CALDWELL- Veteran Caldwell coach Mike Fess knows that it’s probably rarely going to be an easy chore while continuing to battle the array of athletic teams in the Super Essex Conference’s Colonial Division that his Chiefs will continue to face on a regular basis in The New Year; but he does know that his deep team that includes many multi-sport athletes will always come ready to simply compete at a high level.
It wasn’t pretty, but in a solid, final tune-up as the calendar turns to 2025, undefeated Caldwell (5-0) made it six straight West Essex Area Holiday Hoops Festival championships with a turnover-filled 57-46 win over local rival Verona (3-1) on Saturday night at Caldwell University’s Newman Center.
Senior guards Brodie Cook and Joe Giannetta each scored 13 points to pace the balanced Chiefs, who utilized 12 players in the contest, including having eight of them score in the first quarter alone when Caldwell jumped off to an early and commanding 24-8 lead.
That lead extended to 39-20 at the half and despite some less than crisp offensive hoops at times, the solid and turnover-inducing defense was always there and the Chiefs were never seriously challenged by what is a typical Verona team that tries to keep the game at a slow pace with as little offensive production as possible by the opposition.
“We wanted to have a quick start and speed things up and play a game that wasn’t in the 30s,” said Fess. “We wanted to make it a little sloppy, but not that sloppy, and get some quicker shots while making them take quicker shots as well while pressing them a little as well.
“We took some bad shots at times, but part of that is because Verona has tough kids who are well coached and you know that they’ll keep playing hard.”
Giannetta scored 12 of his 13 points in the first half as the Chiefs jumped out to a commanding 17-2 lead at one juncture and built a comfortable lead, while Cook had a balanced offensive output throughout with six first half points and seven in the second half.
Reserve junior guard Ryan Keenan chipped in with 9 points, while solid games were also turned in by solid role players such as senior forward Santiago Garces (3 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks) and senior guard Lucas Turner (5 points, 3 steals).
Verona, which has been strong in close games it has played so far, including edging Glen Ridge, 39-37 and West Essex, 38-34, in a first round WEAHHF contest on Friday, was led vs. the Chiefs by senior guard Gianlucca Checchetto (game-high 16 points) and senior forward Jack Harmon (11 points, 7 rebounds), who also connected on a trio of 3-pointers).
While the Hillbillies were somewhat more productive on the offensive end in the second half, Caldwell’s defense had already set the tone in the contest, holding Verona to just six first half field goals.
“We take pride in our defense and we always look to try and cause a lot of turnovers,” said Giannetta, who had a team-leading 14 points in a 74-45 rout of Cedar Grove in the WEAHHF first round on Friday. “We get some turnovers too, but that’s just part of the game.
“We like to dog them on defense full-court and make them feel uncomfortable which helps us get easy baskets and is a key to our success.”
While the defensive pressure applied by the Chiefs is a desired and very key component to any sustained success the team will have during the regular season in the rigorous SEC, scoring the basketball more than the opposition is still a necessity in the end.
“We prioritize defense, and that’s a catalyst or our offense, but we also know that we have to clean up some of our set pieces and then put up more points on the board,” said Cook, who was selected as the tournament MVP. “What we do have is a deep roster with a lot of athletic guys who can contribute out there, and that’s going to be big for us over the long haul.”
That depth includes several multi-sport kids who simply come to play every day, whether it’s out on the field or diamond, or inside on the basketball hardwood.
“We have a lot of depth with 12 guys at times getting out there for us,” said Giannetta. “That gives the starters breaks in the course of a game and allows us to give 100 percent on defense all of the time.”
Giannetta, Cook and Keenan are also key contributors to the Caldwell soccer team in the fall, while senior forward Marco Sozio, junior guards Keenan and Frankie Anemone along with sophomore guard Dan Vybihal are also members of the Chiefs’ fine baseball squad. Sozio and Vybihal are two of the team’s top pitchers with the former already committed to pitch at the next level for Drew University.
Marco’s younger brother, reserve sophomore guard Nico Sozio, is a starting defensive back on the always-solid Caldwell football team, while reserve junior forward Brad Pankiewicz is on the Chiefs’ superb lacrosse squad.
It all adds up to a wide-ranging and talented array of very athletic types who simply like to get out there and grind away.
“We like having multi-sport kids and they are seasoned in that way,” said Fess. “We’d like to fine tune them some more basketball-wise, but they are very competitive and it’s not always going to be so beautiful to watch.
“They are a pleasure to coach each day and we will continue to look to clean things up here and there as we get out there once again as our schedule heats up.
“It seems as if almost every team in our conference has a couple of good scorers and we’re going to have to continue to be balanced as we hope to compete at high level in our division.”
NOTES- McElroy’s son, junior Shawn, is a reserve forward for the Hillbillies…Standout guard Gianlucca Checchetto is the cousin of former Caldwell standout guard Rocco Checchetto who is currently a sophomore on the Drew University hoops roster. Rocco’s sister, Crawford, helps keep the scorebook for the Chiefs hoops squad…Ryan Keenan is the son of Caldwell head girls basketball coach Amanda Keenan and brother of young sophomore Lady Chiefs star guard Addison Keenan…Caldwell reserve sophomore guard Joe Diorio, who contributed 5 points vs. Verona, is a transfer from Gill St. Bernard’s…Verona starting senior guard Sebastian Rodriguez, who fouled out of the contest along with Caldwell’s Marco Sozio, is the son of Hanover Park head softball coach Sergio Rodriguez, who is also president of the successful NJ Heist travel softball organization. Dad Sergio and older brother Alex, a red-shirt, sophomore wide receiver at Wagner College and former Hillbillies football-basketball standout, were on hand in the Newman Center Saturday night to watch their family member compete on the hardwood vs. Caldwell…Gianlucca Checchetto and reserve senior guard Sal Santos-Ditrani are key members of Verona’s football team which had a solid 7-4 season this past fall…West Essex edged Cedar Grove, 49-44, in the WEAHFF third-place game.
West Essex Area Holiday Hoops Festival final, Dec. 28, at Caldwell U
VERONA (3-1) 8 12 10 16 - 46
CALDWELL (5-0) 24 15 8 12 - 57
Verona: Gianlucca Checchetto 5-1-3-16, Jack Harmon 1-3-0-11, Will Herman 1-0-4-6, Luke Sampers 1-0-2-4, Sebastian Rodriguez 0-0-0-0, Joe Farmer 0-0-0-0, Shawn McElroy 1-0-0-2, RJ Mack 1-0-0-2, Sal Santos-Ditrani 0-0-1-1, Rich Camacho 0-0-4-4, Daniel Mahon 0-0-0-0, Mason Rossi 0-0-0-0. Totals: 10-4-14-46
Caldwell: Joe Giannetta 3-1-4-13, Brodie Cook 4-0-5-13, Santiago Garces 1-0-1-3, Marco Sozio 3-0-0-6, Lucas Turner 2-0-1-5, Ryan Keenan 3-1-0-9, Dan Vybihal 0-0-0-0, Joe Diorio 1-1-0-5, Aiden Neinstadt 1-0-1-3, Brad Pankiewicz 0-0-0-0, Nico Sozio 0-0-0-0, Frankie Anemone 0-0-0-0, Omar Franco 0-0-0-0. Totals: 18-3-12-57
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