Great shooting is an Honor for the Dieruff Huskies
Much like Freedom coach Joe Stellato, Dieruff coach Joe Jarjous wasn’t thrilled when two senior players transferred from his program to be members of the first-year Executive Education Academy Charter School.
However, Jarjous also likes what he has left on the roster with the Huskies, who are coming off a 9-13 season overall, 3-13 in the EPC.
“We’re very young, but they’re listening,” said Jarjous, who went 22-66 over the past four seasons. “They’ve been like sponges since we got in the gym in August. When we have conditioning everybody’s here. They come to work.”
In terms of basketball ability, Dieruff has quickness and plans to push the tempo.
“We had a scrimmage against Southern Lehigh and the ball barely touched the floor,” Jarjous said. “The kids were moving and scoring off the defense.”
With Jahson Chico White and Justin Rockmore transferring to EEACS and Jalon Perkins leaving for Parkland, just one of Dieruff’s top 10 scorers last season returns and that’s junior guard Honor Huff.
Huff scored 7.1 points per game last season. Of his 48 field goals, 43 were 3-pointers.
“He’s probably one of the best shooters in the Valley,” Jarjous said.
“We’re very young, so we need to mature quick,” Huff said. “We need communication at all times and we need a ‘we, not me’ attitude. We have a group chat every day and we talk all the time. We’re becoming good friends on and off the court.” Huff wants to be a leader. “Last year, we had a lot of upperclassmen, but this year I have to be that guy,” Huff said.
The team features just one senior — John Jordan. Two freshmen and three sophomores made the varsity roster, so the future looks bright.
But it has been a decade since Dieruff made the district playoffs and if they can get to the postseason this year it would change how people view the program.
“I am not sure what we have,” Jarjous said. “But I’m excited because I think these kids are going to out there and compete and we’ll see what happens.”
Three things to know
1. Jamil Newsome, a former Rider University player and a patrolman on the Allentown Police Department, has joined the staff and will be on the bench for as many games as his work schedule allows.
2. The Huskies are playing in two events they’ve never played before. One is the Jeff Dailey Memorial Tournament at Notre Dame on Friday night when Dieruff will face the host Crusaders. They’re also in the Whitehall holiday tournament and will play Whitehall in the opener. Roberto Clemente and Lincoln round out the nonleague schedule.
3. Jarjous talks about his program in terms of W-L-L and that’s wins, losses and life. “I’m an advocate for kids and I’m going to continue to be an advocate,” Jarjous said. “We’re making strides. Every year, we’ve had a better record and we’re sending kids to college. Five of the six seniors on last year’s team are in college. I’m proud of my program, proud of my staff. We coach who’s in this building and we’re doing things the right way. We’re not going to change how we do things here because we’ve got great kids.”
Final thoughts
In terms of record, it could be another tough year for the Huskies. It’s tough to win in the EPC with a roster featuring one senior. However, the future is bright if Jarjous can keep the kids together and in the program. Huff is a smart, talented kid. If he gets some help, Dieruff could be a surprise team.
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