The two most decorated boys’ high school programs in the state will meet tonight, in the CPTV Sports Tip-Off Classic.
Combined, both the Hillhouse Academics of New Haven of New Haven and the Weaver Beavers of Hartford, have won a total 30 CIAC state titles. The Academics hold 22 of the 30.
The Beavers, who captured the Class M title last season by defeating Notre Dame Catholic 73-59, petitioned to move up to a higher class such as the LL which contains larger and much more competitive schools. With that being said, these two schools might be a preview to this years CIAC Class LL title game.
The Academics, who were bounced out of the CIAC Class LL tournament last season at the hands of Fairfield Prep 59-57, completed the season with a record of 21-4. The loss this team suffered in the Final Four disappointed Head Coach Renard Sutton and his team, and this year they are back and hungry for a title.
“Last year, said Sutton, “we went as far as we thought we should have gone in losing in overtime. So it’s just a little redemption that those guys have on their shoulders as well as wanting to get back.”
What separates this 2015 Hillhouse team from last year’s squad? Sutton said youth is surprisingly the team’s strength.
“I think we are an equally balanced team,” said Sutton. Joey Kasperzyk is one of our standout players as well as Byron Breland III, who is a sophomore. Also, with Joey being a junior, the youth is probably where the strength of our program is.”
Sutton explained that, over the years, it hasn’t been an easy and smooth transition for Kasperzyk, who is a very talented guard. Sutton said growth through experience has molded his star guard to the player he has become thus far. “He’s had leaps and bounds of growth from freshman to sophomore year,” he said. So he’s coming into his junior year a little more mature. I think he understands a little more about the ‘team-ball’ aspect.”
Kasperzyk, who has played a major role in his team remaining undefeated at 2-0 prior to their match-up against the Beavers, said the support from his team has helped his game elevate each year. “I don’t feel a lot of pressure with my teammates behind me,” he said. “We are a family. We do everything together and stick by each other.”
To Coach Sutton, there are three words that describe his team: Speed. Gritty. Focused.
When asked what to expect from his team, Sutton added, “We like to spread the ball around and have four, maybe five, players in double digits. It’s going to be a lot of defense and it’s going to be a lot of long balls.”
In addition to the accolades and the numerous story lines heading into this match-up, you can’t lose sight of the meaning this game has for the kids personally, said Sutton. A little “friendly competition” between the players is what’s really behind the hype for the players and fans. Still, Sutton is aware that the Beavers’ program can’t be taken for granted, because they have talented athletes as well.
“These guys play against each other in AAU in the summer,” he said. “It’s a little bragging rights for them. For us, to be a contender in the state, we know we are going to play against a good program. So we just got to be up for it and be ready to go.”
The Beavers have their go-to player in senior KeAndre Fair. Heading into senior season, Fair may reach for one of the greatest individual accomplishments a high school player can achieve — his name in the record books for scoring 2,000 plus points in a career.
But to the senior captain point guard, that’s not his main focus. Fair still feels his team is being labeled as an “underdog” despite coming off a title but in a different class. He believes the hunger to prove wrong the ones who said the Beavers can’t compete for a Class LL title this year is driving this year’s squad.
“There are still a lot of critics saying we can’t do it again this year,” said Fair. “Or maybe we won because we were in the Class M. Or, we probably can’t win at the next level. So that’s why we are hungrier. We are coming back stronger than ever.”
KeAndre Fair is averaging 22.5 points a game this year. Fair personally put on more pounds and bulked up this off-season. He talked about his development over time. “I’ve gotten much more physical over the years,” he said. “I’m playing better offensively and defensively. I’m being much more aggressive so that’s where I’m at.”
Standing at an athletic 6’2,” Fair credits his weight increase as an advantage over other guards.“That’s going to help me out a lot,” said Fair, “because in Connecticut, you don’t see a lot of big point guards. That will help me out a lot down low where I’ve been working on my post moves.”
Beavers head coach Reggie Hatchett said the meaning for moving up in class was to prove that his team had what it takes to compete with any team in the state, at any level.”We wanted to move up to Class LL because last year we felt that we were the best team in the state,” he said. “A lot of people didn’t give us that credit because we were in the Class M. In the final poll, in a couple of newspapers, they let Fairfield Prep leapfrog us in the final poll because they got the LL championship, I felt. I think if we were the Class LL champions, that wouldn’t have happened.”
As for their match-up against the Academics, Hatchett said both teams have some identical styles but this game will be a great test to see how his team is currently performing.
“They play similar to us. They play full-court pressure,” said Hatchett. “They have a lot of talented perimeter players. Joey (Kasperzyk) is one of the best players in the state and a very good scorer. So we have our work cut out. I think that a game like this, this early, will give us a barometer of where we need to be. Also, now that we’ve moved to class LL, that’s also a team that we will see down the road.”
Heading into this match-up, Hatchett said that Sports as a whole at Weaver have shown a decrease in fan/community support. He said the football program is a great example — showing how much support for these high school athletes really means. He hopes last season’s basketball success is a great indication for much more increase as the years go on.
Reggie Hatchett hopes this season can provide more community/fan support for the Weaver athletic program.
“We really haven’t had much to cheer about at Weaver as far as athletics is concerned,” he said. “Our numbers got so low, that our football team had to combine with another city school. Basketball is still the darling of the city and this is still a basketball town. With us having success last year, we’ve had a lot of people band behind us. I think that this year will be the same thing if we are able to continue with that same kind of success. We will get the same kind of support or even more support than last year.”
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By: Bobby Martinez, CPTV Sports Digital Media Producer
Joslyn Wakefield says
Go Willie James. Keep up the great work. You look awesome out there. Love Joslyn and your family.