Young Dragons begin their journey

Kofi Kordie (left) / Din Islam

The High School for Math, Science, and Engineering Boys’ Basketball team kicked off their season opener with a 67-22 loss against Fiorello H Laguardia on December 4th at City College’s Nat Holman Gymnasium. Ten of the team’s total 13 athletes are underclassmen, which more closely resembles a junior varsity squad. Despite the loss, the game offered the young team valuable experience in varsity competition.

The game was also the first for head coach David Scheiman with the Dragons. Previously, Scheiman coached at Richard Green High School of Teaching from 2004-2012. During his time there, Scheiman won back to back division championships in the ‘07 and ‘08 seasons, as well as moving the team to the A-Division. Scheiman saw this game with an optimistic eye.

“I think we’re a very young team," Scheiman said. "For a lot of them, this is their first time playing varsity basketball. I think they got good exposure today. I think we did alright the first half. I think the second half we went out of gas. It’s important for them to learn the process of what its like to play on a high school varsity team."

From opening the team’s scoring with a three pointer, to finishing the game with 11 of his team’s 22 points, senior guard Kofi Kordie demonstrated his leadership.

“I think Kofi had a really good game today and really showed heart,” Scheiman said.

Kordie's ability to shake off any pre-game jitters of playing in front of the home crowd enhanced his performance during the game.

“I wasn’t really nervous during this game," Kordie said. "I guess that’s the reason why I shot a little bit better today."

Freshman point guard David Li showed flashes of future promise, dishing out two assists, but also made some careless turnovers.

Dionys Gutierrez (right) / Paul Lee

“I need to not turn over the ball as much and keep my head up” Li said. "I can improve on my passing and my scoring.”

One of the things missing from the Dragons’ game was their ability to capitalize off of turnovers and defensive stops. A series of crowd-raising blocks by senior center Dionys Gutierrez failed to result in any points in transition. His defensive presence alone will not be enough to push this team forward unless they can find a way to convert easy shots near the basket.

This is the beginning of a rebuilding process for the Dragons, after the graduation of 1,000 point scorer Kavan Edwards. With ten underclassmen, HSMSE's team has a promising foundation to build upon in the upcoming season.

A tough season for HSMSE boys’ basketball team

HSME Dragons / T. Henning

The boys varsity basketball team at the High School for Math Science and Engineering battled hard this season, losing some close games, and finishing 3-9. Although they had a losing record, they gained valuable experience in the process.

This season the team played twice against Chelsea Career and Technical Education splitting the two meetings. The first time HSMSE beat Chelsea by 29 points, but the second game they had a difficult loss, losing by four points. “I was disappointed the first time we played them we blew them out, the second time we played them they had a guy that they didn’t have the first time,” said Kavan Edwards, the team’s captain.

Edwards played a critical role, leading the team in scoring in all of their games. Unfortunately he is a senior at HSMSE, making his shoes that much harder to fill for next season. “Dionys Gutierrez , Kofi Kordie and Maxwell Drogin has [sic] to step up big time next season,” said Edwards.

This season six freshman made the team, which is nearly a third of the team. In the past the team was mainly made up of mostly upperclassmen . “In the past five years, we’ve never had more than one freshman on the boys' varsity basketball team. The skill level varies widely,” said Coach Richard Epstein “There has been tremendous growth and development for all of this year’s freshmen.”

The team is going to have a massive change to their roster next season. With the graduation of the seniors all  the other players will have to improve. “[Their] willingness to learn and to work hard is terrific,” said Epstein.

Shawn Watts
Justin Wu

Leading Dragons anchor their teams

Kavan Edwards / T. Henning

No team is complete without veteran players. There’s always one player that is there to teach the newer players the basics, and someone who can take a double team and make a shot with seconds left in the fourth quarter. Leah Cabrera and Kavan Edwards are the essential anchors to their respective basketball teams at the High School for Math, Science and Engineering..

Leah Cabrera, senior co-captain of the HSMSE girls’ basketball team, has been a part of the team since her freshmen year of high school. She uses her experience to guide the younger players into organized basketball. Cabrera helped the newcomers understand and improve in the sport. When people think of team leaders they think of people like Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan, players that could make every basket when it counts. Cabrera is a social leader that helps the team come together even after disappointing losses. Even after those disappointing games what mattered was self-confidence, “[I was] making sure everyone was doing well,” said Cabrera.

