MARBLEHEAD — Last season was a major step forward for the Magicians boys basketball team. Marblehead morphed into a Northeastern Conference powerhouse, won 19 of its 20 regular season games and earned the No. 2 seed in the Division 2 North state tournament.
The lone negative was a relatively early exit in the tournament after a loss in the quarterfinals to Malden Catholic. Still, Magicians coach Mike Giardi liked what his team accomplished last winter.
“We moved in the right direction,” Giardi said. “We caught a lot of teams at the right moment. I think we played really well as a team. It showed our kids that working hard together opens the door for a lot of positives. That’s why we were the team we were last year.”
In hoping to build off last season’s success, the Magicians will lean on a core of returners. It begins with senior forward Derek Marino, who emerged as one of the top scoring threats in the NEC last season.
Giardi feels this season could bring challenges for Marino, as opposing teams will zone in on the senior forward this year.
“We had guys like Patrick Bugler and Bo Millett leading the team last season. Derek was able to do a lot with those guys leading the way,” Giardi said. “I think teams this year will zone in a little bit more on Derek so that’s going to be a big challenge for him, but we think he’s ready.”
Also returning for the Magicians is a core of four seniors in guard Seamus Keaney, center Dewey Millett, Bo’s younger brother, and forwards Teddy Mayle and Dan Doherty. Mayle and Doherty are projected play a key role in the rebounding department.
“The big thing is finding that good mix like we had last year, that good rotation,” Giardi said. “It’ll be tough because the NEC’s going to be much different this year. We added Everett, Somerville, Malden and Medford and that makes it a little different. That makes it that much more important for us to prepare ourselves.
“It’s definitely going to be a tough league,” Giardi added. “We lost a little bit of the rivalries by playing each team once. Somerville, Everett, Malden and Medford are all coming in and those are tough teams. Every team’s ready to bring it each game. I look for a competitive league that’s going to be well balanced.”
Although the Magicians will carry a group of younger players on their roster, along with the senior core, Giardi feels the mix will pay dividends for depth. Giardi’s hope is that the seniors will team up with the younger players to help fill the vacancies left by last year’s seniors.
“I think we have a strong core of seniors and then we have depth at younger positions,” Giardi said. “These guys, we’re hoping, will pick up the vacancies left by last year’s seniors. You can’t replace Bo Millett or Patrick Bugler with one guy, so we’ll hope to pick up the slack with contributions from everybody.”
On the other hand, the Magicians will need to improve on knocking down shots from the outside.
“We didn’t shoot very well last year, at stretches,” Giardi said. “We have to be a little more consistent from the outside, that’s for sure.”
The Magicians began their slate of practices last week in preparing for the upcoming season. Although it’s still early, Giardi noted his team’s high level of energy as a positive sign.
“We’re a little bit out of sync but it’s not where I didn’t think we’d be,” Giardi said. “Our energy level is great and that’s a big thing. We have to play with a lot of energy and we have to play for 32 minutes. We won’t blow anybody out and we have to make sure we play the whole way through.”
The Magicians open the season on Dec. 15 at Swampscott.
