By Jeff Appelblatt
Reflecting on the boys’ basketball season, the Freehold Regional High School District (FRHSD) coaches gave their votes on which players in the division presented the biggest challenges to opposing teams.
The top five players in the district as selected by the coaches are:
- Naseim Brantley, Howell High School (11-13): The junior led the Rebels with 17 points per game. He immediately showed he had no problem transitioning from football to basketball when he scored 43 total points in his first two games on the court.
- P.J. Ringel, Marlboro High School (19-7): The senior, who missed the Mustangs’ first eight games due to injury, had a rough start to his fourth year on the team. He quickly reminded every coach, however, why he was a player to look out for on both ends of the court. Ringel averaged 14 points, more than five rebounds and four steals over the 18 games he played
- Stephen Staklinski, Freehold Township High School (25-3): The senior quickly became the Patriots’ top scoring option this season, leading them with 17 points per game.
- Matan Zucker, Manalapan High School (4-17): An injury in the second game of the season kept the junior out for almost a month, but his rivals remembered all the scoring he did in the 13 games he saw time on the court. For the season, Zucker averaged just under 20 points, cracking the 20-point mark eight times.
- Ryan Zyskowski, Freehold Township: Zyskowski immediately showed he may take a backseat to Staklinski as a scorer, but the senior showed that the Patriots had a strong one-two punch
These five players were also difficult for teams to guard this season:
- Greg Billups, Freehold Township: The agility and all-around skill showed from the start for the sophomore. He missed eight games after suffering the same ankle injury as Manalapan’s Zucker, but he quickly got back into the swing of things with the Patriots upon his return.
- Danny Gaines, Colts Neck High School (15-9): Only a junior, Gaines showed right away he could help significantly on offense after Colts Neck’s entire starting lineup from a year ago graduated. He scored 21.5 points per game in the team’s first five games, including 25 points in the opener, and he finished the year leading the Cougars with 17 per game.
- Bobby Weise, Freehold Township: The senior turned up his offense late in the season and in the playoffs when it was needed most. He averaged nine points for the year.
- Dan Weiss, Marlboro: With Ringel out early in the season, the senior quickly showed he was ready for his team to rely on him. Weiss came out of the gate scoring and grabbing boards, and he helped the Mustangs win six out of eight games without their top setup man. The 6-foot-5 senior, who didn’t miss a game, scored 11.5 per contest.
- Dylan Kaufman, Marlboro: Alongside Weiss from the start was Kaufman, a 6-foot-3 sophomore. He started the season off with a double-double (11 points, 12 rebounds), and he finished his second season scoring 13 points and grabbing six boards a game.
Players who earned honorable mention by the district’s coaches were Ashante Worthy (Freehold High School (2-19)), Ben Bosland (Colts Neck), Brendan Clarke (Colts Neck), Matt Ganter (Howell), Ryan Cardone (Freehold Township) and Ryan LaRocca (Marlboro).