Boys’ Varsity Basketball Season Recap
The 2022-2023 Riverdale boys’ varsity basketball season was an eventful one. The team had a new coach and a largely brand-new roster. Because many players were seniors last year, only five players returned from the 2021-2022 season, leaving 11 new slots for the 16-man roster. Despite the many new faces, over the course of the season, the team made significant strides in both team chemistry and actual play on the court.
The year started off with the introduction of new head coach, Brendan Barile. After serving in the head coaching position at Rye Country Day School for many years, Coach Barile was excited about the opportunity to lead the Riverdale team. When asked about his goals coming into a new school and a new team, Coach Barile said, “we want to create a culture where everyone cares more about each other than themselves. This is hard to do, and culture only happens by the things we do every day, it does not happen overnight.” Throughout the season, Coach Barile emphasized team chemistry and a desire for players to bond both on and off the court. Similarly, Coach Barlie stressed that by building a foundation based on trust and care, the team’s on-court performance would directly benefit.
With 11 new players, team chemistry would not be an overnight achievement. As Coach Barile described, “luckily for us this season, we had a group of five seniors who understood this, and while we had not been together long, they knew how to be real teammates.” Since there were many underclassmen on the team, senior leadership was vital. This group of outstanding seniors consisted of Owen Landis, Parker Goodman, Carter Boyce, and Co-Captains Jack Davis and Jake Light.
When asked about the team’s improvement over the course of the season, Co-Captain Jack Davis explained that “with our team, we basically had a whole new group of guys, new coach, new system, and I think we got a little robotic at the beginning of the season trying to learn this new system and put new plays in. Ultimately, throughout the season, I think that we really gelled together and figured out how to play basketball the right way.” Co-Captain Jake Light noted the importance of the team’s positive attitude: “something that is at the forefront of our approach when it comes to making sure the team stays together is positivity. As a team, we have a next-day mentality, coming into practice, trying to improve every single day.”
As is to be expected of any young team, the season had its ups and downs in the win/loss column. Starting off the season with three losses was a challenge for the Falcons; however, the team knew that a big game was coming up in the schedule against Rye Country Day, Coach Barile’s previous school. The team knew that the best way to jump-start the season was to beat Coach Barile’s old team. The Falcons played a great game against Rye Country Day, securing a resounding 55-38 win, and shooting an impressive 46.4% two-point field goal percentage and a 50% three-point percentage. After the Rye game, the team dropped several of its next games, but played with great intensity and effort throughout. With another big game coming up against rival Horace Mann, Coach Barile and assistant coaches Joe Cifone and Rob Shin quickly devised new defensive and offensive schemes focusing on limiting the effectiveness of the opposing team's best players and creating more movement on the offensive side of the ball. The team then went on a great run to finish the back half of the season, winning three out of its next five games, including wins over rivals Horace Mann and Fieldston.
Looking toward next season, Coach Barile stated that “the talent in the program could be that of an Ivy League Championship winner. However, that is only possible with player buy-in to the process of constant improvement. If the mindset of next season starts today, then look out! The daily hard work required for this endeavor will not be easy. But if we all commit, it will be worth it. I’m excited to see what’s next!”
Thanks to the great leadership from the team’s captains and seniors, and the strong foundation that is being built by Coach Barile and the coaching staff, next year looks very promising for BVB!
