By Jimmy Allinder
The Monroe Township High School boys’ basketball team returns six experienced players, and a transfer from Saint Joseph High School of Metuchen has joined the team.
Whether this translates into improvement over last year’s 9-14 record remains to be seen. The Falcons finished with eight victories in their last 13 games, but 2016-17 represents a whole new ballgame.
Monroe was formerly a member of the Greater Middlesex Conference (GMC) White Division but has been elevated to the Red Division, which means the schedule will be full of home and away games against quality opponents like Saint Joseph, South Brunswick High School, East Brunswick High School and Old Bridge High School.
The White Division is extremely competitive, but teams who have jumped to the Red Division have found it more difficult to win. Still, head coach Nick Puleio expects his team to prove it belongs.
“We were extremely inexperienced last year, and we took our lumps early on,” he said. “But the strong finish in addition to the work the players put in during the offseason makes me confident we’re prepared for the elevated competition.”
Compounding the challenges facing Monroe is replacing three starters: Eddie Pinto and Kenny Sysyn, who graduated, and Matt Hoyt, who decided to focus on his budding soccer career. Puleio hopes their departures will be offset by an experienced rotation.
They are seniors Akash Patel (guard) and Peter Nesti (forward); juniors Luke Patel (point guard), Fritz Frage (guard) and Eric Johnson (forward); and sophomore Michael Kides (guard). Shashank Sindhia is the transfer from St. Joe’s.
Others looking to crack the rotation are seniors Jackson Maddox (forward) and Arsany Malak (guard), junior guards Kevin Shea and Justin Murray and sophomore guard Jari Davis.
Puleio points to how the Falcons played in a game last season against East Brunswick in the first round of the GMC Tournament as to when he felt the program was headed in the right direction.
“We didn’t win (55-69) but gave [East Brunswick] a scare,” he said. “We hope to carry that momentum over to this year and be diligent about preparing for every game and competing hard. We look forward to moving up to the Red Division.”
Monroe’s season opener with John P. Stevens High School Dec. 16 resulted in a 40-39 defeat. The Falcons meet Bishop George Ahr High School Dec. 22 and will host its own tournament during the holiday break.
The schedule will feature Perth Amboy High School meeting Brick Township High School and Monroe facing Robbinsville High School Dec. 27. The losers and winners will meet two days later in the consolation and championship games.
