On last year’s Eastern Pennsylvania Conference boys basketball all-star team, 15 kids were honored. Of those 15, just two players are back for the 2022-23 season.
One is Parkland star Nick Coval, who is entering his junior season. The other player is Freedom senior Nick Ellis.
The youngster with a nickname of “Pickle” could create a pickle for Patriots opponents this season.
After winning The Morning Call’s rookie of the year award in 2020 as the area’s top freshman, Ellis has continually grown as a player.
He averaged 16.5 points in the COVID-plagued 2020-21 season and 21.5 last year, second only to Pocono Mountain West’s Christian Fermin in EPC scoring.
Ellis is also as fundamentally sound as they come with the ability to rebound, defend and pass the ball nearly as well as anybody in the league.
His return would be enough to cause excitement for the Freedom program, but all four of the top Patriots scorers from last year return and seven of the top nine.
It’s a big reason why many believe Freedom can win the EPC’s East Division and continue for its second District 11 6A title in four years.
“I’ve got six or seven guys who played major varsity minutes for us last year,” said Joe Stellato, entering his 23rd season as coach. “The one big loss is Josh Washington, who averaged 7.5 points and nine or 10 rebounds. … He started for us the last two years and without him rebounding will be a concern. That’s our weakness.”
Ellis and Jaden Tillett, who are both 6-foot-3, will be counted on to do more rebounding.
Coming off a 13-game football schedule, Ellis may need some time to get into basketball shape.
“He put on even more muscle mass and from a physical standpoint, I expect him to be even better than he was the last two years,” Stellato said. “Jalen Fletcher is also coming off the football season and he’s also bigger and stronger. We’re also more mature.”
Freedom averaged 59.1 points per game last season and allowed 59.6, so many of its games were competitive. Seven of their 13 losses were by nine points or less.
“We’ve got to finish out games better,” Stellato said. “Last year we didn’t do that. I expect us to do a better job with that this year because we have five seniors who have been around for two years. We put more in offensively than I ever have before because these kids should know the system and we needed to build from there. Offensively and defensively we’re going to do a lot more and I think we can do it all.”
That means Freedom may press more on defense and push the ball on offense but it can also handle itself in a half-court set.
“The best part is that these kids were gym rats all offseason,” Stellato said. “I couldn’t open up the gym enough for them. I was getting calls at home from kids who wanted me to come over and open it up. As a coach, you open the gym. I think all of that extra time really paid off because some of these kids have really gotten better and we learned more of how to play together. The last few years we didn’t play together well. This year, I think we will.”
Here’s a capsulized look at the 2022-23 Patriots:
Freedom
Coach: Joe Stellato (234rd season, 247-271)
Last season: 10-13, 6-10. Lost to Parkland 70-38 in the first round of the District 11 6A tournament
Season opener: 5:30 p.m. Friday vs. Mid-Valley in the Wilkes-Barre Area High School Tip-Off Tournament.
EPC opener: Dec. 6, host Bethlehem Catholic.
Nonleague games: Dec. 2-3 in the Wilkes-Barre Area Tip-Off Tournament; Dec. 10, at Spring-Ford; Dec. 27-28, in the Pine Grove Area Holiday Tournament; Jan. 23, vs. Southern Lehigh.
Players to watch: Nick Ellis (6-3, Sr. F) 21.5 ppg; Jalen Fletcher (5-9, Sr. G) 7.6 ppg; Aaron Levy (5-9, Sr. G) 6.6 ppg; Krishna Mangroo (5-8, Sr. G) 3.6 ppg; Jaden Tillett (6-3, Sr. F) 6.7 ppg; Joe Dew (5-9, Sr. G); Dominick Leininger (6-0, Sr. F); Cristian Morto (5-9, Sr. G); Trent Vandever (6-0, Sr. G); Jaden Wilson (6-2, Sr. F); Dylan Alvarez (5-10, Jr. G); Jackson Parker (6-3, Jr. F); Orion Richardson (5-10, Jr. G); Nate Sletvold (6-0, Jr. F).
Take note: Fletcher had a big senior season in football, rushing for 1,422 yards and 22 TDs as Freedom reached the district finals. … John Gilbert is now the JV coach and Marc Corsi is now a varsity assistant along with Sam Senneca. … Stellato is the dean of EPC coaches in terms of being in one place. Joe Arndt of Nazareth is next beginning his 19th season at Nazareth. Whitehall’s Jeff Jones is starting his 16th season at Whitehall and Emmaus’ Steve Yoder and Parkland’s Andy Stephens are both beginning their 15th season at their respective schools.
Why the Patriots are Top 10 material: Ellis figures to be one of the best players in the league and he has a strong supporting cast around him with experience. The Patriots had a good offseason and play in a division where they have a chance to win a lot of games and push toward a top seed in both the league and district tournaments.
Final word: “The two concerns are rebounding and playing together,” Stellato said. “If we can do those two things I think we’re right up there with teams like Parkland, Central Catholic and Emmaus who should be at the top of the league. I think the league playoffs are really going to be more challenging than districts because you’ve got Becahi and Central and Pocono Mountain West who are not 6A teams. But I feel very confident about our team. When we’re good, I’ll tell you we’re good. When we’re not there, I will tell you we’re not there. But I really think we’re going to be there.”
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