Pucciarelli’s 17 tops for Hun boys
By: Bob Nuse
Sean Pucciarelli had a feeling that eventually his time would come on the basketball court.
That time turned out to be Friday night, when the Hun School senior made his first start and scored a career-high 17 points and five assists as the Raiders opened the season with an 83-44 win at Life Center Academy.
"I’ve been able to play in the system for four years and I feel like I have been getting better each year," said Pucciarelli, who played in 23 games and scored 36 points last year. "I think it helps a lot to be a part of the system. I’ve been able to get a feel for what we are doing more and more each year.
"I knew last year I would not play that much, but I got in a little more each game. This year I figured I was going to play a lot more. I didn’t think I would be starting. But Kenny Ross left and a couple of guys got hurt, so I was starting in the first game."
Pucciarelli is part of what looks like it will be a deep and talented Hun team this year. The Raiders return starters Idris Hilliard and Lance Goulbourne, plus they have added newcomers Doug Davis and Will Martell to a mix that includes the return of several key reserves from a year ago.
"I think our team has a shot at being better than last year," Pucciarelli said of the Raiders, who were 17-9 last year. "We were having a good year last year, then we had some injuries and that really hurt us. But we still had a pretty good record.
"We had a good first game. Life Center had a lot of talent. But I thought we played real well and were able to run and get a lot of fast-break baskets."
Hun led 20-9 after the first quarter and had stretched the lead to 43-21 by halftime. In addition to the 17 points from Pucciarelli, Hun received 13 points from Davis, as well as 12 apiece from Hilliard and Martell, a 7-foot post-graduate.
The offense was in high gear for the opener, with everyone seeming to be on the same page right from the start.
"We’ll run a little more this year than we did in the past," said Hun coach Jonathan Stone whose team plays at Blair on Wednesday. "We have three very good guards and they are all capable of running and making good decisions."
Davis, a junior transfer from Philadelphia, joins holdovers Pucciarelli and Matt Florio in giving the Raiders a nice three-guard set. Pucciarelli came into the season the least experienced of the bunch, but made his presence felt quickly.
The Robbinsville resident has made a steady climb through the Hun system, and this year looks like the year he’ll get a chance to show what he can do on the court.
"I think he really made a lot of improvement the summer before his junior year," Stone said. "That was when he decided he really wanted to make the commitment to take his game to the next level. He worked hard and has earned what he’s gotten this year. He’s a starter because of how hard he has worked to improve."
Pucciarelli, who also plays baseball at Hun, played on the soccer team this fall when he joined the team mid-season after the starting goalkeeper was injured. He didn’t get a chance to play much because David Putman returned quickly from the injury. But he did show just how athletic he was when he stepped onto the field for the first time in four years.
"The goalie, Dave Putman got hurt, so about halfway through the season I tried out to see if I could help the team," Pucciarelli said. "Dave was able to play, but I stayed with the team as the backup the rest of the season. It was a good experience being part of the team and winning the (Mercer) county title."
Now he’s part of a basketball team he hopes can make a run at titles in the state Prep A division, as well as the Mid-Atlantic Prep League.
"I think we can have a good year," Pucciarelli said. "I really enjoy playing against Blair, that’s my favorite team to play. They’re good every year and the games are always good games against them. I also like when we play against Lawrenceville and Peddie because they always have good teams. It’s a lot of fun to play against the teams we get to play against.
"It was great to start the season the way we did against Life Center. We started three guards. Doug is the point guard, and Matt and I play the off guards. We’re pretty deep this year and we have a lot of guys who can play."
And Pucciarelli is one of them. He’s hoping a productive season this year leads to some continued play down the line at the next level.
"I applied early to Lehigh and if I get in I’ll try to walk on to the basketball team. I’ve talked to the coach and he said there is a chance I could make it. If I don’t go there, I have applied to some smaller schools and I might try to play basketball and baseball."

