Sports

Wednesday, January 11, 2023

The Observer n www.theobserver.com

9 SPORTS & RECREATION

Lyndhurst Boys Basketball enjoys strong start to the season

Photo by Jason Bernstein

Standing Back Row (left to right): Ricky Pizzuti, CJ Baillie, Matthew Slaby, Jake Mayer, Anthony Pizzuti, Charles Derrig, head coach Perrin Mosca. Standing Front Row (left to right): Ryan Batista, Leo Rodriguez, Keith Jones, Jose Baca, Gabe Gomez, Isaiah Alvarado.

By Jason Bernstein

jason@theobserver.com

Lyndhurst head coach Perrin Mosca knew he was inheriting a team short on experience and recent success when he took over as the boys basketball coach in September. But he also saw a group that while young, had the size and athleticism to potentially surprise people in the NJIC.

After nine games, no one should be surprised anymore.

The Golden Bears sport a stellar 7-2 record following Sunday’s 72-60 victory over Becton at the South Bergen Classic. Lyndhurst finds itself in a three-way tie for first place in the NJIC National Division standings with Weehawken and Rutherford at 4-1.

“Coming in, I knew we had some athletes and players, but we didn’t have much experience,” said Mosca, who previously served as Lyndhurst’s girls coach. “But you know what, they’re playing loose out there, they’re having fun out there and they’re out-working people on the defensive end. It’s just coming together for them right now.”

So far, Lyndhurst has been one of the league’s more dynamic offenses, averaging 65.2 points per game. At the forefront of that offense has been junior Anthony Pizzuti, one of Bergen County’s most improved players.

The 6-foot-3 forward is averaging an eye-popping 17.3 points, 11.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game.

“Offensively he just explodes when he jumps. He gets up really fast on rebounds, he’s very strong on the offensive glass and he gets a lot of points off put-backs,” Mosca said. “He’s very strong when he has the ball, he rarely loses the ball and they’re all over him. He also does a great job of breaking presses for us because he’s a great ball-handler for us.”

Six-foot-2 senior Ricky Pizzuti is at the other forward spot and is averaging 7.1 points per game in his first year of varsity.

Lyndhurst’s size extends to the wings and backcourt as well. Junior guard Matt Slaby (6-foot-4) does a little bit of everything for the Golden Bears, averaging 12.6 points, 6.8 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game. Slaby, who plays down low as part of Lyndhurst’s zone defense has

Harrison Boys Basketball hopes big win serves as a turning point

By Jason Bernstein

jason@theobserver.com

Harrison’s record might not show it, but head coach Jose Camano knows his boys basketball team is quite a bit better than its 2-5 record or prior teams that finished well short of .500.

“I think we’re a lot better than last year. A lot of these kids didn’t play last year,” said Camano, now in his fourth season as the head coach. “They see it at practice, they come to practice every day and see that we’re 2-5, but that’s not really who we really are. Our record doesn’t show how good we are.”

Three of Harrison’s early losses were decided by seven points or less. Camano is hopeful that this past Friday’s 56-53 victory at North Arlington is proof that things are starting to turn around for the Blue Tide.

“It was a big win for us. We lost a lot of close games to start off the season and they could have been down, but they came out on Friday and they came ready to play, executed a great plan and they pulled it off. They played a great game, four quarters, 32 minutes and we got a big win and it gives us some momentum going into Monday at Secaucus.”

A big reason for that optimism is Harrison’s dynamic duo of Edward Burgos and Reuben Stokes.

Burgos, a 6-foot-0 senior, has averaged nearly 18 points per game this season.

“Edward does it all,” said Camano. “Edward just wants to play basketball. He can score, he can slash, he can dish, he creates a lot for his teammates.”

Burgos was forced to play the point guard a season ago, but is now in his more natural two-guard spot, thanks to the return of Stokes.

Stokes, a 5-foot-10 junior, missed all of last year due to an achilles injury, but has picked up from where he left off as a freshman, averaging close to 15 points per game, while creating opportunities for teammates.

“Reuben opened the game up for Edward because Reuben has the ability to make two guys play him,” Camano said. “Reuben can get from A to B without a problem because of his ball skills and ball handling. Reuben being able to do that creates so many open shots and opportunities for Edward to score the basketball.”

Another player back for the Blue Tide after missing all of last season, is 5-foot-8 senior Zaire Colson, who is the team’s top 3-point shooter.

Harrison does not have much size and basically runs out a five-guard lineup. Six-foot-1 senior Sammy Abdeljalil has moved from guard to forward after growing three inches this offseason. At center is 6-foot-1 senior Ethan Oeckel. Oeckel, a three-year starter, plays bigger than his size and is also capable of stretching the floor offensively.

“Ethan gives us flexibil-