Filo leads Sussex Hamilton in toughness
Statistics don’t do Ryan Filo justice. Sussex Hamilton’s 6-foot-2 forward averages just 3.4 points and 2.7 rebounds per game, numbers that are dwarfed by many of his younger teammates. He, however, shows the way for this young group in one regard.
Toughness.
“He’s a football guy and he’s an undersized post man,” Sussex Hamilton coach Andy Cerroni said. “There is not a 50-50 ball he loses if he goes after it.”
Led by freshman Patrick Baldwin Jr., the son of the UW-Milwaukee men’s basketball team, Hamilton has one of the best core of underclassmen in the area. What the team lacks are seniors. Filo is the only one who sees action and his veteran experience became even more important after one of the team’s experienced upperclassmen, junior Tyler Ellingson, suffered a season-ending knee injury in January.
Filo, a two-way all-conference lineman in football, is a three-year starter in basketball. He can’t replace Ellington’s shooting but can use his muscle down low to battle much bigger players. In the sectional final, Filo battled Jack Plumb, Bay Port’s 6-8 forward.
Filo finished that game with no points, a fitting stat line for one of the team’s unsung heroes.
“He’s the heart and soul of our team …” Cerroni said. “He’s the toughness we’ve stepped up to. He’s led us in that and showed these younger guys how to be tough and how to really sell out for your teammate.”