New Look Colts Enter New Season With High Hopes
Colts varsity basketball kicks off their 2021-22 season Friday night at home vs. Holmdel. After a wild season in 2020 with COVID at its peak, CBA looks to get things back to normal with fans back in the stands.
CBA sits with a brand new lineup following the loss of a few heavy contributors. The most notable being their backcourt of Mike White and Colin Farrell, where Farrell was clearly the ringleader, averaging right around 15 PPG.
The Colts sit with a brand new duo at the perimeter with Pat Lautato ‘22 and Peter Noble ‘24. Noble shined on the JV team last year and has shown scoring ability and good handle with the ball. Lautato has been getting serious minutes on varsity since last year, but he comes into his senior campaign expected to be the guy.
Perimeter shooting and guard play should be one of CBA’s biggest strengths this year with James Durney ‘22 bringing a spark off the bench. Durney is probably the team’s best ball handler and can pass at a solid level.
Noble is fully aware of the challenge ahead of him jumping into a starting varsity role as an underclassman. “Stepping into a varsity role as a sophomore has definitely been and is going to continue to be challenging. But, with the loss of some key seniors, it has to be done.”
It is certainly going to take some getting used to for the young sophomore to get comfortable against varsity competition, but he showcased his talent at the JV level a year ago, leaving Coach Geoff Billet confident in his ability.
One of the biggest holes in the Colts’ game plan this year will be their big men. The team, with the departure of senior Dane Moran last year, didn’t have a set replacement for the 6’5 rebounding center who was such a big part of CBA’s success last year.
Moran grabbed a ton of offensive rebounds and the rest of the team relied on him to get them second chance opportunities. And as we get ready for the 2021-22 campaign to begin, they hope to find his heir.
Along with Noble comes another young talent to CBA’s varsity roster. Justin Fuerbacher ‘25 is expected to be the starting center for the Colts tomorrow night. The 6’2 pure athlete has looked great during the preseason, letting his defensive skills shine and looks confident in the paint.
Size is the one major tool CBA lacks this year. Fuerbacher is their biggest guy and really the only true center on the roster.
So, it looks like Coach Billet will be working with a small ball script this year. Perimeter shooting and the guards being able to drive hard to the basket off screens and off the dribble are going to be critical for CBA to win big games this year.
But, there seems to be no shortage of confidence in the locker room. I spoke to senior guard James Durney and he’s ready to be a leader. “Obviously the ultimate goal is to win the Shore Conference and really compete for states. Every practice, Coach Billet tells us how important our defense is so I plan on emphasizing that in the locker room.”
The Colts will definitely be one of the more intriguing teams to watch in the Shore Conference this year, with a ton of question marks but also a ton of potential. They kick off the action Friday night at 5:30pm.
Lots of questions to answer. Lots of new spots to fill. Lots of hope and confidence in the locker room. We’ll see if CBA can put it all together.
