The late Jack Kuhnert left a legacy in Freehold Borough and Freehold Township. As a math teacher at and the head coach of the Freehold High School boys basketball team, Kuhnert was one of the school’s and Freehold Borough’s most vocal supporters.
His teams brought recognition and respect to Freehold Borough, in addition to championship banners.
As a resident of Freehold Township, Kuhnert was very active in the community. The basketball courts at Michael J. Tighe Park are named in his honor.
When Kuhnert died in 1997, the annual Freehold Regional High School District Holiday Basketball Tournament was renamed the Kuhnert Holiday Tournament. Kuhnert’s Freehold teams won the tournament a record 10 times during its long run.
The holiday tournament was a victim of budget cuts in 2010 and was not played in 2010 or 2011.
That fact did not sit well with the current Freehold boys basketball coach, Ben DiBiase, or with Freehold Township High School boys basketball coach Brian Golub and they decided to do something about it.
On Jan. 6, Freehold High School, Robertsville Road, Freehold Borough, will host the inaugural Kuhnert Classic pitting Freehold vs. Freehold Township. Tipoff time is 5:30 p.m.
“It (the Kuhnert Classic) started with Brian and I wanting to do something nice for the Kuhnert family and Jack’s legacy, especially because the holiday tournament was abolished,” DiBiase said. “Past players are being invited and are encouraged to contact either myself at [email protected] or Brian at [email protected] if they are planning to attend.”
T-shirts commemorating the upcoming basketball game between the Colonials and the Patriots are being solid by DiBiase and Golub, and anyone who purchases a shirt is encouraged to wear it to the game. All proceeds from the T-shirt sale will go to the Kuhnert Scholarship Fund. When Kuhnert was coaching the Colonials, they played the Patriots during the regular season and often times met in the FRHSD holiday tournament championship game (always won by the Colonials).
The teams played in different tournaments during the recent winter break. Freehold Township advanced to the Dec. 30 championship game of the Huskies Tournament (vs. Manalapan) at Matawan Regional High School in Aberdeen.
Freehold played in the Buc Tournament at Red Bank Regional High School in Little Silver. The Colonials reached the semifinals before losing to Middletown North.