It’s a rebuilding year after Bulldogs lose four starters to graduation
The Beacon High School boys’ basketball team is coming off a solid season in which the Bulldogs finished 15-8, losing in the quarterfinals of the sectional tournament to Horace Greeley.
But the squad returns just one starter from the 2018-19 campaign — senior guard Shane Green — having lost All-Section pick Day’ion Thompson (who contributed 20 points per game), Aaron Davis and Manny Garner to graduation.
Joining Green from last year’s team are seniors Tre Smith, Ian Bautista, Adrian Davis, Lionel Cumberbatch and Kam Torres. Newcomers include senior Quazir Hayes, juniors Tsamaj Powell, Regan Ladue and Caden Cutinella, and sophomores Jason Komisar, Dillon Kelly, Tristan Reid and Chase Green.
The Bulldogs opened their season Tuesday (Dec. 3) at home with a 65-37 loss to Rye. Davis had 11 points, Torres added nine and Powell had eight points and 11 rebounds. Beacon trailed by seven points at the half, but the Garnets pulled away in the third quarter.
“In the third we struggled to put the ball in the basket,” said Coach Scott Timpano. “Rye is a very experienced team, a [state tournament] semifinal team last year, and we have [four] new starters. They were a tough matchup.”
Timpano noted he’s never had four sophomores on the team, and that his younger and new players are still trying to find their roles.
“We have an athletic group,” Timpano said. “We are fast, and our starters [Green, Smith, Davis, Bautista and Torres] have been in the program. But they haven’t played a lot of minutes. Our bench players only had one year of junior varsity, so it will be a learning process. The speed of the varsity game is very different.”
The Bulldogs host Kennedy High School today (Dec. 6) at 7 p.m.; before the game, Beacon High School will hold its annual Athletic Hall of Fame induction ceremony. The team hosts Poughkeepsie on Dec. 10 and Dobbs Ferry on Dec. 11.
