TIME FOR TIP-OFF
Previews for CVC boys basketball teams inside
Not only is Nottingham, the dominant force in Mercer County last season, welcoming five new boys basketball teams to the CVC’s reconfigured Valley Division. It will also be turning over a new leaf.
The Northstars graduated all five starters and three 1,000-point scorers from the 2017-18 Group III state champion. Javon Jenkins, Antonio Brown, Martique Perry, Derek Williams and Brandon Raba are returnees with varsity experience.
“Our identity will have to be our defense. We are going to have a hard time scoring, because we have so many inexperienced players and no true go-to guy,” head coach Chris Raba said. “The kids have been working hard, and they are eager to transfer what they’re learning in practices to the game.”
Hamilton West, the other division holdover, improved by four wins last year. The Hornets have to replace six key players. Tyler Beebe, Sean Elefant, and Jamaj Walker have significant playing time under their belts. Jack Boufford and Jerel Hall are slated for enhanced varsity action. Also watch for Stem Civics transfer Tobias Prall and freshman Donavin Domine.
“The team is working hard and learning to play together on each end of the court,” head coach Jason Malloy said. “We will be a quick, athletic and aggressive team and compete on both ends of the floor every possession.”
Moving over from the now-defunct Patriot Division are Ewing, Hopewell Valley, Lawrence, Robbinsville and Steinert.
Ewing lost in the sectional quarterfinals last year but has appeared in five state title games in the past eight seasons. The Blue Devils look to uphold their winning tradition with mostly unproven talent. Seniors Delvon Doggett and Craig Wrenn are the team leaders. Guards DiAndre Littlepage and DJ Evans are two promising young players.
Hopewell took the biggest leap forward in Mercer County last year by winning a school-record 21 games after only winning five the year before.
The Bulldogs are replacing four starters. Guard Milo De Los Santos and center Patrick Johnson are the key cogs. John Broz steps into a bigger role after coming off the bench. Jake Loughery and Kevin O’Reilly are two newcomers to watch.
“Four guys return from the team last year, so there are going to be a lot of new guys on the court,” head coach Matt Stein said. “The guys coming in had a lot of time to learn and practice against a real tough team from last year. Each day the guys competed, so as we will be starting new players the team has had opportunities to learn what varsity pace is like but need the ingame situations.”
Conversely, Lawrence aims to bounce back after falling off in 2017. Leading scorer Kareem Hemsley is back, as is top rebounder Malik Southward. Point guard Yahseen Olivier and sharpshooter Aaron Jones highlight the new varsity players.
“We are young this year and have a lot of first-year varsity guys,” head coach Jeff Molinelli said. “But, we do have some athletic ability and speed. I am hoping we will be able to run the floor and score easy points in transition. Hopefully our athleticism will be a plus for this year’s team.”
Robbinsville brings back one of the CVC’s leading scorers in Cory Bork. Jack Billings and Brian Tierney anchor the defense. Darren Henderson and Brian Herbert are also expected to contribute significantly.
“We have a great mix of experience and talent,” head coach Conor Hayes said. “They are a tight-knit group that plays unselfishly. Cory will lead the way scoring, but several different players can fill up the points column on a stat sheet this year. We will look to mix up our defenses and control the tempo of games.”
At Steinert, Mario Mazur and Trevor Giordano each have multiple years of starting experience and lead the backcourt. Nymere Whitaker earned minutes late last year, and Aaron Lal returns healthy after overcoming some injuries.
“The team hit great strides this past summer and the offseason in finding an overall team vibe that focuses on all five guys on the court playing as one,” head coach Kyle Flanagan said. “Through team defense and making use of more athleticism than in years past, we will look to play at a faster pace all while focusing on competing every possession and building our momentum gained this offseason.”
EWING
Gerald Boone 5-10 Sr. G Delvon Doggett 6-1 Sr. F
Craig Wrenn 5-9 Sr. G
Jaylen Britton 5-10 Jr. G Brandon DeKleine 5-9 Jr. G Jaheem Lewis 6-3 Jr. F
Jamar Lewis 6-7 Jr. F DiAndre Littlepage 5-9 Jr. G Daiyan Reese 6-1 Jr. F Marcus Beaubrun 5-10 So. G Douglas Evans Jr. 5-8 So. G
Head Coach — Shelly Dearden (15th season). Assistant Coaches — Pat Anderson, Amir Siddiqu. Last Season — 18-9 overall, 8-0 CVC Patriot, Patriot Division champion, Mercer County Tournament semifinals, NJSIAA Central Jersey Group III quarterfinals.
Outlook — The Blue Devils have some size and veteran coaching, which always makes them a threat. It’s too early to tell how far Ewing can go in states.
HAMILTON WEST
Zahir Davis 5-11 Sr. G
Jerel Hall 5-8 So. G
Kyle Tucker 5-4 Sr. G Donavin Domine 5-10 Fr. G Tobias Prall 6-0 Jr. G/F
Sean Elefant 6-1 Sr. F
Lewis Griffith 6-2 Sr. F
Jephte Maignan 6-4 Sr. C
Jack Boufford 6-2 So. G
Tyler Beebe 6-1 Sr. G
Jamaj Walker 6-0 Jr. F Richard Alexander 5-9 Sr. G
Head Coach — Jason Malloy (eighth season). Assistant Coaches — Matt Mayo, Abraam Abdelnour, Dave Broach.
