MANCHESTER, NH – A tough opening-round playoff loss may have put a damper on an otherwise successful season, but first-year Derryfield head boys varsity coach Mitchell Roy sees this year as a building block to future success.
The Cougars, who completed the Division-III regular season with a 12-6 record to earn the eighth-seed and a home playoff game in the postseason tournament, were upset by No. 9 Kearsarge, which shared the same regular-season record, 41-32, Tuesday night.
“A disappointing loss, for sure,” said Roy. “We had a couple key players out due to an incident in the final regular-season game that really hurt us. As a program, we need to learn from that and see the consequences it can have.”
With that said, Roy credited Kearsarge for coming into a tough playoff environment and grinding out a gritty road win.
“They have an incredible player of the year candidate in Eli Whipple and coach Nate Camp is one of the best in the state,” said Roy. “He is a true leader of young men and that entire program is a class act.”
Roy, who coached D-I Alvirne to the No. 7 seed in last year’s playoff tournament, said Derryfield presented an exciting opportunity.
“The kids are unique and very intelligent, which means they have a lot of other commitments, but they are highly capable of learning anything I throw at them while coaching,” he said.
“Our regular season success was a testament to the kids willingness to improve throughout the season and ability to prepare for each game with extreme focus and attention to detail on the scout of opponents and executing keys to victory specified for each team we would play,” Roy said. “The buy-in from the kids was excellent. I set very high standards for them, especially considering they were coming off of a 2-16 season the year before, yet they understood why I wanted more out of them and they were up for the challenge.”
In addition to marquee regular-season home wins over Kearsarge and St. Thomas, and a successful showing in the Mike Lee Holiday Tournament “Bash” in Farmington, where Derryfield won three games to reach the semifinals, Roy noted hosting a D-III playoff game was also a highlight.
“(It was) an experience hopefully our younger guys can learn from,” he said. “We were down two of our top-six players, leaving us starting and playing a majority of the game with two sophomores and a freshman. Those kids will be more prepared for moments like that in the future”
With that said, Derryfield now bids farewell to senior captains Sammy Fazelat and Nate Boudreau.
“The best thing they brought to the team was consistent commitment,” said Roy. “They were at every off-season open gym, scrimmage, etc. They helped raise the bar for the whole program and I hope that the younger guys can learn from that and continue to bring that to the program themselves.”
Among those expected to return next season, sophomore standout Jake Larson is likely to continue to develop heading into his junior year, while current junior sharpshooter Blake Moskov is likely to continue to play a prolific role in the offense as well.
Junior Keith Townsend, said Roy, was great rebounding and finishing inside for the Cougars and can continue to expand his game, while sophomore Awaab Mousa was also a bright spot for Derryfield this campaign, bringing great finishing inside and an athletic defensive presence, and also as a leader for this team.
Freshman guard Mitch Labbe, who earned his first career start in the playoff game, is another player Roy said he’s excited about, as are sophomore forwards Liam Ryan and Sam Krasnof, who are expected to continue to develop and find ways to help the team, as is freshman guard Juelrick Phanor.
With a talented young roster, Derryfield heads into next season with high expectations, said Roy, especially as they drop back to the more favorable competitive waters of Division-IV due to a decline in enrollment.
“Our goal is to bring the first boys basketball championship back to the school since 1983,” he said. “We have the talent to get it done, and I look forward to seeing if we have the buy-in to help that goal become a reality.
“To reach that goal, we have to really focus on doing things the right way, using losses and mistakes as teachable moments, emphasizing that the kids are being good people and forming meaningful bonds with each other,” he said. “These are areas that I am going to continue to try to grow on as a coach with an understanding that the better people we can be off the court and doing things the right way in all areas will inevitably lead to more success on the court as long as we are putting the work in. I see great potential with this core and I am very excited about the future.”
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