yarden Ashkenazi (Eliat, Israel) will be honored (the latter two are juniors but graduating and not planning to return in 2025-26).

Williams added 13 points and Bueno had 10 to go with a game-high nine rebounds, as Horn missed the game with an injured ankle.