Executive Education creating a different buzz
Before ever playing a game, Executive Education Academy Charter School created a stir in the local basketball community.
The Raptors created a buzz by hiring Ray Barbosa, the former Allen High star and championship-winning Bethlehem Catholic coach, in July.
And the noise continued as word spread of several known players transferring into Executive.
It culminated in early December, just before the start of the season, with a District 11 transfer hearing in which Freedom fought against the transfer of Jevin Muniz, alleging the transfer was for athletic reasons.
Now more than a month into its first season, Executive is happy the focus is on basketball where the Raptors have been as good as advertised.
Playing a tough schedule comprised almost exclusively of non-area teams, Executive is 8-3 and owns wins over perennial powers such as Steelton-Highspire, Scranton and Berks Catholic.
While the Raptors were thrashed by La Salle College, 67-26, early in the season, the team’s most recent loss was an eye-raising 53-52 setback to unbeaten William Penn of York, the No. 1 ranked team in Class 5A, Wednesday night before a sizable crowd at Muhlenberg College.
They played that game and another one without Muniz, the team’s leading scorer at 14.6 points per game, who is nursing an injury.
With no league races to worry about, Executive is gearing up for the District 11 2A tournament where a championship meeting with current Colonial League front-runner and unbeaten Moravian Academy might be the most compelling matchup of the postseason.
Until then, Executive is content to play to tough teams and gear up for a big district and state tournament run.
“Things are going well here,” Barbosa said. “Obviously, it’s a process with all new guys, but they’re starting to buy into what we want to do. I’m just hoping this schedule gets us ready for the playoffs.”
Guard Justin Rockmore, who transferred from Dieruff, said things are going well.
“For a first-year team that just met each other, I think we’re doing pretty good,” Rockmore said. “We clicked right away, as soon as we got to know each other. They’re my brothers now.”
But there is an ongoing process of meshing as a team.
“We have a lot of talent here and it’s just a matter of putting it all together,” Rockmore said. “I’m proud of the competition we’re faced. I don’t think I would have faced this kind of competition
at any other school. We’ve just got to keep grinding in practice, sticking together.”
Rockmore admitted he missed the rivalries of the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference.
“You miss the home vibe and the familiar faces, but I have no regrets,” he said. “We’re used to the traveling from AAU.”
Executive’s new gym is still under construction on Union Boulevard in Allentown, right next door to Coca-Cola Park.
A planned opening later this month has been pushed back and it’s likely the team will play its remaining home games at Muhlenberg.
Playing on a college campus and playing teams that attract the interest of college coaches such as Central Connecticut State assistant and former Dieruff standout Anthony Ross, who was there Wednesday night, is part of the appeal of the Raptors in this initial season.
York coach Clovis Gallon was
impressed with the facility and the opponent on Wednesday night and said his team got what it needed from the trip to Allentown.
“It was a great experience for our kids,” Gallon said. “We really haven’t been pushed a lot. The average margin of victory has been by double digits. So to take a long drive and play a team like this, it was like a state playoff game and we had to battle a lot of adversity. I was impressed that our kids met the challenge.”
Gallon was also impressed with Executive.
“They have some pretty tough players,” he said. “Their center [Chico Whyte, a former Dieruff player] was a great shot blocker and he really changed what we were trying to do offensively. We had to make adjustments and pull him out of the lane.”
Barbosa, who took his Becahi team to the 4A semis before losing a thriller to Imhotep last year, knows those good opponents will only make his squad better.
He also knows the controversy over transfers, boundary and non-boundary schools and even the rise of charter schools overall, will never totally subside.
He tries to stay focused on the task at hand and doesn’t worry about what’s going on in the other leagues.
He just wants his kids focused on basketball and becoming better players.
When the hearing dominated the headlines in early December, his message to his kids was “don’t worry about what people are saying … just focus on what you can control.”
Rockmore said the team didn’t feed into any of the conversation and criticism when the transfers were spotlighted.
He’s not looking back on his decision.
Who’s hot
Both Moravian Academy’s Jordan Holmqvist and Bethlehem Catholic’s Justin Paz became the all-time leading scorers at their respective schools within days of each other. Holmqvist passed Luke Gutekunst’s school mark of 1,496 on Tuesday night. Paz broke Bob Bukvics’ record of 1,485 on Saturday night.
Panther Valley’s Rene Figueroa’s 25 points per game has helped his team get off to a 9-2 start, its best first half of a season since 1986.
Pennridge’s Sean Yoder, a Navy recruit, recently went over the 1,000-point mark in his career.
Who’s not
After starting the season 2-0, Palisades had dropped eight of its last nine entering a game Thursday night.
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