Stevens hoops off to best start in nearly 30 years
BY SHAWN LAYTON Staff Writer
The J.P. Stevens High School boys basketball team opened the season with four consecutive wins heading into the John Butch Kowal Memorial Tournament at Rahway. The Hawks were scheduled to open the tournament with a first-round meeting with Holmdel. Other teams in the tournament include St. Peter's Prep, Scotch Plains, South Plainfield, Westfield, Summit and host Rahway.

"We've checked the records going back to 1980, and we haven't found a Stevens team to open a season 3-0, let alone 4-0," Stevens head coach JamesCardillo said. "When I looked at the schedule, I said thatwe'd have to be 3- 1 heading into the holiday tournament. The start has been great, and we've had different guys stepping up every game."

Stevens opened the season with a 53-44 win over Perth Amboy and utilized its depth to get the job done. Kenny Bland and Nick Pol led the team with 14 and 10 points, respectively. The Hawks got eight points apiece from Conner Medler and Darnell Sorrell, andAlex Cacoilo sank three of five attempts from beyond the three-point arc to finish with nine.

It was more of the same in the team's 62-49 win over East Brunswick as Bland, Cacoilo, Pol and Sorrell all finished in double figures. Pol led all scorers with 15 followed by Cacoilo's 13 and Sorrell's 12. Bland provided a solid all-around performance with 11 points, 12 rebounds, and five blocks. Sorrel was a rebound short of his first double-double of the season.

The Hawks faced a tougher challenge in the third game of the season in their home opener against St. Joseph.

"We went down early, but made a nice run to cut their lead down to one at the half," Cardillo said. "The difference for us was the play ofMylesReuben.Mylesmissed the first two games and started his season off with a dominant game off the bench."

Reuben finished with 16 points and eight rebounds and helped ignite a 21-9 run that the Hawks went on stretching from the third quarter into the fourth. Stevens held a two-point lead heading

into the final quarter but closed

the game with a 19-8 run to win

the game 53-40.

"That was a real nice win

for us," Cardillo said. "Myles

was outstanding and proved

just how deep we are right

now. We've had four different leading scorers through the first four games, and if this keeps up, we

should be in good shape."

The final game before the holiday tournament sawMedler lead the team with 23 points as the Hawks cruised to a 75-29 victory over Wardlaw-Hartridge. Bland added 22 and Cacoilo finished with 11.

"I've gone through the worst times here at Stevens, and it's nice to be playing well and having fun," Cardillo said. "I really believe this is a special group we have here this season."

After the winter break, Stevens will resume regular season play with a home game Jan. 3 against visiting Piscataway. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m.