By David Gurney, Sports Writer
He wasn’t the big-name, big-splash hire you might expect for a program coming off a historic 27-3 campaign.
No, he has no previous varsity head coaching experience and yes, he’s only been coaching for five seasons.
But there’s an assurance and humbleness to new South Brunswick High School boys basketball coach Joe Hoehman that gives an air of confidence.
He may be surprised about the position he’s in, but he’s not unfazed.
”I mean, it’s starting to sink in,” Hoehman said. “It’s been exciting, I’ve been busy trying to get everything ready for the season. The paperwork, shoes, getting my playbook set. I’m excited for the actual competition part. Things have started to sink in, but opening night will be a pretty big deal.”
Hoehman steps in for Chris Balent, who left after two seasons for Union County power Elizabeth High School. He’s the school’s third head coach in four years, with Dave Turco having coached the three years prior before moving onto St. Joseph’s High School in Metuchen.
A native of South Amboy, where he played three years varsity basketball at Hoffman (now South Amboy High School), Hoehman joined the SBHS faculty as a student-teacher while attending Montclair State in 2001-02 and joined full-time the following year.
That school year, with Turco taking over for former head coach Hayward Vereen, Hoehman applied for the freshman basketball coaching vacancy and was hired, impressing the newly installed basketball staff.
”I was a little surprised they would have an opening so fast,” Hoehman said. “But with previous coach stepping down there ended up being an opening, I got the job and took it from there.”
To Hoehman, learning under Turco was instrumental in his growth as a coach.
”I learned a lot under Dave about scouting, preparation for practices and games,” Hoehman said. “Basically, I’d coach my team at the school, be done at around 4:30, then stick around for his practice and just observe and learn. I just wanted to see how a veteran coach handles things, learn the system inside and out so I could feel comfortable teaching it.”
When Turco left and Balent took over, Hoehman was exposed to another brand of a coach, this time in the mold of a strict tactician.
But he learned more of the nuances of the game, plays and skillwork. He also was able to help develop much of the nucleus of this year’s varsity team, having some of the players for two years on the JV team as swing players between JV and varsity, making the transition from Balent to himself a little easier.
”Guys like Troy Confessore, Sean Lease, Jordan Teicher, Chris Weir Arman Wilson, Mohammed Sanu, I had for two, three years on JV, so that helps the transition a bit,” Hoehman said. “I think the kids have handled the transition well. Since I’ve had these guys before in the system, I think the transition with me taking over is probably the smoothest it can be.”
One benefit Hoehman has that Balent did not, is that he teaches in the high school, whereas the former coach was at another school. Balent left for greener pastures and after the coaching search, a veteran from within the program proved to be the best candidate.
Hoehman doesn’t plan to complicate things for a team that has been dealing with a coaching merry-go-round, but he does plan to implement some of his own philosophy into this year’s team.
That means pushing the ball up the court when the opportunity presents itself, valuing possessions and playing tough on-ball defense.
”I’m more of a defensive-minded coach, we’re going to attempt to create offense with our defense,” Hoehman said. “As far as tempo, every team looks to push the ball and we’ll look to take advantage of chances. Turnovers are something we’re going to look to limit. I was hired late and we’re a little later than other programs right now, but the team’s been working hard and we’re starting to get unified as a team.”

