Photo Credit: John Hurwitz ‘10

By John Hurwitz ‘10
Sports Editor

Two new banners hang on the north and east walls of the Lewis Jackson Memorial Sports Center this year. After a remarkable playoff run, the 2009 Windward Wildcats boys basketball team took home the CIF Div. V Southern Section and State championships. However, the glamorous Class of ‘09 trio, Darius Morris, Anthony Stover and Malcolm Washington, has moved on to the next level, and it is time for a new team to step up.

This year’s senior class is flying under the radar in high school basketball spheres, but opponents should be wary of Windward’s back court, with point guard Kwame Firempong ‘10 and guard Jacob Rubin ‘10 each entering their third year at the varsity level. Senior guard Pharoah Green has overcome his knee injuries and will see significant minutes off the bench. Firempong and Rubin make up for their lack of size (both barely crack the 6-foot mark) with the defense, hustle and awareness they have brought to the table in the past.

Junior wing Wesley Saunders will receive the bulk of attention from defenders because of his athleticism and strong moves to the basket. Saunders, who stands 6′5″, can play any position on the floor and rounds out his game with a deadly jump shot and outstanding passing skills. He is receiving attention from prestigious college basketball programs at schools like Arizona and Kansas after an impressive first two years of ball. Fellow junior Miles Gueno figures to be a shifty player off the bench who plays an important role in coach Miguel Villegas’ offense. Two other juniors, Dylan MacDonald and Nikolai Beshkov, will also come off the bench and play physical defense.

With the talent surrounding Saunders, it is hard for anyone to refer to Windward as a one-man show. Sophomores Nick Stover, Luke Silverman-Lloyd, and Matt Walker are “fresh” off of their rookie campaigns. Stover, the lanky younger brother of graduated senior Anthony, stands 6′4″ and will be a threat at the wing with his deep shooting and ball skills. Silverman-Lloyd will come off the bench and reclaim his role as sharpshooter with his daunting beyond-the-arc stroke. Walker’s bulky 6′5″ stature makes him an instant inside threat off the bench as a tough rebounder and big guy.

Chaunce Hill steps into the center spot in his freshman year at Windward. Hill, Jordan Wilson, and Charles Dawson compose a 2013 class which will be so difficult to stop this season that the thought of them playing together three years down the road is scary. At 6′6″ Hill is a raw talent, but with time he should flourish under the tutelage of Coach Villegas and the assistant coaches. Wilson only stands 5′7″ but his combination of speed and shooting is a defender’s worst nightmare. Dawson, also 5′7″, is an exceptional athlete who can keep up with just about anyone on the floor.

The Wildcats were tested in their second game of the season by nationally ranked Taft High School of Woodland Hills and struggled. However, the boys regrouped and finished fifth out of 16 in the Westchester Tip-Off Classic tournament. In the final game of the tournament Saunders turned in one of the most impressive performances in the program’s history when he scored 43 points en route to a 74-67 win over Palos Verdes Peninsula High School.

Looking ahead, Rubin hopes to convert the potential of this year’s players into another historic season. “Our team has the talent to compete with all of the teams we face, but we are young and inexperienced, so I try to use every practice to improve us as a team. The coaches have set the bar high for us and the only way we will succeed is by working extremely hard in practice and taking it one game at a time.”