It was just a month ago when the East Brunswick boys basketball team could have doubted it would even finish with a .500 record.
Now, there’s no reason why the Bears can’t be one of the better teams in the Greater Middlesex Conference.
Even a 56-38 loss to Piscataway (15-5) Monday night, which broke a nine-game winning streak, shouldn’t detract from what has been a turnaround of major proportions. The Bears currently stand at 14-7 and can still right themselves with a home game tonight against Spotswood before the GMC Tournament begins this weekend.
It was mid-January and the Bears were teetering near .500, wondering whether they might even qualify for the state tournament. However, now with their present record, the Bears are now legitimately looking at respectable seeds in the GMC and Central Jersey Group IV tournaments.
There’s one more task at hand, however. The matchup tonight with neighborhood rival Spotswood is an intriguing division crossover game. The Chargers, a Group II team, is a member of the smaller-school GMC Blue Division, and has established a fine 15- 3 record. Spotswood exhibits a fast-paced offense, much like East Brunswick, which means you have all the makings of an old- fashioned neighborhood war.
“There are a lot of reasons why we’re winning games now,” said Bo Henning, who, in his 23 years as coach, might be turning in his best job ever. “But if I was to pin it down to one specific thing we’re doing better, it’s playing defense. We’re making stops on the opposite end of the floor and that’s creating opportunities on the other end. “Speed is one attribute we’ve always had,” he continued, “but now we’re able to utilize our quickness by developing turnovers into scoring chances.”
Henning says the Bears’ surge has been a collective team effort but points to the play of senior Alec Mayo, who has not only led the team defensively but has contributed his top scoring efforts in the last three victories.
“He’s been terrific,” said Henning. “And we continue to get leadership from Dustin Schuld and Kevin Johnson, our other two senior regulars.”
Juniors Mauro Tucci, Anthony Gudzak, Mike Weber, and Kevin Lance, have also been key contributors as has freshman Mike Summerer.
“We’ve proven we can play with the better teams in the GMC,” Henning said. “And that’s given us confidence moving forward. Fortunately, we’ll get opportunities to demonstrate we’re a good team with the GMC Tournament and states.”