West Hempstead off to 5-1 start

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A couple of games into the season and it’s time for the West Hempstead boys’. basketball team to do a temperature check.

In the Rams’ Dec. 17 game against East Rockaway, a 58-42 win, senior Isaiah Blunt lead the pack with 27 points after scoring 22 in the first half.

“He’s athletic, he can score as well as anyone probably on Long Island but definitely in Nassau County,” head coach Eric Rubin said. “He provides a lot of scoring for us, he’s off to a good start.”

Blunt leads the team in rebounds per game and points per game at 8.8 and 23.8 respectively.

While the team opened 5-1, Rubin sees nothing but room for improvement.

“We still have a ways to go as far as I want our team to be playing, we have a lot of improvement to do, but so far, okay,” Rubin said.

The team only has four returners from last season’s Nassau and Long Island championship squad, so West Hempstead is riding out a steep learning curve, and part of it has to do with its physical size compared to last year’s squad.

“This year we’re kind of like the smallest team; they shoot well but last year we weren’t a great shooting team,” Rubin explained. “We’re smaller, we’re quicker and we’re better shooters this year but we definitely lack size, so some adjustment even for the returning players, just to play a different style.

Sophomore Jamir Houston is a player that came quick to Rubin’s mind when talking about younger players that have stood out to him recently.

“I had him last year, I really didn’t think he was going to play varsity this year, I thought he was going to be on JV again,” Rubin reasoned. “But he played with us in the summer league and was one of our best players in the summer league and it’s really carried over to the regular season.”

Part of the cohesive force to keep the team in motion is senior Evan Wilson, the lone captain and the starting shooting guard for the second consecutive year. His dedication and commitment to helping those around him be their best selves is what separates him from others in his coach’s mind.

“He really works on his game so much, he’s there at six o’clock in the morning almost every day before school, all year round, working on his game,” he praised.

Wilson dropped a dozen points in the contest against East Rockaway.

The real reason why looking ahead, not getting lost in the now, is so important to Rubin, is because he always has playoffs in his mind.

“My goal is to peak in February when playoffs start,” he said. “It worked last year in the end, we were successful in the playoffs, so I’m hoping for something similar.”

In the meantime, one step at a time: West Hempstead (3-0 in Conference VIII) has a tournament showcase and some tough competition over the holiday break, in hopes of some extra sharp iron sharpen them.

“We’re definitely about to go through a really tough stretch, but we’ll see where we’re at,” Rubin said.