It was an inconsistent 2024-25 season for Long Beach boys’ basketball, but now it has a clean slate, just like everybody else. The Marines finished on the outside looking in with a 8-12 overall record and 5-8 league record. Now, they look to retool with a fresh roster.
“The league changed and our team also changed, so we’re in a similar spot where we have to try to fight for a playoff spot again,” head coach Scott Martin said. “We have to get a lot better as we go.”
Despite unfamiliar faces, Martin returns a pair who played significant minutes in junior point guard Zack Brymer and junior shooting/small forward Jaron Burns.
“Now [Brymer] is an 11th grader, a starter and presumably one of our top players and scorers,” Martin said. “He had a total of 21 three-pointers which was in the middle of the league last year. We’re looking for him to grow and be a leader offensively for sure as a point guard.”
“[Burns] hit his fair share of threes last year,” Martin said. “These guys [Brymer and Burns] played significant minutes and they were part of the team heavily during the season. So, I would like them to step up and be the leaders because of their experience last year.”
In terms of senior leadership returning, that class consists of forwards Vance Kanganis, Nathan Hall, Colin Liguori, Joseph Olshwitz and shooting guard Andrew McCartney.
With the plethora of three-point shooting, the Marines may rely on their outside shooters to stretch the defenses.
“This year’s team looks like it’s going to fall into being a perimeter team and shooting some threes and trying to get guys open on the outside,” Martin said. “We don’t have a lot of size returning and we don’t have a lot of large forwards, but we do have a 6-foot-7 freshman [Alex Michaels], so we got to work into him.
“We have to play physical to get those rebounds and hopefully hit the open threes,” Martin said. “If we do that, we’ll stay in games and if we stay in games, we’ll have a chance to compete for a playoff spot.”
The Long Beach girls’ team is looking a little different. Instead of a roster full of savvy veterans, it’s littered with 10 juniors, three sophomores, and just two seniors. The young bucks look to take over this program after finishing 7-13, just a couple of games out of a playoff spot, a season ago.
There is one returning captain for the Marines by the name of junior guard Brianna Bothell. She took home the All-Class award as a sophomore.
“The main thing was her leadership on and off the court,” said head coach Blake Malizia. “She’s always doing the right thing. She’s very coachable. She leads her teammates, motivates, follows her team roles and instills them into the team. She is a tremendous player; she has been our leading scorer for the past two years.”
In addition to Bothell, junior starting point guard Jordan Soriano, senior forward Brooke Buehre and junior center Irish Lynch make up the core.
“[Brooke] had a strong junior year playing for us off the bench,” Malizia said. “She’s aggressive on the boards and understands our offensive system very well. She’s very coachable and her willingness to win is evident.”
Sophomore forward Simaiyah Wardana, junior three-point shooting guard/forward Delaney Kaplan, junior guard Danielle Gelsh, and senior guard Ava Kolb are all anticipated to make an impact on this Marines team.
Many of these girls played on JV last season and were successful. Malizia thinks that success at the younger level can translate to the varsity level.
“Allowing them to be together as a unit down there on JV last year and knowing what winning feels like,” Malizia said. “They were with me throughout the summer and our team chemistry is strong. They are all players that play for each other and there are no single eyes and they’re not pointing fingers and blaming others. I think that’s going to be a big part of us going over the hump and making it further into the playoffs.”
Long Beach faces MacArthur, Jericho, New Hyde Park, Calhoun, Kennedy and Great Neck South in conference play.
Dec. 13: MacArthur, 11:45 a.m.
Dec. 16: @ Jericho, 7:00 p.m.
Jan. 5: New Hyde Park, 6:45 p.m.
Jan. 7: @ Calhoun, 6:45 p.m.
Jan. 14: @ Kennedy, 6:45 p.m.
Jan. 17: G.N. South, 11:45 a.m.
Jan. 23: @ MacArthur, 7:00 p.m.
Jan. 28: Jericho, 6:45 p.m.
Feb. 3: @ New Hyde Park, 5:00 p.m.
Feb. 6: Calhoun, 6:45 p.m.
Feb. 10: Kennedy, 6:45 p.m.
Feb. 13: @ G.N. South, 6:45 p.m.
Dec. 11: @ MacArthur, 11:45 a.m.
Dec. 16: Jericho, 6:45 p.m.
Jan. 5: @ New Hyde Park, 5:00 p.m.
Jan. 8: Calhoun, 6:45 p.m.
Jan. 14: Kennedy, 6:45 p.m.
Jan. 17: @ G.N. South, 11:45 a.m.
Jan. 23: MacArthur, 6:45 p.m.
Jan. 27: @ Jericho, 6:45 p.m.
Feb. 2: New Hyde Park, 5:00 p.m.
Feb. 5: @ Calhoun, 6:45 p.m.
Feb. 11: @ Kennedy, 6:45 p.m.
Feb. 13: G.N. South, 6:45 p.m.
