Timmy Maloney is the Packet Athlete of the Week

There have been times this season when Kris Grundy wasn’t sure if he would have Tim Maloney available on the court.

”He hurt his back in the spring and it shut him down in the summer,” the Montgomery High boys basketball coach said. “He still came to everything we did, but he didn’t do summer league or participate in camps except for the last one and in that one he only played a few games.

”The first day of tryouts he wrenched his back and we didn’t know if we would have him at all. He started the season playing 16 minutes a night and when his back responded well we upped it and then against Bridgewater he played 30 of 40 minutes and since that time his minutes have been steadily in the 24-minute range.”

The Cougars have certainly benefited from having their only returning starter on the court as much as possible. Maloney has averaged 8.6 points and 6.9 rebounds a game through the first nine games of the season, helping the Cougars to an 8-1 start — including five straight wins as they look to earn a third straight Skyland Conference division title.

”This was a tough five-game stretch starting with Bridgewater and Princeton, so it felt good to cap it off with a win against Immaculata,” Maloney said. “We have a good rivalry with them.”

Maloney did his best to keep the Cougars moving forward. He had 10 points, six rebounds and six steals in a 53-35 win over Westfield, then had nine points, five rebounds and five steals in a 42-40 win over Somerville. He capped the week off with 15 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and two steals in a 57-39 win over Immaculata.

Tim Maloney is the Princeton Packet Athlete of the Week.

”I have had to step into a bigger role of being a leader, which is nice,” Maloney said. “I always looked at myself as a leader and now these young kids look to me for help besides the coaches. It is a good thing. I can give them information and teach them. With them being so young, they have a lot to learn and are willing to learn and listen. They listen to me and also to our other captain, Brendan Fay. All the seniors are leaders and we all help each other.”

With Maloney as the only starter back for the Cougars, this could have been a season of rebuilding — especially since Maloney has been dealing with a back injury. Instead, the Cougars have won eight of their first nine games.

”I have not been that surprised with this team,” Maloney said. “The thing with our team is these new guys come to work every day and work hard every day in practice. The record and the wins are not a surprise because of how hard they have been working since the fall and summer.

”Guys have been working all year-round on the sport and done great. Some of the guys are inexperienced, but they can all flat out play.”

Grundy appreciates the way his team has worked, and the way Maloney has worked himself back onto the court despite his injury.

”I am lucky to be part of a group that has worked so hard since the end of last season,” the Montgomery coach said. “This is such a committed group. When I first took over as head coach, when people mentioned Montgomery High athletics I don’t know how many people thought about basketball.

”But I have been lucky to have such hard working kids from that first year when I took over. It started way back then and now when these guys step on the court all they ever know is winning.”

The start to this season has been impressive, and Maloney hopes it will continue.

”We’re just getting going,” he said. “We still have goals of raising banners for conference, county and states. This year and last year are similar. Both teams lost big players from the year before. Last year we lost to Somerville, we lost to Immaculata, and we lost to Bridgewater.

”This year in the regular season we have started out accomplishing more than last year. We won at Somerville, beat Immaculata, and gave Bridgewater their best game yet. I think we could have won that. We know we have a long way to go but we have started off well.”

Now the Cougars just need to keep Maloney healthy as the season grinds on.

”Once the adrenaline kicks in, it really is fine,” Maloney said of his back. “Sometimes with breaks or time outs it gets stiff or tight. But I have been icing it and doing what I can to keep healthy.”

Added Grundy: “Against Immaculata he wasn’t thinking about his back. He was just playing like he played last year. He had a big dunk in the game where Justin (Kovacevich) stole it, Timmy broke loose and hammered it down.”