With the fall sports season wrapped up, basketball is approaching. Both the Girls’ and Boys’ Varsity Basketball teams are prepping for the challenging season ahead. The rosters are looking great with a lot of newly added depth. Head Coaches Michael Junsch and Edgar De La Rosa have been spending the preseason very efficiently by warming up their players for the challenging season ahead of them. The coaches have high expectations as preseason nears its end. 

  “I am feeling very excited as the preseason has been very fruitful, and my players are focusing well and training hard. The offense and defense are looking sharp so overall I am looking forward to what the season holds for us,” Junsch said.

The coaches hope to take what the team learned last season and utilize those skills to their advantage this season. Last year, the Girls’ Varsity Basketball team won many close games, leading them to the NYSAIS finals, but ultimately came up short with their loss in a thrilling finale.

“I think last season was phenomenal as my players performed above and beyond, and we learned how to play adequate man-to-man defense, so we will look to implement that more into our program for this season,” Junsch stated.

There is much enthusiasm to debut the new and exciting talent found within the incoming freshman class. “Our new players will be a huge benefit to the team with many freshman shooters, passers, and defenders looking on point for the launch of the new season increasing our chances of winning the championship,” said Junsch.

With all this positive feedback on the upcoming season, Junsch and his players have Poly spirit flowing through their veins with hope to make a comeback from last year’s season.

“Although we failed to bring it home last season, I am thrilled to watch the development of my players on and off the court as the children I am coaching are amazing basketball players and humans,” stated Junsch.

Another team making waves in the upcoming season is the Boys’ Varsity Basketball Team led by Coach De La Rosa. The team is looking better than ever with a couple of new additions bringing a lot of skill to the table. Along with last years’ state championship team, these new members are looking to bring home another Poly basketball victory this season. De La has been taking preseason very seriously, and has been pushing his players to exceed expectations and dominate the court this season.

“We have been running some serious competitive game drills during the offseason that will help us get ready for our ambitious opponents,” said De La Rosa.

With regards to last season’s victory in the NYSAIS tournament, De La Rosa is constantly trying to make his team better and have them go the extra mile to secure the championship again this year.

“I believe that our team has learned a lot from last year’s experience. We had some very close games and good competition that has made this year’s group battle tested,” De La Rosa said. 

De La Rosa is also attempting to give his players the upper hand by incorporating a hard working and winning mentality so they can take over the court.

“We look to instill a winning mentality with our team everyday at practice by doing this we hope it carries over to our games,” stated De La Rosa.

Both coaches are looking to win the NYSAIS championship again this year and destroy the competition.