Spartans’ Grillo poised for a milestone

When the St. Mary’s boys basketball team begins its season against Archbishop Williams of Braintree tonight at 6:30 p.m., the crowd at the Conigliaro Gymnasium has a chance to see something special.Tyler Grillo, a senior point guard on the St. Mary’s team, enters the season nine points shy of 1,000 for his career. He could reach the milestone on his home court.”It will definitely be a big accomplishment for me,” Grillo, of Saugus, said on Sunday. “I definitely thought about it when on the varsity my freshman year. I knew it was a possibility. I’m just happy I’ll get to do it.”Grillo’s basketball resume at St. Mary’s is already quite packed. He has started for the varsity since his freshman year. He has earned Catholic Central League all-star status the past two seasons. He will serve as a team captain for the second consecutive season. (His feats extend to baseball: In 2003, he and his fellow Saugus American teammates participated in the Little League World Series in South Williamsport, Pa.)”He has been the leader of our team,” Spartans coach Kevin Moran said last week. “We had three scrimmages at this point. He was the leader, pretty much, in all of those. He looked fine in the preseason.Moran added, “In the preseason, he’s been our leader for a couple years now. He has consistently handled the ball as well as his scoring, as I would have expected.”On the brink of 1,000Grillo’s scoring totals have increased in each of his three seasons to date. As a freshman, he scored 185 points. A year later, his total jumped to 363. Last season, he led the Spartans in scoring with 443 points. (His assists and steals have also impressed. He led St. Mary’s in assists last season with 96, and he has led the team in steals in each of his first three seasons.)Near the end of Grillo’s junior season, Moran informed him that he was approaching the century mark. In the Spartans’ 16th game that season, Grillo needed 100 points for a career total of 1,000.”As a coach, you’re aware of these milestones,” Moran said. “He’s a pretty humble kid. Not a whole lot was said between his friends and teammates as far as the milestone.”Grillo had a chance to reach it in the state tournament last season. The Spartans drew Ipswich in their first postseason game, but with two minutes left in the fourth quarter, St. Mary’s trailed by 10 points. However, Grillo hit a three-pointer and added a steal, helping his team erase the deficit.”I expect it out of him as a competitor,” Moran said. “He loves a challenge and accepts it whenever possible. I think most of the times, he’s successful.”And it seemed as if he would be again. Grillo hit two layups in the final 30 seconds to give St. Mary’s the lead. However, Ipswich won the game at the buzzer, ending the Spartans’ season and leaving Grillo nine points shy of 1,000.”It wasn’t easy taking the last loss at the last second,” he said.Seeking a grand finaleGrillo enters the 2008-09 season with several goals for his team: Winning the Catholic Central League, which the Spartans have not done in his four years, and qualifying for the state tournament. Beyond that, he must decide his plans for the fall.”I definitely want to play basketball in college,” Grillo said. “I’m not sure where.””I think he and his family are mulling over a few offers,” Moran said. “They’ll try to see what’s best for him.”But before a possible postseason appearance, and before a college acceptance, comes the regular season, starting tonight, with a chance for Grillo becoming the latest Spartan to surpass 1,000.”I think the basketball tradition here has been pretty strong for many years,” Moran said. “I was lucky enough to play there many years ago. I have to say, Tyler is right up there with the good ones that have come through there.”