Hampton basketball looking for more next season

By: Devon Moore
Friday, March 1, 2019 | 4:13 PM

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The Hampton boys basketball team started the season with a lot of uncertainty, but a string of successful close early-season wins led to another playoff berth that left its current crop of underclassmen wanting more.

“We had a lot of catching up when the season started,” coach Joe Lafko said. “I think, early on in the year, there were a lot of close games, and we came out on top in a lot of those.”

Those close wins for Hampton (12-10, 8-6) included a four-point win against Knoch, an overtime Section 3-5A win against Plum, a one-point victory over Beaver Falls in the Holiday Festival tournament at Montour and a two-point victory against Grove City in Hampton’s holiday tournament — all before New Year’s.

“I think what happened was the team gained confidence from those wins,” Lafko said. “You could see the confidence continue to grow in them. I knew we’d be competitive this season. I knew we had some athletes that could compete. There were just some question marks.”

That started with losing leading scorer Isaac DeGregorio to transfer. That absence was filled by junior forward/center Ben Ringeisen, who averaged more than 20 points en route to first-team all-section honors, and fellow big man Colby Mignogna, who earned second-team honors. Senior Josh Winek was honorable mention.

One of the biggest reasons for Hampton’s success was Brandon Sickles, who didn’t show up often on the stat sheet. The team relied on him to play great defense, the kind Ringeisen said the team will need more of next year.

“He only averaged two points per game, but he bought in,” Ringeisen said. “He knew what his job was: to be our leader on defense. He did his job, and we won a lot of games because of him. We told everyone that’s who you should strive to be like. Just do your job.”

With a major part of Hampton’s team returning, including Ringeisen, Mignogna and junior guard Luke Lindgren, the Talbots have high hopes for next season. They are hearkening back to of Lafko’s earlier years with size after much of their recent play has run through the guards.

“The most recent past, we’ve been very perimeter-oriented with lack of interior size,” Lafko said. “But this team is certainly reminiscent of some of the earlier years going back to the early 2000s that had some pretty big players and could utilize those strengths.”

The team will stress getting stronger in the offseason, something Lafko wants after watching his team struggle in more physical contests, including a 60-44 first-round playoff loss to Montour.

“I give credit to some of the teams that played us,” he said. “They got a little more physical with us. Montour was an example of that. We didn’t react well. We have to get stronger in the offseason and continue to work on skills to beat those teams next year.”

Players and coach expect the offseason to determine the team’s success next year, from building team chemistry to putting additions on the already-solid nucleus and figuring things out schematically.

“I think everyone is going to work on getting stronger,” Ringeisen said. “We have a really good nucleus going into next year. Everyone is going to get a little bigger. Everyone just has to figure out their roles. We have to let everyone know this is the system in place, and you have to buy in.”

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