The 2021 All-Central New York men’s basketball teams consist of 22 players – 11 each in small schools (classes B, C, and D) and large schools (classes AA and A) and two coaches from the ‘year.
The big school team will be announced on Thursday.
The small contestants for the player of the year in schools are Aiden Retzos, Faith Heritage; Josh O’Connor, Weedsport; Ben Barnes, DeRuyter; and Gavin Macauley, Lowville.
The winner is expected to be announced virtually at the annual All-CNY High School Awards celebration on June 24.
Last name: Ben barnes
School: DeRuyter
Classify: 2021
Position: Keep
Season statistics: 15.2 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 6.4 apg, 2.8 spg
And after: Participate in UAlbany to study criminal justice
Best moment of the season: Get my 1000th point
Who or what inspires you ?: My teammates, definitely. Everyone is very supportive and understands that the common goal is to win games and make sacrifices.
What will you remember the most from this pandemic season? I will remember my thousand-point game and I will definitely remember our winning streak. I will definitely remember seeing the talent of the guys around me. Gavin Richardson is a really special player now.
Last name: Lane edinger
School: Tully
Classify: 2022
Position: Guard point
Season statistics: 12 ppg, 3 rpg, 6 apg, 3 spg
And after: Senior year
Best moment of the season: Beat Weedsport and win the league championship
Who or what inspires you? My dad because he’s been there from day one, making me the best athlete and the best person I can be.
What will you remember the most from this pandemic season? I will remember coming every day ready to work with my teammates and coaches and not take the season given to us for granted.
Last name: Dylan Ernst
School: Dutch patent
Classify: 2021
Position: Keep
Season statistics: 26 ppg
And after: SUNY Poly basketball
Best moment of the season: Be fair to all my friends.
Who or what inspires you? My family, friends and coaches inspire me to work hard.
What will you remember the most from this pandemic season? What I’ll remember the most is how fast the season went and we didn’t know if we were going to have a basketball season.
Last name: Tyler green
School: Port of Sackets
Classify: 2022
Position: Guard point
Season statistics: 18.9 ppg, 8.9 rpg, 4 apg, 2.2 spg, 0.5 bpg
And after: Baseball season and entry into senior year
Best time of the season: Return victory against Harrisville
Who or what inspires you? My teammates and trainer Robbins
What will you remember the most from this pandemic season? I will remember how we played double the number of games we actually thought we would do, and how grateful we were for the opportunity.
Last name: John kennedy
School: Cooperstown
Classify: 2021
Position: Center
Season statistics: 205 points, 153 rebounds, 25 blocks, 2 assists, 1 steal
Next year: I plan to attend Christendom College where I will play basketball.
The best moment of this season: The best moment of this season was my first dunk.
Who or what inspires you?: It’s my coach who inspires me the most. His optimism prompts me to dig deeper and do more.
What will you remember the most from this pandemic season? What I will remember the most from this season is how hard my team worked to come together in a short period of time.
Last name: Aidan Macaulay
School: Lowville
Classify: 2021
Position: Guard point
Season statistics: 13 ppg, 7 apg, 3 rpg
And after: Play basketball at Saint-Laurent University
Best moment of the season: Become Lowville Academy’s all-time top scorer
Who or what inspires you? My parents because they work hard every day and push me to be the best player and teammate I can be.
What will you remember the most from this pandemic season? To be able to share one last season with my senior teammates and remain undefeated.
Last name: Gavin Macaulay
School: Lowville
Classify: 2021
Position: Keep
Season statistics: 20.1 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 3.0 apg
And after: Pursue my basketball career at Saint-Laurent University
Best moment of the season: Score my 1000th point in our last game
Who or what inspires you? My parents inspire me by doing whatever it takes to see my brother and I succeed, always exceeding expectations.
What will you remember the most from this pandemic season? From this pandemic season, I will remember the feeling of being able to rekindle our community’s enthusiasm through basketball again, even though they could only watch virtually.
Last name: Joshua O’Connor
School: Weedsport
Classify: 2021
Position: Small before
Season statistics: 18 ppg, 9 rpg, 3 apg
And after: Pursue a license in Oswego
Best moment of the season: Beat ITC and win our league
Who inspires you: My two older brothers, Jake and JJ
What will you remember the most during this pandemic season: Playing competitions and schools different from what I was used to, as well as playing without crowds on my field.
Last name: Aiden Retzos
School: Heritage of faith
Classify: 2021
Position: Guard point
Season statistics: 27.4 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 2.3 spg
And after: I plan to play basketball to the next level, still undecided.
Best moment of the season: Scoring 44 points and 14 rebounds on my senior night.
Who or what inspires you? My family and everyone in my circle.
What will you remember the most from this pandemic season? Break my school record.
Last name: Gavin Richardson
School: DeRuyter
Classify: 2022
Position: Keep
Season statistics: 20.9 points per game, 8.8 rebounds per game, 5.2 assists per game
And after: Senior year at DeRuyter
Best moment of the season: To be undefeated this year and improve our winning streak to 37 games.
Who or what inspires you? My family inspires me because they support me and always push me to do my best.
What will you remember the most from this pandemic season? I will remember how much the city supported us even without fans at the games. I’m also grateful that I was able to play one last season with my senior teammates for playing basketball in my entire life.
Last name: Andrew Soron
School: Canada West Valley
Position: Guard point
Season statistics: 251 points, 94 rebounds, 34 assists, 21 steals
And after: Attend Springfield College to major in physiotherapy
Best moment of the season: Filming and listening to music with my friends after training.
Who or what inspires you? My teammates and friends inspire me every day to be the best I can be. They challenge me and trust me, which allows me to be successful.
What will you remember most for this pandemic season? To have the opportunity to play one last time with my teammates with whom I grew up.
Coach of the Year
Last name: Ryan dando
School: Tully
Coaching of the year (including this year): 18
Record 2021: 12-1
Career file: 282-110
Which person (or event) inspired you to become a coach? I really enjoyed my high school basketball experience. My teammates and coaches have all had a positive impact on me. My high school basketball coach, Don McClure, certainly helped me become a coach. He gave me my first high school coaching opportunity as a JV coach and eventually hired me as a varsity coach in Tully.
What do you like most about coaching? I love competition, so obviously I really enjoy match days and the preparation it takes to get ready to play. I also greatly cherish the relationships that I have forged through coaching. While the relationships established with other coaches are invaluable, the connections made with players, current and past, are truly rewarding.
What was coaching like during a pandemic year? It was definitely a very difficult winter season. First of all, not knowing if we would even be able to play. Second, the stress of trying to keep everyone safe and, finally, making sure that all the players who had missed so much last year because of Covid had a good and meaningful experience. I’m very proud of the group of guys we’ve had this year. They never complained and, when given the chance, competed as hard as they could. You can’t ask for much more.