Athletic Hilltoppers cage Wreckers, 83-38

eschickler@bcnnew.com

Some tasks happen to be a tall order. One of these unenviable jobs fell on the shoulders of the Staples boys basketball team on Wednesday when it hosted Bridgeport Central in the season-opener for both teams. Although Staples showed a few flashes of brilliance, Central was more athletic and headed back to the Park City victorious, 83-38.

"The kids came up and were ready to play," said Wreckers coach Colin Devine. "Our inexperience showed and we know what we have to work on and we'll work on it. We'll work twice as hard."

The Hilltoppers used their athleticism in forcing 25 Staples turnovers, 16 in the first half. Central also had more than a two-to-one advantage on the glass, outrebounding the Wreckers, 46-20, 31-7 in the first half. Sometimes, the Hilltoppers had three to five shots at the basket and Jerome Parkins (24 points) was symbolic of this profound advantage on the glass, scoring a few layups off many multiple attempts.

"It's inexperience," said Devine. "Last year, we had Joe [Kestenbaum] and Andrei [Oztemel] box out. Central was 22-4 last year and all five of their starters are back and they are one great team."

Staples had one lead, 1-0 on junior lefty Gabe Seidman's (five points, four rebounds, three assists, one forced turnover) free throw and tied it twice, the last time at 5-5 on two layups by Frankie Bergonzi.

Central took the lead for good, 7-5, on Diontay Washington's (11 points) putback off the offensive glass. Junior Luke Yeager (six points, one rebound, two assists, one steal) pulled the Wreckers within one, 11-10, with his first of two three-pointers, but following his trey, the Hilltoppers put on a clinic and dominated.

Bergonzi (15 points, three rebounds) hit a few drives and jumpers in scoring 39 percent of Staples' points.

"They play a pretty aggressive style and it's easier to get by them," said Bergonzi. "They are a great team."

Juniors Jake Felman (four points, two rebounds, one assist, one tieup), Grant Fenton (three points, one steal, one forced turnover), D. Scanlon (three points), Tyler Jacobs (two points), Andreas Bub (four rebounds, one blocked shot), Rob DiBartolomeo (one assist) and senior captain Brendan Rankowitz (one rebound, one steal) also contributed for the Wreckers.

Despite the lopsided loss, Staples is confident it can bounce back and achieve its goal of making the playoffs.

"I think everyone needs to step up, from the first through the last player," said Devine. "If we work together, we'll make things right."

Bergonzi said, "We're going to learn from this experience. We're going to work hard in practice and we'll get some wins."