The Boys Basketball team is back to their winning ways. In his third season at the helm, Head Coach Nicholas Sardone has guided the Hawks to a standout year, led by captains Shamar Burch and Pratyush Udupa. The Hawks have taken full advantage of their talent, which gave the Hawks their first double-digit win season since 2022-2023. Competing in the White American Division in the first season of the six-division format, the Hawks played with intensity and bunched above their weight class against Perth Amboy, Woodbridge, and St. Thomas Aquinas, and beating quite a few Red Division teams in the process. One of their finest wins, a win by double digits at that, came against Manville early in the season. This Manville team was named the 10th best team in the state by GMC Hoops, who provides extensive coverage of New Jersey high school basketball, reflecting on the Hawks’ ability to beat the best of the best and compete against opponents of any caliber. They also beat Woodbridge of the Red National Division by 14 points to clinch the Hawks Holiday Tournament championship, their second Holiday Tournament championship in three years. Even when not victorious, the team played tough and competed against some of the best teams in the state. The Hawks were neck and neck with the five-seeded St. Thomas Aquinas Trojans in the GMC Quarterfinals, having led at multiple points and trailing by only two with less than two minutes left in the fourth quarter, and also competed valiantly in both games against division champion Perth Amboy, who were also named to the GMC Hoops Top Ten. The Hawks had an excellent bounceback season which was fueled the talented players who brought energy to the floor, every minute of every game.
Sophomore Nameer Burch led the team with 19.4 points per game, ranking among the top 100 players in the state. Shamar Burch, the team’s floor general (the player who facilitates the offense), was also within the state’s top 100 in assists per game, and contributed heavily on the offensive end. This dynamic duo combined for over eight hundred points on the season.
However, the cousins weren’t the only ones who tore it up on the court. Pratyush Udupa provided toughness on the glass and lethal accuracy from beyond the arc. He also gave the team an incredible amount of energy when he hit a buzzer beater to take down cross-town rivals Edison High School, and had been named Most Valuable Player for the Hawks Holiday Tournament, in which he contributed 29 points to the winning effort in the championship game. Senior Esau Lewis provided toughness and lockdown defense while helping to facilitate the offense and keep the team in line. Young standouts like Himaksh Sharma, Toshan Biswas, and Aakash Patel had excellent seasons, with the Hawks’ deep bench and starting lineup changes making every game a team effort, win or lose. Reflecting on the season, Captain Pratyush Udupa explained how, “This was a truly incredible season, we worked a lot harder, and we improved our culture by having a great group of players who are also great people on varsity, and I’m excited for what the younger guys can do next year. I hope the lessons we taught them stick throughout the rest of their basketball careers”.
The future seems bright for the Hawks, with the Junior quartet of Shayan Patel, Toshan Biswas, Aakash Patel, and Dwight McIntosh returning next year to form the core of the team, eager to continue the forward momentum created this season. Underclassmen Himasksh Sharma, Rupert Yu, and Rodrick Anim are also returning next year, representing the future of the program and its tough, hard-nosed play style. The road to the 2026-2027 season has already started, with players in the weight room multiple times a week to get stronger, and the players working on their skills individually throughout the year. At the end of this road lies a promising future for the program and a chance to stand amongst the best teams in the state with their solid foundation and momentum carried over from this year.
