By Dylan Butler
If Pat Torney was asked a couple of weeks ago how he thinks his team will fare this season, the Newtown boys’ basketball coach’s answer would have been drastically different that his response this past week.
After some house-cleaning, which included throwing two players, who were expected to be two key cogs for the Pioneers, off the team because of their attitudes, Newtown is a much younger team.
But following wins over Midwood and South Shore to capture the New Utrecht tournament, Torney’s a lot more optimistic.
“We’re going through some growing pains,” said Torney, whose team went 16-10 last season. “But I can’t fault their enthusiasm and work ethic. Things are starting to fall into place.”
Andre Cole, a 6-foot-4 junior swingman, appears to be the most consistent player, while Bobby Pandy, a 6-foot-5 senior, who exploded for 27 points and 12 rebounds and earned MVP honors in an 81-70 win over John Jay in the Game Over Thanksgiving Classic in Brooklyn Saturday, should be the Pioneers’ go-to player.
Other key contributors include 6-foot-1 Kevin Huggins, a freshman who can play all three guard positions, 6-foot junior swingman Miguel Maria, who hit a key three-pointer in the win over South Shore, 6-foot-3 junior Steve Duran, 5-foot-8 junior Chris Ruiz and 5-foot-6 sophomore Eugene Waldo, who will split point guard duties.
“Depth should definitely be one of our strengths. We should also shoot the ball better and we should be quicker,” Torney said. “We should also do a lot of different things on defense, more than just playing 1-3-1.”
Bryant captured the Queens I-A crown last season as the high-flying Owls scored 85 points per game en route to a 21-3 record before a first-round playoff loss to Midwood.
Gone are Dashawn Warren and Carl Rhodes, who combined for 36 points per game last year. But Bryant returns the borough’s top post player in 6-foot-7 senior Diego Aguiar, who averaged close to 25 points per game. Aguiar is so talented, head coach John Demas says, that he will play small forward on offense, causing instant match-up problems.
Other top players for Demas, in his 15th year as head coach, are 6-foot-3 senior shooting guard Fleans Dervishi, who averaged 12 points per game, and 6-foot-4 senior Brandon Williams, who averaged 10 points per game.
“We’re a more balanced team this year, we can go at least 12 or 13 deep, whereas last year we could only go eight or nine deep,” Demas said. “We’re going to play the same pressure defense and push the ball up on offense.”
What Forest Hills may lack in size, they make up in heady play on he court.
“We play very smart. We move the ball, work hard and play tough defense,” said Rangers second-year coach Isaac Baumfield. “We should be very competitive and we might surprise some people.”
Junior Fuller, a senior point guard, has averaged more than 20 points per game in Forest Hills’ first three games, a pair of wins over Hillcrest and Edison and an overtime loss to Springfield Gardens. Chris Chin, a 5-foot-11 junior, and Garnett Wright, a senior defensive specialist, also started last year for the Rangers, who went 9-15 last season.
Long Island City is one of three teams in Queens I-A promoted from the ‘B’ division and in preparation for a tougher league slate, head coach Harley Watstein has scheduled a tough non-league schedule, including the prestigious Adidas Gobbler/Snowflake Classic at Fashion Institute of Technology in Manhattan.
Watstein expects to have a more balanced scoring attack then last year, when the Bulldogs finished with a 10-11 record.
“No one is going to average more than 14 or 15 points per game,” Watstein said. “We won’t rely on any one player. We have about 10 guys who can contribute, but I think we’re still one year away.”
Featuring 6-foot-1 junior shooting guard Bobby Moore and point guard Cedric Battle — two of last year’s returning starters — as well as 5-foot-4 sophomore Hakim Abarkha, 5-foot-11 junior Russell Keeling and 6-foot-1 sophomore Michael Laboy, a transfer from St. John’s Prep Watstein calls the best all-around athlete on the team, LIC’s depth will be its guard play.
