Erika Souza

Sophomore Adam Balagoun-Ali drives to the hoop in the third quarter of their game against the Pine School (Erika Souza). “This season is going to be fun, because I get to shine more than I did last year,” Balogoun-Ali explained with passion. “Since we lost a lot of seniors last year, this will be a tough year for us, but I feel like that we will power through.”

The Benjamin Boys Varsity Basketball team is looking to improve this season after finishing with sixteen wins and eleven losses last season. The team took a huge blow after losing seven seniors and four starters, which now leaves the young squad with a lot of shoes to fill.

Senior Captain Christian Balistreri is a strong contributor to the team especially beyond the arc, as he was third on the team in three-pointers made last season. He was sixth on the team in points while being behind four seniors in the starting lineup. He has a real chance to shine this year and lead the team when he returns from injury.

“It is my senior season, so I am really excited and I want to just try and help the team because we have a lot of underclassmen who will get a few opportunities. The team is lacking a lot of height, which is going to make us rely on us not taking bad shots and creating more scoring opportunities by moving around and not just crashing the board,” mentions Balistreri.

Sophomore Adam Balogoun-Ali made a huge difference to the team last season, as he started as just a freshman. He had a little over two hundred points, which was third on the team and a fifty-two percent field goal percentage, which was second on the team.

“This season is really important for me because I am going to have a bigger role on the team. My goal is for us to improve and just show progress through the season because that can help for next year,” says Balogoun-Ali.

A young and promising player is freshman Griffon Alterman who could have a possible role on the varsity team this year.

“I am excited for this year because it is my first year and I am hoping that I make varsity. I am hoping that my time at Benjamin includes a state championship,” adds Alterman. 

Senior Hudson Byrne will also be one of the players to have an expanded role this year after having limited numbers last season. 

“I want the team to thrive and I want to make the season special because it’s my senior year, and maybe do a little better than my brother in his senior season,” says Byrne. 

The boys have started the season with two wins and two losses with a desire to improve from the early losses. Best of luck to the team this season!