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Leopards’ program rolling in the right direction

By Dave Stofcheck for The 3 min read

After a few years of futility, it seems every game has more and more meaning for the Belle Vernon boys basketball program.

The Leopards last made the playoffs during the 2009-10 season, but head coach Kyle DeGregorio has the program leaning in the right direction.

Under DeGregorio the past two seasons, Belle Vernon has posted a 19-25 mark. This follows a total of seven wins in three years prior to DeGregorio’s hiring.

“You have to understand, we have changed the culture at Belle Vernon,” DeGregorio said. “We’ve taken kids who were 13-week-a-year basketball kids and turned them into 52-week-a-year basketball kids.

“The skill level is very high here. So is the caring and the desire to be good. The kids have a competitive spirit and a very high understanding of the game.”

Belle Vernon will compete in Section 4-AAA, and the Leopards will be led by a group of four experienced players.

Seniors Noah Bukowski and Joe Gruber and juniors Brennan Morgan and Tommy Rodriguez saw extensive playing time last season.

“We’re very young,” DeGregorio said. “We only have four kids coming back who really played any significant amount of time.”

Bukowski is a 6-foot-2 forward, while Gruber is a 5-10 post player.

“Noah’s a really good athlete,” DeGregorio said. “He has a high level of concentration and he really, really plays hard. He’s probably our best rebounder and he’s one of our better defenders.

“Joe’s a tough kid who absolutely understands his role. He’s an intangible guy who stands for everything we value in our program.”

Morgan and Rodriguez are both guards; Morgan is 6-1 and Rodriguez 5-10.

“Brennan probably has a better understanding of how we play than anybody,” DeGregorio said. “He’s very skilled with the ball and he’s a competitor.

“Tommy’s a very good shooter and a great straight-line driver. He’s physically probably one of our strongest players.”

Belle Vernon will compete in Section 4-AAA, along with Elizabeth-Forward, Laurel Highlands, Ringgold, Steel Valley, Thomas Jefferson, Uniontown and West Mifflin.

“I think the section will be very good,” DeGregorio said. “West Mifflin and Steel Valley are the teams to beat. Both return a lot of good players and both are very athletic.

“You look at Ringgold and it continues to get better. T.J. is always good and LH has a lot of good young players coming through. Uniontown lost a lot from last season but Rob (Kezmarsky) always does a nice job down there. There are no bad teams in our section.”

Belle Vernon opens its season Dec. 8 at home vs. Southmoreland.

The Leopards open Section 4-AAA play Dec. 11 with a big game at West Mifflin.

“We only play 14 section games so they’re all big,” DeGregorio said. “Every game in your section is a big game. Good teams can win a big game and are able to stay focused for the next game. Good teams are also able to lose and wake up the next morning, and as (Pirates manager) Clint Hurdle would say, ‘shower it off.’ None of the games are final or fatal. Good teams stay humble and resilient.”

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