By Warren Rappleyea
Old Bridge High School’s boys’ basketball team played well in its season-opening loss to South Brunswick High School, and coach Jim Macomber expects that his team will be competitive in the Greater Middlesex Conference (GMC) Red Division.
“It was a two-point game until late in the fourth quarter,” the Knights’ coach said. “You don’t want to start out with a loss, but we did do some good things against a very strong team.”
Old Bridge is retooling this winter after going 18-9 a year ago. Macomber’s team has talent; it just lacks varsity experience — with the exception of 6-foot-3 senior forward Kyle Paris, who averaged 12 points last season.
Paris was solid against South Brunswick, scoring 17 points, including a pair of 3-pointers. Brandon Millings added 12 points, including two 3-pointers, and sophomore Jared Meyer had 10 points.
“The key for us will be defense and rebounding,” the coach said. “As a group, we don’t shoot as well as last year’s team, so we will have to make up for that in other ways. Offensively, we want to get the ball to Kyle as much as we can, and other players are going to have to step up.”
Guard Will Osvald and forward Rich Calandrino, who are both seniors, each saw some varsity action a year ago and will be counted on to aid the offense this time around. Osvald is solid defensively and averaged just under four points, while Calandrino averaged 2.5 points and showed he is an outside threat with 11 3-pointers.
Millings, a shooting guard, is another outside threat who can help open the middle for Paris. Power forward Austin Amegbenyo, a key member of Old Bridge’s football team, gives the Knights strength under the basket.
Meyer, meanwhile, is part of a contingent of sophomores who are expected to make their collective mark for the Knights. Also a football player, Meyer got into one varsity game as a freshman. Guards Mike Olivia, Julius Beltan and Tyler Green provide depth in the backcourt. Robert Beneties, a 6-foot-8 forward who transferred from Saint Joseph High School of Metuchen, is expected to play more of a role as the season progresses, Macomber said.
“I think this will be an interesting and very competitive year,” the coach said. “I think the Red Division will be wide open because there are so many competitive teams, and I also think we can be in that mix. For us, one of the big questions is can our sophomores do enough or play beyond their years to take some of the pressure off of our seniors. I think they can.”
Old Bridge was set to return to action Dec. 20 at Perth Amboy High School and will host Piscataway Township High School Dec. 22. The Knights will defend their title in the Husky Holiday Classic at Matawan Regional High School during the holiday break.
