On March 22nd, the annual Faculty Basketball Game was played in the Nanuet High School gymnasium. Teachers and coaches came together for a night of family-friendly rivalry.
The gold team consisted of Julio Cotto, Drew Breyfogle, Robert Tutein, Jeff Gartner, Drew Tallevi, and Khris Arvanites. The black team consisted of Jonathan Reid, Jessica Biggs, Christopher MacRobbie, Christian Hilario, Tre Beaman, and Robert Zampini. Senior basketball players Kristen Henry, Julianna Simone, Jack O’Sullivan, and Sean Lewis were the referees.
The star of the night was none other than Nanuet’s Track and Field coach Rob Tutein, who specializes in high jump and long and triple jump. The former Utica jumper and basketball player certainly put both his basketball prowess and jumping skills on full display, with countless grandiose dunks throughout the game.
As the game commenced, Coach Biggs made the first shot of the game, showing off her impressive dribbling and passing skills throughout the first quarter. Mr. Gartner scored a plethora of three-pointers in only a few minutes. Mr. MacRobbie also shot a three-pointer. In the first quarter alone, Coach Rob had two extravagant dunks, eager to give the crowd a show. However, it was clear that every team member was prepared to give it their all and do whatever it took to bring their team to victory. Almost every team member contributed to the score (maybe some more than others).
In the second quarter, Tre Beaman scored emphatically despite heavy defense from the gold team. Always a team player, Mr. Breyfogle ran up and down the court with a smile on his face. Likewise, Mr. Zampini played with enthusiasm and cheerfulness as well. Mr. Arvanites used his height for remarkable rebounds and layups. Jon Reid, the athletic trainer, took a break from helping athletes to become one, scoring some impressive three-pointers. Mr. Cotto put his all into helping the team, blocked, and grabbed the ball at any given opportunity. Mr. Hilario and Mr. MacRobbie made their way around the court with persistence despite the gold team’s towering defense. By this point in the game, Coach Rob had amassed countless dunks and wasn’t showing any signs of fatigue.
At halftime, gold was leading with a score of 50-30. Mr. Breyfogle even celebrated with his trademark Russian dancing (to Spanish music). But was the gold team getting too cocky? Only time would tell. As the madness went on inside the gym, just outside, the Black and Gold Club sold merchandise for the sports teams, while VAASA raised money with an assortment of sweet treats.
Before the third quarter could begin, a major plot twist was announced: A trade. Jon Reid was traded to the gold team and Coach Rob (the clear MVP at this point in the game), was traded to team black. Could Rob come back to win it despite being traded to a team with a 20-point deficit? Or would Gold continue their domination without their best scorer? Fans were on the edges of their seats as the third quarter began.
With otherworldly blocks against his former team in the third quarter, Rob began to chip away at the point deficit. The future was grim for the gold team despite their massive lead. However, Jon, a newly christened gold team member, and Mr. Gartner were maintaining the gold team to the best of their abilities.
By the end of the third quarter, the black team was only down nine points; Coach Rob had certainly made a dent. Through his intricate strategy of draining three-pointers, Coach Rob gave the gold team a real run for their money. But he wasn’t the only person on the court to do so; Mr. Hilario also scored a three-pointer late in the game, as did Mr. MacRobbie. And who could forget Mr. Breyfogle’s late-game shot, his first basket of the night? With almost three minutes to go, the score was 77-65 with Gold in the lead. A comeback was unlikely but not impossible.
With one minute to go, the gold team was down seven. Then down four. Then six. Then three. Suddenly, there were only eight seconds on the clock and only three points between black and gold. In the last few seconds, Coach Rob was fouled. He got three foul shots, one point each. Unfortunately, he only made two, and by one point, the gold team won. A valiant effort by the black team helped them come back after being down 20 points at halftime.
Celebrations were electric. The gold team was adorned with WWE belts for their victory, and Mr. Cotto gave a quick speech to the roaring crowd.
“I told you we’d win,” proclaimed Mr. Cotto. “That wasn’t a spoiler alert, that was a guarantee.”
The crowd went wild, and both teams walked away satisfied with their efforts.
Coach Rob was one of the happiest on the court despite not technically winning.
“It was a great turnout,” he said. “It was a lot of fun. Really competitive. You know, the black team wasn’t able to get the win tonight, but we had a lot of fun and that’s all that matters.”
Winning isn’t what’s important, according to Coach Rob. It’s about loving the game, the players, and the fans.
“I’m here to have fun,” he said. “I’m here to put on a show for you guys, so that’s all I care about.”
When discussing his rivalry with Mr. Reid, Coach Rob praised his competitor.
“Jon is one of my best friends, so on the court, it feels great, but after, I feel bad,” he said. “So it’s a plus-minus sometimes. I get to hold it over his head, though.”
Even immediately after his win, Coach Rob said he was already thinking of plans for next season.
“I think next year we want to get more staff,” he said. “I think there are a lot of people that can play and kind of spread the wealth.”
Mr. Breyfogle, a member of the gold team, said he performed better this year than last year, which showed some improvement.
“My statistics for how much I made versus how many shots I took wasn’t good,” he admitted. “Last year I was here, I was on the actually losing team, so it feels good to come back and win a nail-biter. Of course, the guy who gave us the lead [was] on the other team, but that’s besides the point.”
According to Mr. Reid, he was happy but humble in his victory.
“I don’t really feel like I won,” said Mr. Reid, laughing. “My switch was the comeback. I think I’m gonna be worse next year.”
When asked how he planned on improving, Jon kept it honest.
“I don’t,” he said.