Boys Basketball Player of the Year – MHS’ McCoy grew into bigger role
http://www.centraljersey.com/articles/2011/03/11/athlete/doc4d794dd1d621d502486301.txt
On a bus ride home after a tough loss two years ago, Kris Grundy decided it was time to turn his team over to Ryan McCoy.
”When he was a sophomore we tried different players at that position and after we lost to Franklin in the county tournament and had just been turning the ball over too much, I turned to coaches and said, ‘We’re making Ryan our point guard,’” Grundy recalled. “As a sophomore he grew into it. His junior year he was our point guard all season. It was just a feeling we got from watching him play that he could handle the position.”
McCoy not only handled that position for two years, but when called upon handled many others for the Cougars. At 6-foot-7 he creates plenty of problems for opposing teams as a point guard. But he also had the ability to go inside when needed.
”After our last game on the bus ride back I told the other coaches we’re not going to realize how good Ryan was until next season when he is not around,” Grundy said of the MHS senior, who will be heading to Manhattan College to play next year. “He did everything for us. He was our best scorer, best rebounder, best assist guy, best steals guy and best shot blocker. He did it all.”
This season McCoy finished as the Cougars’ leading scorer, averaging 14.1 points per game. In addition, he was also the team leader in assists (4.8 per game), rebounds (10.9 per game), blocks (5.2 per game) and steals (2.5 per game).
”Last year I was more of just a point guard and bringing the ball up and distributing,” said McCoy, who helped the Cougars to the Central Jersey Group IV championship as a junior. “This year I was looked at more to be the main scorer. Last year I scored, but I wasn’t the main look-to guy. This year was a different role. I had to do more rebounding and I was the big man now because we didn’t have the height we had last year.
”In college I’ll be playing more outside like I did last year. I think playing in the post some this year helped me develop some skills and improved my rebounding. I just tried to do whatever is needed.”
McCoy benefited from being in a high school program where the coaches didn’t look at a 6-foot-4 freshman and immediately send him to the low post. Grundy and his staff noticed right away there was something unique about McCoy and the way he played the game.
”When he was a freshman and 6-foot-4 he started a couple games at end of the year,” Grundy recalled. “Midway through the year he became a varsity player and you could tell in practice he had a high basketball IQ and that he could really handle the basketball. At the time we had Kevin Tarca at point guard. We knew when Kevin graduated we would struggle for a point guard.”
But after that bus ride back from Franklin, the Cougars’ point guard woes were under control.
”He is the best pure passer I have had the opportunity to coach,” Grundy said. “Being 6-7, he is a phenomenal passer. He can see the floor so well. There were so many times we as coaches marveled at passes he would make. He would thread the needle and make passes when as coaches we didn’t think a kid was open. He is the type of player that spoils you when he is around.
”Last year he was content being the primary point guard and giving the ball to James (Loupos), giving the ball inside to Josh (Prevost), and scoring when we needed him to. This year he knew he would have to be the point guard as well as score. He knew his responsibilities would be greater.”
McCoy certainly lived up to those responsibilities, helping Montgomery to a 15-11 record and a Skyland Conference Raritan Division championship.
”I thought it was a pretty good year,” McCoy said. “We won the conference for the second year in a row, which is a big deal. I wish we would have gone further in states, but we played every team tough against a tough schedule.
”I like playing the better teams. It’s more fun. We played a tougher out of conference schedule this year and that made us a better team.”
Having McCoy to go along with the outside scoring punch of Matt Mignon made the Cougars a tough team to beat.
”He’s a matchup nightmare,” Grundy said of the problems McCoy creates for a defense. “He is a guard we can put in the post and a big who can go outside. He presents so many matchup problems for teams. We didn’t want to limit Ryan. There were games he felt comfortable in the post. In practice he would go 10 minutes with the guards and 10 minutes with the bigs.
”With him you have to go beyond the numbers. He’s a point guard who leads our team in blocks and steals. He runs himself ragged on the court. His points per game are 14.1, but he does so much more than that for us.”
Next year he’ll be doing what he does for Manhattan College. But he leaves Montgomery having helped the program grow.
”We had nine seniors, which is not common. They all stayed with the program. A lot of us have been together since fourth grade and we’ve played travel together. It seems strange that I won’t be playing with them anymore.”
