SAUGUS — Sachems boys basketball coach Mark Bertrand has a lot to feel positive about as the new season quickly approaches.
That’s because his Sachems, who’ve qualified for the Division 3 North tournament for the past two seasons, return an experienced roster ready to compete.
Last year’s team finished 4-16 and made the postseason under the Sullivan Rule. Saugus qualified as the No. 16 seed and fell to No. 1 St. Mary’s, 74-56, in the opening round.
“We really showed our true colors,” Bertrand, entering his third season as head coach, said. “We started to come on at the end of the year. We beat Medford and lost to Somerville on the final play. We beat Matignon and Essex Tech to qualify under the Sullivan Rule. I give my guys credit. They fought hard all season.”
Leading the core of returners is senior guard Christian Correia, a 2018 Northeastern Conference All-Conference player who averaged 18 points and 10 rebounds per game last winter.
“Christian’s the heart and soul of what we’re doing,” Bertrand said. “He’s recovering from a great football season where he had to fill in at quarterback. He’s looked great the first few days. I’ve coached him since he was a fourth grader. I was his travel coach. He’s been on varsity since he was a freshman so he’s been with me for quite some time.”
Junior guard Joe Lusso, a NEC all-star last season, gives Saugus a go-to outside shooter.
“Joe’s had a great offseason,” Bertrand said. “He came into camp in great shape. He’s ready to go. We’re happy with Joe. I like his floor presence. This is his third year as a varsity starter. We’re really expecting him to step up and start shining.”
Senior center Nick Israelson will command the post.
“Nick had a double-double in the St. Mary’s game,” Bertrand said. “He’s about 6’5 and he’s a lefty. He really turned the corner for us last season.”
Junior guard Myles Manalaysay joins the Sachems after a memorable season at Lynn English. Manalaysay was a sophomore reserve for the Bulldogs last season when they won the Division 1 state championship.
“Myles gives us a great added punch,” Bertrand said. “We have a three-headed monster with Myles, Christian and Joe. His experiences winning a state championship last season at English are really rubbing off on our guys. We’re excited to have him.”
Also returning are junior forward Jason Casaletto, junior guard/forward Mason Nickolas, who’s recovering from a dislocated elbow, and senior guard/forward Michael Bertrand. Michael will co-captain Saugus alongside Correia.
“I think they’re great leaders,” Bertrand said. “We’ve had some quality captains over the years. Christian gets it done on the floor. He leads by example. Michael gets in your face. He’s not afraid to dive on the floor. That’s something we love about him. He’s taken on every defensive task we’ve given him.”
Bertrand has nothing but confidence in his returning core.
“We went from being the youngest team in the conference to a team with a lot of experience,” Bertrand said. “A lot of our guys have been with us since they were freshmen. Experience should help us. We have to play great defense. I feel that we can score. We have to find our identity on defense. We won’t go anywhere if we’re not playing defense.”
The always-competitive NEC will test Saugus night in and night out.
“It’s a tough conference,” Bertrand said. “We have English twice. We start with them. We’re not backing down from anybody. We have Classical twice, Winthrop twice. We don’t make any excuses because we’re a Division 3 school. We’ll come ready to play.”
Saugus opens the season Thursday (7) at English.
“We’re excited,” Bertrand said. “The guys are ready. The guys want to be challenged. We’ve always played tough teams. Christian, Joe and the guys are used to that. We know it’s a tough environment at English. (English head coach) Antonio (Anderson) does a great job there. They don’t let anybody steal a win there. We’ll have to go in there and work for it.”
