JERRY WOLKOWITZ Allentown’s David Peterson goes up for a shot during the Redbirds’ game against Hamilton West on Saturday.
Craig Parker certainly enjoys a good challenge. And the first-year head coach of the Allentown High School boys basketball team inherited a daunting one when he took over a program which won only two of its 23 games a year ago.
But after four years as an assistant coach at Nottingham High School, Parker jumped at the opportunity to be a head coach of his own team. Taking over a program in the midst of a down period only made the job that more appealing to him.
"I looked at it as a challenge," Parker said. "In this business, the No. 1 reason you coach is because you love sports, and I love sports, and I love to compete. So what better place to become a head coach than somewhere you can get a program back on its feet.
"It’s a great opportunity, and I’m enjoying it immensely. I love the game of basketball."
It didn’t take Parker very long either to transform some of that positive energy into his new team as he led the Redbirds to three victories in their first five games, already exceeding last season’s total win output.
"The biggest thing I had to do was change the mindset of our players," Parker explained. "I don’t want people to think when they see Allentown on the schedule that it’s an automatic ‘W.’ So far we’ve won three games, and we’ve been in almost all of our games.
"I just want to change the perception people have of our program, and I think the boys are buying into what I’ve been preaching. They’ve been giving me every ounce they have, 110 percent every game."
Parker’s approach has been successful so far, and his philosophy has been simple.
"I basically told them we have to play hard, we have to play smart, and we have to play together. The bottom line is we’re going to get better together."
They’re going to experience some low points together, too. But even an 0-2 week like the Redbirds had last week, which included a blowout loss to Ewing High and dropped their record to 3-4, isn’t enough to discourage Parker.
"Last week wasn’t a great week for us," he admitted. "Against Ewing, unfortunately it was just one of those games where everything they did was right, and we just could not hit our shots.
"But at the same time our boys never gave up. They kept fighting, and that was good to see."
The Redbirds have already opened a few eyes around the Colonial Valley Conference, including an upset win over Princeton.
"They’re our rivals in our conference, and last year they beat us twice and made the state tournament," Parker said. "So to play them this year, this early, it was nice to get a win against them."
Then there was a thrilling 73-72 overtime victory over Delran in the consolation game of the Delran Christmas Tournament, the Redbirds’ first win in that tourney in three years.
"Delran is much taller than us, too. They have two 6-8 players," Parker said. "So we really had to have more heart to beat them."
The Redbirds have also been getting great leadership from their tri-captains, senior twins David and James Peterson, and junior guard Ron Gonzales, all three of whom started last season.
David Peterson, a 6-foot-3 power forward, is averaging a team-high 18 points a game while grabbing eight rebounds a contest. He scored 25 points in the win over Delran and pulled down 11 rebounds in the upset over Princeton.
James Peterson, also 6-3, plays the small forward spot and averages 10 points and eight rebounds a game. He scored 15 points in the win over Princeton.
Meanwhile, Gonzales has been averaging 12 points and four assists a game, and hit the game-winning shot in overtime to beat Delran.
Another junior, Charles Rini, who played JV last season and saw some limited varsity action off the bench, is the starting point guard and averages a handful of assists a game.
"He is a very tireless worker on the defensive end for us," Parker said. "He always gets assigned the other team’s top scoring guard, and he’s always working his tail off."
Chris Krantz, a 6-4 sophomore and another player up from last year’s JV, starts at center where he averages six points and six rebounds a game.
"Chris is a young sophomore, but he’s working hard," Parker said. "Once he fills out and gets a little more aggressive, he’ll be tough to handle down low."
Parker is also very high on freshman Scott Anacker, the Redbirds’ sixth man and first guard off the bench, who’s averaging 12 points a game and threw in 10 big second-half points in the win over Princeton.
"He is a very seasoned young man who played a lot of AAU before he got here," the coach said.
Another freshman worth keeping an eye on is Eric Nutt, a 5-5 point guard who starts for the JV team and is on the bench during varsity games.
"We want him up there so he can watch and learn," Parker said. "We’re bringing him along slowly, but he’s going to be a big part of our future."
Rounding out a solid eight-man rotation is Alex Smith, a 6-2 junior who fills in for Peterson at power forward.
"Alex is all blood and guts," Parker said. "He does all the dirty things that don’t show up in the box score. He gets rebounds, he plays tough defense against the other team’s big men down low, he dives after loose balls. He likes to get his elbows and knees dirty."
It’s hard to believe that a team which won only two games a year ago can even think about making the state tournament just one season later. But needing a .500 record by Feb. 2 to qualify, the 3-4 Redbirds can at least entertain such thoughts.
"To be honest, it’s a realistic goal," Parker said. "It’s always the goal of every high school program to qualify for the state tournament. It’s going to be tough, but we have a shot."
But Parker’s goals are more long range as he looks to build around players like Anacker, Nutt and Krantz.
"We’re really trying to work hard to become a good basketball program and we’re slowly turning the corner," Parker said.
"But it’s not going to happen overnight. It’s going to take a lot of hard work. I’m here to get wins now, but my goal is two or three years from now to feel good about where we want to be. We’re on that road together."