Warrior boys team rebounds from its season-opening loss BY MIKE WHITE Staff Writer PLUMSTED — The New Egypt High School boys basketball team used a balanced scoring attack en route to a resounding 54-24 victory over Calvary Academy Monday night in a non-conference match-up. The Warriors had three players finish in double figures. Ricky Mackesy scored a team-high 11 points, while teammates Josh Howard and Andrew Weingart chipped in with 10 apiece to lead New Egypt to its second consecutive win. “We had a lot of different guys make contributions tonight,” New Egypt coach Jay Corby said. “It seemed as if everybody got a fair amount of looks at the basket. We’re trying to use and offense that gets everybody involved. We don’t want to become predictable going to just one guy all the time for scoring.” In addition, Donny Bunce scored nine points and freshman Dakota Havens added eight as New Egypt raced to a commanding 26-11 halftime lead. Corby cited his team’s swarming defense for building an early lead with a number of easy baskets in the first quarter. “We applied a lot of pressure in the opening quarter and they had trouble breaking our press,” Corby said. “So we ended up getting a lot of easy buckets to start. That gave us some breathing room and the kids just settled in and played very well.” Howard proved to be dominant on the boards as well, grabbing a game-high nine caroms. “Rebounding is going to be one of our strengths this season,” Corby said. “We got decent size and good aggressive play in the paint. If we can stop giving our opponents second chances around the goal, we’ll put ourselves in position to win games.” Following a season-opening setback to Riverside last Friday, New Egypt rebounded with a dramatic road victory over Bound Brook. The Warriors escaped with an exciting 51-49 victory to notch their second win of the season. That was a game New Egypt possibly could have lost last year. “We’re a year more experienced this season and we know how to handle close games like that,” Corby said. “Last season we lost six games by six points or less because of our inexperience down the stretch. In this game we kept our composure, made some key shots and managed to get the win.” Weingart put forth a huge effort, scoring 10 points, collecting seven rebounds, and by playing great defense. “It was an outstanding game for him,” Corby said. “He made a lot of key buckets, but more importantly he did a solid job of containing their best player. His defense was one of the main reasons why we got out of there with a win.” New Egypt rallied from an early first-quarter deficit to take a 21-17 lead. There were numerous lead changes in the third and fourth quarters. Corby credited the play of underclassmen Dylan Rowley and Havens for helping preserve New Egypt’s slim lead in the second half. “They did a great job,” Corby said. “We had a couple of guys in foul trouble and they were needed to play some key minutes. They delivered in a big way for us. The more we can get the younger guys involved in key parts of the game, the better it will be for us as the season goes on. They need to get that experience of playing key minutes.”