2014-15 Matawan Boys Basketball Preview

Photo above: Jason Dunne drives to the basket

MATAWAN – The Matawan Huskies reached new heights in the 2013-14 basketball season completing the most successful season in program history.

The Huskies won 24 games and captured the Class B North title for their first division title of any kind since 1965 while finishing ranked third in the final Shore Conference top ten polls. As the No.1 seed in the Central Jersey Group II playoffs they beat Rumson-Fair Haven to capture their first NJSIAA sectional championship since 1957. The last time Matawan appeared in a sectional final, the Huskies lost to current head coach Tom Stead’s Holmdel team in 1996.

“It was an exciting run and to be able to do something that hasn’t happened in school history was unbelievable,” Stead said. “It created chaos in the community and it was nice to see.”

After being seeded fourth in the Shore Conference Tournament they advanced all the way to the semifinals before bowing to No.1 seed and eventual champion Pt. Pleasant Beach. In their final game of the season they fell to Camden in the NJSIAA Group II semifinals.

That’s a hard act to follow especially now that they have a bullseye painted on their backs and can no longer sneak up on anyone. There are question marks surrounding this year’s team but the Huskies do return arguably the most skilled backcourt in the Shore Conference.

“We’re the hunted this year, everyone’s circling us on their schedule,” Stead said. “When you’re defending a title everyone wants a piece of you. It’s going to be a challenge. Jason (Dunne) and Joe (Piscopo) carried us at times last year and they’ve really worked hard to improve their play; I’m looking for big things out of them this year.”

Gone are starters Nick Tomkins, Chris Tawiah and Austin Planes and their 25 points and 25 rebounds per game. However, Dunne and Piscopo definitely have the capability to carry the load until the Huskies new additions become comfortable within the system and eventually take some of the pressure off them to do it all.

Dunne, who has committed to the University of Hartford, is a first-team All-Shore selection after scoring 430 points last season averaging 15.1 points, 3.6 assists, and 7.6 rebounds per game. He hit 48 three-point shots, had 22 steals and blocked 10 shots. Piscopo, a second-team All-Shore pick, scored 304 points averaging 10.8 points, 2.4 assists, and 2.9 steals per game along with 54 rebounds and 53 three-point buckets.

Two players step into starting roles this season for the Huskies who saw limited action last season. Matt Esposito, a 6-foot-3 senior, will be at one forward position while 6-foot-2 junior Mergim Gyjrigi will be at guard on the wing in Matawan’s three-guard system. Senior Samson Ore-Onitolo, a 6-foot-7 shot-blocking forward, gets the start opposite Esposito after appearing in four games last season. Esposito saw action in 14 games last season scoring three points in the loss to Camden while Gyjigi played in 24 games last season scoring a season-high 10 points versus Red Bank Regional.

The first men off the bench will be 6-foot-1 senior forward Nick Smith, 5-foot-11 junior guard DeJohn Rogers and 6-foot-0 senior guard Devon Spann. Both Rogers and Spann were vital members of Matawan’s football team which won the Central Jersey Group III championship this fall and will bring toughness and athleticism to the team as well as the ability to score points. Rogers was selected third-team All-Shore as a defensive back. Smith appeared in 19 games last season scoring 11 points so he does have some experience off the bench.

Those eight players will see the bulk of the playing time in the Huskies eight-man rotation while sophomore point guard Zaire Jackson, junior shooting guard Pat Hennessy and senior power forward Randy Myers will be looking for their chance to earn minutes.

The Huskies will be a good basketball team, just how good will depend on how the new starters and rotation members perform in their roles in an attempt to prevent opposing teams from double teaming Dunne and Piscopo. If they can take the pressure off those two and allow them to do their thing, Matawan will again be one of the top teams in the Shore and a very dangerous basketball team come playoff time.

“We need to be able to score inside and be able to rebound to get second chance points,” Stead said. “I think we’ll be okay defensively but we have to take some of the pressure off Dunne and Piscopo. The X-Factor for us is Gyjrigi. If he can score – and he’s shown he can – then we can draw some of the attention away from Dunne and Piscopo. I think we can be pretty good, but I also think people expect us to be better than we are right now. It all matters on how you’re playing in March but to get to March you have to win games. We need to find a way to win games early because I think we’ll be pretty good down the road.”

The Huskies defeated Neptune 64-63 in double overtime in their season opener at Matawan Friday night. The win was the 300th in the career of Stead, who previously coached at Holmdel. Piscopo scored a game-high 24 points as the Huskies rallied from an 11-point halftime deficit. Dunne had 19 while Gyjriqi added 11 points for the winners.

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