The quality of leadership demonstrated in the HSMSE girls’ basketball team is also seen in the boys’ basketball team by their leading scorer Kavan Edwards. He is their captain; a senior who has played since his sophomore year. Throughout his high school basketball career, Edwards has been crucial to the team’s offense. He has averaged 19.8 ppg over the three years he played.

Leah Cabrera (Right) / K. Marlowe

This being the last season for both players, puts into question how the team’s performance will be in the following season. Both leaders have suggested that the current juniors can possibly keep their team together. It is up to the current juniors to step up and take leadership next season. “As a senior you have to let the under classmen know how serious the team is,” said Edwards.

Contributed By Sadeon Martin

The new faces of the HSMSE Dragons

Evan Heus / T. Henning

The High School for Math, Science and Engineering Dragons had a surprisingly competitive basketball season despite the loss of many seniors due to graduation. Their replacements were freshmen who contributed greatly this season off the bench. Although they were not even sure if they would make the team, freshmen Evan Heus and William Herman played almost as much as the starters.

“Coming to high school I had no clue what was going to happen and what the team was going to be like,” said Herman. “I just wanted to make the team; I wasn't sure if I would.” Both athletes had experience prior to high school since they played basketball for their middle school teams.

Coach Richard Epstein recruited six freshmen, the most in the last three years. The large turnover of players greatly affected the team this season. “It was a huge loss,” said Epstein. “We lost 12 players to graduation last June, including our experienced players, our biggest players, our best guards and ball handlers.” The two promising freshmen, Heus and Herman, both stepped up and took the place of the seniors. They played in 11 out of the 12 games. “This year we each got a fair amount of playing time,” said Heus. “We were up there with the starters; next year at least one of us will start.”

Next season they will be losing one of the top players in HSMSE history, Kavan Edwards. “It is a tremendous loss. Kavan is one of the best, if not the best player to ever play at this school. His loss will be impossible to replace,” said Epstein. It is up to the underclassmen to step up and take his place. They need to work hard and gain more experience in order for them to have a good season next year.

William Herman / T. Henning

The freshmen felt they improved immensely due to the intense practices. “Dribbling a basketball and shooting four days a week improves a player,” said Herman. If the players work on their basketball skills all year round they will improve emphatically. By doing so, it will determine who the top players will be next year. “The underclassmen need to work and get more experience. It is in the offseason that players improve,” said Epstein.

The Dragons are in for a huge transformation as a team. “We’ll see who steps up and becomes the new stars of the future,” said Epstein. The team needs several people to break through and step in for those who will be leaving. “Honestly I think losing the seniors will help because more people would get more shots,” said Heus. “Kavan was our go-to guy in tough situations; now several people will have to step up and take his place.”

Contributed by Kian Zadeh and Sahar Saedi

Frustrating season for the Dragons

Hsmse boys' basketball team / Sara Louie

This season the boys’ basketball team of the High School for Math, Science, and Engineering failed to make the playoffs unlike last year. In the 2010-11 season, the team made it to the playoffs with a 6-6 record and eventually was eliminated in the first round. Going into the second half of this season, the team was 4-2 with high chances of exceeding last year’s record and making it to the playoffs once again. As the second half of the season progressed, the team had a 6-3 record with five games remaining and needed only one win to advance to the playoffs.

The team at that point was at its peak and things fell apart as the team went on to lose their next five games. The team in the end had a 6-8 record with no chance of making it to the playoffs. “We played five very competitive teams, one team on our level, and one team that we should’ve beaten,” said junior forward Kavan Edwards. Edwards, who missed one game this season, led the team in scoring. He felt that other teams adjusted to their style of play when they faced them for the second time. “Our team kept playing the same way through out the season and the other teams seemed to have caught on to our style of play.”

Even though the team didn't make it to the playoffs they put up a great effort and in the end, just came up a bit short. The team will make this season a learning experience for next season and will try to build on the new talent they receive in order to surpass this year’s performance.