Goal for Innovation: Disprove the doubters
In the six seasons that Academy of Science and Innovation has had a varsity basketball program, winning records have been few and far between.
In 2014-15, the Ravens lost every game they played. The next season brought two wins; six came the year after that.
It wasn’t until last season that the Ravens saw success. They went 16-9 and won two games in the state tournament before losing to eventual champ Cromwell by just two points in the semifinals.
This year, with a record of 18-2, the Ravens are the top team in Division V and looking to prove the doubters wrong.
“Every public school we get to play, or every school that’s not in our league, we really go for them,” junior forward LJ Hazelwood said. “We go for them harder and harder. We want to show them, ‘Hey, we’re not just a CREC team. We can compete with anybody.’ ”
Coach Matt Lance knew his team would be competitive this season.
Coming off last year’s tournament loss, there was an obvious hunger among his players. He was also returning much of his core, including Hazelwood (averaging 12.7 points and12.4 rebounds), who missed much of last season with an injury, and senior Leonard Okonya (14.2 and 10.6).
The 6-foot-4 Hazelwood and 6-6 Okonya, who grew up playing basketball together, give Lance something few in the state — especially in Division V — have with a dominant, two-headed post presence.
Defenses look to collapse on Hazelwood and Okonya, which often leaves the perimeter players open. Carlos Gonzalez (11.2 points) and Luther Emmanuel (7.4) have been the main beneficiaries.
Before the Ravens think about the state tournament, they’ll look to win the CRAL championship. They went 12-0 in league play and have circled the league title to gain respect from opponents.
Then comes the state tournament, where the Ravens will look to prove that they’re no longer pushovers.
“We know that even though we have an 18-2 record and we’re the first seed in Division V, a lot of teams still don’t know about us,” Okonya said. “We still have to go out there and demand respect from every team we play.”
Berlin seniors step up
Berlin coach Mike Veneziano never thought Gianni Fanelli would play varsity basketball. At the junior varsity level, Fanelli had scoring touch and found ways to get to the rim, but Veneziano was skeptical as to whether that ability would translate to the varsity.
Veneziano has been happy to eat his words.
Fanneli, now a senior captain for the Redcoats (14-6), has been among the team’s leading scorers and has a pair of buzzer-beating, game-winning shots under his belt this season.
Fanelli’s classmate, Holden Murphy, also has one. His late shot sank Tolland 52-50 in Berlin’s first game of the season.
According to senior guard Ryan Hyde, that helped spark a successful season.
“That really helped our confidence going forward,” Hyde said. “From there, we were able to win close games. It seems every night we’re in a dogfight and we’re able to hang onto leads.”
The Redcoats are 7-2 in games decided by five points or fewer, and that has helped propel them to their first regular-season league title since 1974.
“That’s just playing seniors that have experience and know how to win close games,” Hyde said.