One year removed from a substandard 4-17 season in 2024, the Hawks Boys Basketball team is looking to rebound with a fresh roster. In the offseason, over half of the varsity team graduated, and its star sophomore (now junior) Sam Newmeyer transferred to University High School. Despite all this change, the team is keeping their heads high to start the season, with a blank slate and a need for victory. “(We are) keeping hopes high for the season, we know we could surprise a lot of teams,” said Junior Raef Bradley. Bradley and the other Juniors who played on last year’s Junior Varsity squad know the feeling of success, after finishing 2nd place in the 2024 MCAL Finals.
The roster changes aren’t the only switch that occurred for the Hawks Basketball program, as a coaching staff replacement occurred midway through the 2024 season, when Tam replaced Head Coach Neil Chavez with Tim Morgan. Though Coach Morgan is a familiar face to many, having coached the hawks earlier in his career, he is looking to start fresh with this young varsity team. “(I) came in midway through last season, and wanted the kids to enjoy the last stretch. Now I’m trying to build culture, and build a family atmosphere,” said Morgan, referring to his coaching start last season. Coach Morgan had plenty of success in his prior years coaching Tam basketball, and celebrated his 100th win with the organization on Tuesday, December 2nd. When asked how he would celebrate his 100th coaching victory he responded, “Go home, eat, sleep, and get ready for Campolindo on Thursday.”
As for some of the new faces, a key Junior to look out for this season, in his first year of varsity, is Keegan Kelly. Being one of the newer players, Kelly is someone who may surprise many with a large wingspan, and a will to win. “We put in lots of work each day, people should be ready,” said Kelly referring to his team’s mentality. Another presence on the court to be reckoned with is Senior Porthos Olivera. Last season, and through the Hawks first pre-season contests this year, he stood out with a consistent midrange, and stellar defense. Also keep your eyes out for Junior Sai Wong, who looks to provide strength at the point guard position, taking the place of his brother Taedon, who graduated last spring.
The general consensus when asking players about their most awaited matchup this year was for the home contest against Redwood on January 9th. Redwood finished their 2024 season with a 22 and 8 record including a 62-20 victory against the Hawks. Redwood lost their Division 1 Commit Semetri (TT) Carr, who is now playing for the University of California Berkeley, but still contains an incredibly strong lineup. Despite the ferociousness of the Redwood team, Tam looks to chop down the trees, and take the keys to the Redwood-Tam rivalry in Basketball and Football for the 2025-2026 school year.
The Hawks are slowly starting to gain momentum. After quality losses to Montgomery and Las Lomas, the team got back on their feet with victories against both Lick Wilmererding and Novato. The young Hawks are slowly and surely making their way back up to the top of the MCAL division, and keep a strong mentality, game in and game out. Fresh coach, roster and all, the team is ready to face ups and downs regardless of the outcome, and hopes to build onto their winning streak Thursday at Campolindo.