Aviation also makes the jump into the ‘A’ division following a year that saw the Flyers sky to new heights, finishing 23-4 before losing in the PSAL ‘B’ semifinals to Benjamin Banneker.
“We lost our whole starting team with the exception of our shooting guard,” said Aviation coach Steve Hagenlocker. “Last year I didn’t think we’d do well and we went 23-4. This year I didn’t think we’d do well and we’re 3-0. We might do well this year, but we’re not an ‘A’ team.”
Senior Pete Caris, who averaged 18 points per game, is the lone starter back and will be joined in the backcourt by 5-foot-10 Luis Estrada, a point guard who will play small forward on defense.
Other key returnees for Aviation are 5-foot-9 junior swingman Nelson Cueto, 6-foot-1 senior forward Alex Stephenson and junior center Anthony Alibosas.
“Luis didn’t play last year and now he has to step up and handle the ball,” Hagenlocker said. “If Luis plays well, we’ll do well.”
After stints at Brooklyn private schools Adelphi Academy and Berkley Carroll, Joe McMahon takes over the reigns at Grover Cleveland and will try and turn around a team that went 3-17 last season.
Joe Rodriguez, a 6-foot-1 point guard, is the only returning starter and joins 6-foot-8 center Joe Szucs and 6-foot-2 shooting guard Ralph Williams on a team that has eight seniors.
“The jury is still out,” McMahon said. “Are they too nice or will they be tough enough? I’m still trying to instill the work ethic.”
Franklin K. Lane, coached by Michael Perrazo and which finished 0-16 last year, and Flushing, 16-8 in the ‘B’ division last year, round out the division.
John Adams also makes the move from ‘B’ division standout following an 18-9 season that saw the Spartans advance to the PSAL semifinals to ‘A’ division newcomer in Queens III-A.
“It will be a challenge,” said head coach Jim Pitman, who will be without last year’s top two leading scorers Donte King and Adrian Smith. “But hopefully we’ll be competitive and slide into one of the playoff spots.”
Two starters are back from last year’s team, as 6-foot-4 senior Mark Rios, also a pitching standout on the Adams baseball team, and 6-foot-1 senior Salah Brown should provide size and leadership. Senior Kyle Blount will take the reigns as point guard and junior Brian Covington, a 6-foot-1 swingman, should also provide some offensive punch.
Adams’ top competition in Queens III-A should be Campus Magnet.
Devon Ray, Elvis Balone and George Reid were among the seven players who graduated from last year’s 19-5 team that lost to Cardozo in the playoffs.
One player who will surely be in the starting rotation is senior forward/center Andrew Gordon, a 6-foot-5 wide-body whose play will be integral to the Bulldogs’ success this season.
Other standouts for Magnet, favorite to win the Queens III-A title, are Haron Hargrave, a 5-foot-9 senior guard, 6-foot-2 senior Mark Arrington, 6-foot-4 sophomore Thomas Johnson and 6-foot-6 Kevin Casey, who Granby hopes will become academically eligible in January.
For Springfield Gardens coach Mike Aiken, the key to his team’s success is academic.
“If we keep the kids eligible, we should be good,” he said. “It’s a major worry.”
The other key for a young Golden Eagles squad that went 7-15 last year is the ability of 6-foot-5 senior Adrian Uter and 6-foot-2 senior shooting guard Jason Wiles — the only two full-time returning starters — to provide leadership.
Other key returnees for Springfield Gardens are 6-foot-3 senior power forward Milton Melvin, who started near the end of last year, and senior point guard Leonard Walker, a part-time starter last season. Sophomore Pernell Hutchinson, who will back up Wiles at the point, is up from the junior varsity team, as is 6-foot-1 junior Deion Harry.
Coached by James Kearney, August Martin, should be much improved from last year’s 4-12 squad, while Beach Channel, 8-8 last season, and Far Rockaway, 7-15 last year, round out the division.
Reach Associate Sports Editor Dylan Butler by e-mail at Timesledger@aol.com or call 229-0300, Ext. 143.
