Last time the boys’ basketball team faced off with Hempstead, Wahlert came out with a 64-59 victory.  This was the first win of the season for a team that graduated the top eight players from last year. Since then, the team has played much more consistent basketball while picking up three more wins along the way.

“The key to our win against Hempstead was the fact that we refused to be intimidated, and we did a good job calming ourselves down,” said Austin Savary, ‘17.

The team will go into the game tonight with a 4-11 record as opposed to a 14-3 Hempstead team that has been on a roll lately.  Although Hempstead’s record may be somewhat daunting, the team knows that they have done this before and can do it again.

“At this juncture, in order to beat Hempstead, ball movement has to be standard,” said Sam Herrig, ‘17.

There is no question that a lot of things must go right in order to repeat their success.  Getting back to the basics will help the game continue at a smoother pace than letting things get out of control.

“You know, it simply comes down to us just getting the ball in the hoop more than the other team. The key will be putting more points on the board,” said Jon Becker, ‘17.

A significant presence at inner city games is the heightened atmosphere that comes with the large crowds flocking to see an entertaining game.  An important aspect of success will be whether or not the team will be able to tap into the crowd’s excitement and use it to their advantage.

“Usually the larger crowds play to our advantage because we are used to seeing smaller student sections, so when they show up, it gets us pumped up,” added Becker.

One thing is for sure, the team is in for tough matchup tonight at Hempstead with the game starting at 7:30.  The theme for the game will be ‘Merica out.