Last Season — 11-13 overall, 2-4 CVC Valley, NJSIAA Central Jersey Group III first round.
Outlook — It’s difficult to forecast whether the Hornets will go up or down this season with many players in bigger roles for the first time. Consistency and development are key.
HOPEWELL VALLEY
Milo De Los Santos 6-1 Sr. G
Luke Hilliard 6-2 Sr. G
Patrick Johnson 6-4 Sr. C
Patrick Mormile 6-0 Sr. G
John Broz 6-0 Jr. G
Kevin O’Reilly 6-0 Jr. G
George Angelakis 5-11 Jr. G Michael Randazzo 6-1 Jr. F
Gabe Rodriguez 6-3 So. G/F Jackson Whitlock 6-1 So. G/F
Jake Loughery 6-0 So. G
Head Coach — Matt Stein (third season).
Assistant Coaches — Roque Calvo, John McGinley, Nick Falkenberg.
Last Season — 21-6 overall, 6-2 CVC Patriot, NJSIAA Central Jersey Group III quarterfinals.
Outlook — The Bulldogs are unlikely to recapture the same level of success as last year’s senior-driven unit, but Stein has developed a motion offense that is tough to play against. How quickly former JV players acclimate to the varsity level is critical.
LAWRENCE
Aaron Jones 5-9 So. G
Oliver Yahseer 5-9 So. G Joseph Rodriguez 6-4 Jr. F Kareem Hemsley 6-2 Jr. G Shaun Johnson 6-2 Jr. G/F
Jack O’Reilly 6-3 Sr. G
Jamari Howard 5-9 Sr. G
Malik Southward 6-2 Sr. F
Miles Kron 5-9 Jr. G
Roshon Aiyar 5-9 Jr. G Rayshawn Young 6-2 Jr. G Diesel Barnes 5-10 So. G/F Dwayne Mclean-Long 6-1 So. F
Head Coach — Jeff Molinelli (seventh season). Assistant Coaches — Keishe Reed,
Andrew Septer.
Last Season — 4-20 overall, 2-7 CVC Patriot. Outlook — The Cardinals have some budding youth. Expect success somewhere in between last year’s disappointment and the 20-win campaign of 2016.
NOTTINGHAM
Antonio Brown 5-7 Sr . G Derek Williams 5-10 Sr. G Martique Perry 6-1 Sr. F Darold Altine 5-10 Sr. G
Javon Jenkins 5-9 Jr. G Brandon Raba 6-2 So. G
Devin Coleman 5-7 So. G
Josh Morrison 6-1 So. G
Chris Williams 5-7 So. G Kishawn Douragh 5-9 So. G Marc Kauffman 6-0 So. G Za’Mir Brown 5-11 So. F
Head Coach — Chris Raba (seventh season).
Assistant Coaches — Milo Mcguire, Anthony Alston, Brandon Johnson, Drew Paden, Mo Hobbs.
Last Season — 30-3 overall, 6-0 CVC Valley, Valley Division champion, Mercer County Tournament champion, NJSIAA Group III state champion, Tournament of Champions semifinals.
Outlook — The Northstars are relatively small-sized and inexperienced, so expectations are modest coming off the most accomplished season in CVC history. Nottingham’s goal is to reach a double-digit win total through patience and steady improvement.
ROBBINSVILLE
Cory Bork 6-1 Sr. G
John Pierson 6-0 Sr. G
Dan Griffin 6-1 Sr. G
Dhilan Deodat 6-0 Sr. F
Brian Tierney 5-10 Jr. G Darren Henderson 6-0 Jr. F Brian Herbert 5-10 Fr. G
Matt McArthur 5-10 So. G Jack Billings 6-2 Jr. F
Ryan Smith 6-3 So. F
Head Coach — Conor Hayes (third season). Assistant Coaches — Bob Boyce, Jeff Fisher. Last Season — 7-17 overall, 3-5 CVC Patriot. Outlook — The Ravens have depth in the scoring department. Whether they can challenge for a state playoff berth this year comes down to cohesion.
STEINERT
Jah’Meir Frederick 6-0 Sr. G Malik Gbayor 6-2 Sr. F
Trevor Giordano 5-10 Jr. G Shane Grant 6-0 So. G
Veniel Joasil 6-0 Sr. F
Aaron Lal 6-3 So. F
Mario Mazur 6-2 Sr. F
Qionte Miller 5-10 Jr. G Emanuel Obika 5-10 Jr. G
Rocco Piccolo 6-0 Sr. F
Kevin Szenczi 6-4 So. F Malcolm Wallace 5-10 Jr. G Nymere Whitaker 6-1 Jr. G
Head Coach — Kyle Flanagan (second season). Assistant Coaches — Matt Petrowski, Al Mostrangeli, Rich Everett, Mark Carnevale, Mason Cueto. Last Season — 6-21 overall, 2-7 CVC Patriot. Outlook — The new-look Spartans like their blend of talent despite the loss of eight seniors and other players to transfer. Flanagan wants to play at a higher tempo than his first season at the helm.