Season Recap: Mamaroneck Boys Basketball

It's not easy being in a league with Section 1 powers like Mount Vernon, New Rochelle and White Plains, and it's even harder when you have your youngest team in years.

But the Mamaroneck boys basketball team had many of its youngest players step up this season. Despite kicking off with just one returning player, the Tigers made the playoffs for the fourth straight year and finished 8-11.

"I thought the season was a success from the standpoint that we had a lot of very young guys — the youngest team I've ever had in my seven years — so not knowing what to expect from these young guys, we met challenges head on and definitely saw some growth throughout the season," coach Tyrone Carver said.

Two of those players were sophomore Matt Mezansky and freshman Alex Lanni. Mezansky scored a team-high 15 points a game despite facing all kinds of pressure from the likes of Mount Vernon and New Rochelle. He earned all-league, all-conference and honorable mention all-section.

Lanni, who is 6-foot-4, started 17 of 19 games and was voted honorable mention all-league. He has a knack for rebounding and doesn't give up on plays. As the season progressed he started to develop nice post moves on offense.

The heart and soul of the team was junior Oliver Shirley, who was named team MVP. A strong low-post player, he averaged nine points and five rebounds a game and often guarded the best player on the other team.

The Tigers' most experienced player, senior Sam Gruppo, missed the first 10 games of the season with an injury, but his leadership on the sidelines was a positive influence on the young players.

"Sam helped me turn this program around," Carver said. "Sam's been with me for the past three years. Missing him for the first part of the season was a big loss for us, but he was like another coach on the bench."

In a sign of how the far the program has come since Carver took over a 2-18 when he became coach, Mamaroneck was even invited to two showcases. The Tigers faced the host at the Mount Vernon Super Saturday event earlier this month, and played Indian Hills (N.J.) in the prestigious Harry Jefferson Classic at White Plains. "Being invited to a venue of that sort was unbelievable," Carver said.

Some of the biggest wins came during the Tigers' early season schedule, when they went 7-3. In the third game, Jared Maskowi hit a 3-pointer with three seconds left to beat Ardsley 53-50. Two games later, Mamaroneck was down 12 points at halftime against Rye Neck, but outscored the Panthers 19-2 in the third quarter and won 48-45.

Unlike this season, Mamaroneck will return eight of its 11 players next year, so Carver is optimistic the program can continue its rise. "A lot of these guys got a lot of game experience," Carver said. "That's great moving forward and next year we have high hopes."