Photo courtesy of Dave’s Joint
By David Cordova
In this installment of “Suburban Stories,” we will be talking about the Scarsdale Raiders, who have been making their presence felt in Section 1 throughout the last couple of years and are coming off of a groundbreaking win in last year’s Section 1 Tournament semifinals Westchester County powerhouse against Mount Vernon.
In Westchester County, the Section 1 league is the one where public school teams from individual cities do nightly battles. There’s nothing like representing the town that you’re from, having pep rallies where the student body is celebrating you and wishing you well and last but not least, where the even the local community is cheering you on. Very reminiscent of what films like Disney’s High School Musical looks like, but in real life.
In a town like Scarsdale, there’s plenty of support for the students, but also for the athletes as well. Just a small town with a population of over 18,000 people, it’s a place where many of the wealthy live and where many homes are. If you want to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city life and raise a family, the village of Scarsdale is where it’s at. Also, if you want to get to Grand Central Terminal in Midtown Manhattan, the Metro-North Railroad will get you there in approximately 30-plus minutes.
Scarsdale High School, which was opened in 1917, is a school with an enrollment of over 1,500 students and has a huge ethnic, diverse population. The school has a long list of alumni, such as sportscaster Ed Cohen, University of Southern California women’s head basketball coach Lindsay Gottlieb, former college basketball coach and current entrepreneur Yanni Hufnagel, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy, famed turntablist DJ Shiftee and Stranger Things actor, Noah Schnapp.
However, this story is all about their team, but first, this let’s go to the man leading the ship.
Prior to his appointment as the head coach of Scarsdale High School, Joe Amelio was somewhat of a secret, but also a proven winner as well. A native of the Throggs Neck section of The Bronx, Amelio is a 2005 graduate of St. Raymond High School in The Bronx, a powerhouse in the CHSAA (Catholic High Schools Athletic Association), which is one of the best leagues in the nation.
A two-year varsity player, he was a part of the 2004 Ravens squad that won a city championship, with players that went on to play Division I basketball such as Drexel, Seton Hall, North Carolina State and St. John’s. He also played collegiate basketball for Division III Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, New Jersey, where he graduated in 2009 with a bachelor’s degree in finance.
Just a few years later, he became a coach, starting out as a volunteer assistant at his alma mater, St. Raymond, in the 2012-13 season, coaching at the school for a period of six seasons. During that time, he became an assistant coach on the varsity “A” team and was the head coach of the varsity “B” team. During the 2017-18 season, he led the Ravens to the CHSAA varsity “B” championship.
Then not too long after, he became the head coach of the Raiders. Since day one, Amelio has always been a players’ coach that has made it his vow to teach the game to his players, and also a coach that allows his freedom to play.
Last season, he led the Raiders to a 13-10 record and had a major victory in the Section 1 semifinals against one of Section 1’s most prominent teams in the Mount Vernon Knights, which gave them in their biggest victory in the previous 25 years. They then moved into the championship game, when they were looking for their first Section 1 title since 1997, but they would lose to North Rockland. That right there showed that the Raiders had arrived and were on the map.
Part of that is because of the personnel that they have.
The personnel that the Raiders have are some pretty talented guys. They may not be the most athletic squad, but they’re some players that will get the job done, if need be.
In the backcourt is juniors Jake Sussberg, Brandon Gibbons, Daniel Hoey and seniors A.J. Booth and Carlos Rodriguez. This quintet of players are known to put the ball in the basket in a variety of ways.
In the case of Rodriguez, he is a player that shows plenty of promise and may have a chance to play on the Division I level, as he holds an offer from Manhattan College and has interest from schools in the Patriot League and the Ivy League, two conferences for the academically-elite. No matter where he goes next season, he will definitely be a a force to be reckoned with. Booth is a player that can shoot from long range and is also a solid rebounder on the floor that can hold his own with bigger opponents.
Gibbons and Hoey will definitely be the elder statesmen next season in the backcourt. Their abilities are very valuable and will be a much-needed asset. The shooting of Hoey from the wing and the craftiness of Gibbons at the point guard position are definitely key for the Raiders.
Sussberg is a guard that is able to dominate against smaller players and is a shooter that has a deadly stroke from three-point range. At the present time, just like Rodriguez, he has also garnered attention from schools in the Ivy League & the Patriot League.
In the front court are senior Oscar Langford and sophomore Andrew Roseman, both of whom are great contributors for the Raiders in the front court. They’re both great rebounders that will make their presence felt for their squad and ensure that they will get the win.
Other contributors to the team are senior guards Conner Shigekawa and Noah Grossberg and three talented juniors in forwards Finn Miller and Sergio Vittori and guard Logan Mancusi.
With this group, they can never be counted out.
Although the squad has had a 6-14 record this season, they have played plenty of close games throughout and won against one of the section’s best teams in New Rochelle on Jan. 19th. The close losses were against White Plains, Tappan Zee, Mamroneck and Mount Vernon.
However, it is a new season and it’s called the playoffs. Tonight, they will be playing in the “AA” classification for the sectional playoffs, as they’re playing on the road against Poughkeepsie. However, at this point, it’s all about surviving and advancing. One loss could end the entire season. A win advances them to the next round. And if they win the next game, they could end up playing at the County Center for a third time this season, after playing in the Slam Dunk Showcase against White Plains on Jan. 6th and the Public vs. Catholic Hoops Showdown event on Feb. 3rd against Brooklyn’s own Xaverian.
The plan for the Raiders is to make it back to the sectional championship game, and not only make it, but also win. Can they repeat the same success as last year? That question will be answered against the Pioneers from the opening tip.
The next installment of “Suburban Stories,” will be talking about the legendary Mount Vernon Knights, as they are currently still going and still strong and look to get to the Section 1 championship and look to avenge last year’s defeat to Scarsdale in the semifinals.
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