Thursday, February 6, 2025
It couldn’t be happening. Not again.
Valley Stream Central’s Jamin Legagneur had just led his Eagles boys’ basketball team to a statement win Dec. 19 at league foe Jericho, the breakout VSC senior scoring a team season-high 34 points before ankle issues forced his exit with less than a second remaining.
Head coach Mike Wimmer, who in camp this winter expressed relief his squad had returned to full health from a season beset by injuries, had a moment of deflated deja vu. Happily for the third-year skipper, it wouldn’t last.
With sophomore Julian Vera scoring a season-high 17 points in sidelined Legagneur’s stead, VSC (12-6 overall, 7-5 Nassau Conference AA3) marched on in its next outing, rolling 51-43 against non-league visitor Kellenberg Dec. 23 to start a 9-2 stretch for the Eagles.
In spite of seeing key pieces – including AA3’s fourth-leading scorer Sean O’Neil (18.2 points per game) – by turns visit the injured list this winter, VSC, which clinched a postseason berth with its league win Monday over MacArthur, has warded off derailment with depth.
“It’s a different team this year,” Wimmer said. “Because we have so many guys who are bought-in, and ready to do what it takes, we haven’t been hurt as a team like last year, even though guys have been hurt.”
Upon the return of Legagneur (15.1 ppg) from a four-game stint on the Eagles’ IL, junior guard Logan Douglas – third on the team with 13 three-pointers – and O’Neil – whose 34 steals and 19 threes lead the Eagles – would each miss a three-game block, in succession, due to injury. Amid the attrition, VSC won five straight, and seven of eight games through late January.
"It’s legitimately been one after another of our guys getting hit,” Wimmer said. “But fortunately we have a lot of talent. We’ve had the guys who have stepped up when needed and picked up the slack.”
Julian’s brother Jaiya Vera led all scorers in O’Neil’s absence in a pair of VSC victories, scoring 23 points against Miller Place at home on Dec. 30, and matching that total in a win Jan. 10 against visiting league foe Mepham.
“Jaiya’s truly like a throwback kid,” Wimmer said of the sophomore forward. “He’s everywhere for us, and he complements our two bigs really nicely.”
Six-foot-six sophomore center Simar Singh – whose 12 points and game-high 11 rebounds helped lift VSC to a 69-48 non-league rout of Cold Spring Harbor Jan. 3 – has missed the Eagles’ past three games due to a turned ankle. Next-man-up Nelson Frias – a 6-5 junior – has averaged four points filling in, with Singh expected to return before the end of the regular season Feb. 10, when playoff-bound VSC travels to Long Beach for the teams’ finale.
“Simar and Nelson have both carved out spots,” Wimmer said. “They’re our anchors defensively. Even with our offensive firepower, without them defending we’d be in trouble.”
Added Wimmer: “It’s really great having eight, nine kids you can rely on, all making sure everyone's locked in and focused on extending the season. It’s a special group, the nicest situation I’ve been lucky enough to be a part of.”
