It has been a tough 2014-’15 for the High School North and High School South boys’ basketball teams, but with about a third of the season remaining, there’s still time to turn it around, especially for the Pirates. At 4-10, South lost its first eight games to start the season, including a tight 50-49 loss to South Brunswick on December 30. The Pirates also had to face off against the still-undefeated Ewing, 13-4 Notre Dame, and 12-3 Hamilton West.
For first-year head coach Mike Sheehan, the start was not ideal, but he and his players aren’t getting down on themselves.
“We had a very tough schedule to start the season,” he said. “Some tough losses. Despite the rough start, though, the guys have been persevering, progressing, and getting better. That’s what I’m happiest with.”
It’s evident on the stat sheet. South has won four of its last six, including an 80-66 victory over North on January 30. The two schools face off again at North on Tuesday, February 10, followed by match-ups against Trenton, Princeton, Nottingham, and Bordentown.
“We’re making sure we’re as prepared as we can be,” Sheehan said. “When we look too far ahead, that’s when we get into trouble. You start neglecting other games and taking them for granted.”
He said the team is working on defensive and offensive patience.
“We weren’t defending well earlier in the season,” he said. “We’ve done a better job recently. We’re working to get some better shots, but the biggest areas are defending and rebounding. They’re learning to not be too upset and to respond a little bit better.”
At the start of the season Sheehan noted that he expected sophomore Jonathan Kline and seniors Tommy Hussong and Danny Borup to take on leadership roles, and they have done just that.
Hussong leads the squad with 223 points, followed by Borup at 181 and Kline at 171. The trio has also combined for 145 total rebounds.
“It’s hard to continue to stay positive and keep fighting through this adversity and the losses,” he said. “They’ve really listened and made the effort to grow as leaders. They’re starting play their best basketball. They put a lot of heart and hard work into the team and the program. They definitely have developed as leaders, and they continue to develop.”
Everyone, though, has grown, added Sheehan. Senior John Lappetito has stepped up his play underneath the net, gobbling up key throughout this most recent stretch of games and at 95 points on the season, senior Justin Turner is taking more shots. And senior Jinay Amin’s enthusiasm has been one of the team’s key intangibles.
“He is one of the more vocal players we have,” Sheehan said. “His energy on the court has been really important since he’s been inserted into the starting lineup. He’s energetic, vocal — it’s everything a coach wants. He’s very key to our recent success.”
The end of the regular season is approaching, so the county and state tournaments are on the horizon, but for now, Sheehan and his squad aren’t thinking about any of that.
“We haven’t had the season we expected to have, but I think just focusing on getting better and maintaining a positive attitude is important,” he said. “We have some big games and some opportunities to beat good teams. Being able to handle the adversity we’re facing and continuing to stay positive and working hard is really what we’re working on.”
North has a little bit more ground to cover. The Knights have yet to notch a win at 0-14, though they have come close. Five of their losses have come in a single-digit point differential.
The squad finished last season at 6-17, and there is still time to best that record. But the loss of graduates Juwan Harrison, Xavier Dory, Nigel Jordan, and Isaiah Powell has hit hard, as expected.
“We lost a lot of varsity experience from last year,” head coach Tim Stevens said. “We are struggling to deal with how to make adjustments at the varsity level. The players are playing hard every night and are taking the necessary steps to improve in this aspect.”
A trio of juniors has helped fill the gap scoring-wise. Winston Delk has 104 points on the season, while Miles Gordon has racked up 98. Pat Zeoli has netted 81.
Defensively, the Knights set out to pressure their opponents more, which Stevens said has led to more turnovers and scoring opportunities.
“Each night different players are stepping up,” he said. “In order to achieve the success we know we can, we need to have a complete team effort every night. As a group, we have had our best performances with multiple players sharing the workload.”
South defeated North 80-66 on January 30. Points for North: Saubhagya Balyan, 2; Winston Delk, 9; Miles Gordon, 34; Jared Mann, 2; Kevin Murphy, 6; Hashim Rahman, 2; Malik Thompson, 6; Pat Zeoli, 2. Points for South: Jinay Amin, 3; Danny Borup, 20; Tommy Hussong, 25; Jonathan Kline, 13; Justin Turner, 17; Daniel Wang, 2.
#b#North#/b# (0-15): A 78-49 loss to Ewing on January 23. Points: Delk, 14; Tristan Dunn, 7; Ajeet Malhotra, 5; Mann, 8; Rahman, 2; Thompson, 4; Zeoli, 9.
A 55-34 loss to Nottingham on January 28.
A 55-42 loss to Lawrence on January 31. Points: Balyan, 2; Delk, 6; Gordon, 12; Murphy, 6; Thompson, 14; Zeoli, 2.
A 60-58 loss to Princeton on February 3.
#b#South#/b# (4-10): A 68-59 loss to Trenton on January 23.Points: Borup, 14; Jaffer Hashmi, 2; Hussong, 20; Kline, 15; John Lappetito, 8.
A 57-40 win over Robbinsville on January 28. Points: Amin, 15. Borup, 12; Hashmi, 1; Hussong, 16; Advaita Kadiyala, 2; Turner, 14.
A 63-54 loss to Pennington on January 31. Points: Amin, 7; Borup, 8; Hashmi, 1; Hussong, 18; Kadiyala, 6; Kline, 9; Lappetito, 4; Turner, 1.
