(Photo by Tim Pitts) caption: WISE MOVE: Hun School boys’ basketball star Will Wise looks to make a move in recent action. Last weekend senior forward Wise helped Hun advance to the title game of the Mid-Atlantic Prep League (MAPL) tournament. After notching an opening round win over Mercersburg Academy and topping Blair in the semis, the Raiders fell 70-51 to Hill in the championship game last Sunday. Hun, now 11-14, has one more chance at a title as it competes this week in the state Prep A tournament where it is seeded third and will play at second-seeded Blair on February 19 in the semifinals.

Wise Goes On Attack Mode Down Stretch; Helping Hun Boys’ Hoops to MAPL Final

Bill Alden

As Will Wise stood on the court during the Senior Day ceremonies for the Hun School basketball team last Wednesday, before it faced Germantown Academy, he was hit with a sense of finality.

“To be honest, I can’t believe that it is almost over,” said star forward Wise, reflecting on the ceremony where he was honored along with classmates Lou Adesida, Grant Fiorentinos, Dylan Setzekorn, Dylan Sherwood, Doug Macrone, and Jared Cotton.

“Everybody has been telling me that time really flies but now I really see it. I can’t believe it’s my last game here.”

Wise came out flying against the Patriots, scoring eight points in the first quarter.

“I was just in attack mode for some reason,” said the 6’8 Wise. “It was time to be aggressive. It was my last game here and I was going out with a bang.”

The Raiders needed Wise’s aggressiveness as the game against Germantown was a nip-and-tuck battle to the end as the teams were knotted at 24-24 at halftime and 39-39 after three quarters.

With Wise coming up with two key buckets down the stretch on his way to a season-high 19 points, the Raiders pulled out a 57-53 win.

In Wise’s view, the team’s victory was the product of a collective sense of urgency.

“The coach has been talking about believing and having our season end the way we want it to end,” said Wise.

“It hasn’t gone the way we planned so now we are taking it one game at a time. I think we just wanted it more tonight. We have seven seniors and the underclassmen bought into it that we are doing it for the seniors.”

Last weekend, the Raiders kept doing it as they advanced to the title game of Mid-Atlantic Prep League (MAPL) tournament.

On Friday, Wise scored 11 points to help third-seeded Hun top Peddie 47-32 in an opening round clash. A day later in the MAPL semis against No. 2 Blair, he chipped in 10 points as the Raiders rallied from an early 21-8 deficit to pull out a 62-57 win.

The magic ran out for Wise and his teammates, though, on Sunday as they fell 70-51 to fourth-seeded Hill in the title game.

Hun, now 11-14, has one more chance at a title as it competes this weekend in the state Prep A tournament where it is seeded third and will play at second-seeded Blair on February 19 in the semifinals.

In Wise’s view, the team needs to maintain that self-belief to get the most out of its potential.

“I think basically we need to continue to bring our own energy,” said Wise. “What had been killing us are the third quarters. We have not been good at starting third quarters but now we are getting it down. We have our routine down; we have some stuff at halftime to hype us up.”

Philadelphia native Wise has certainly gotten into the routine at Hun since transferring from Abington Friends before his junior year.

“I wasn’t looking to transfer but when I came up here, I just fell in love with the whole atmosphere,” asserted Wise.

“When I got here, it was like a whole new world for me. It has changed my life. Coach Stone is like my dad, my tutor, my mentor, my sergeant; he’s been everything for me.”

The progress Wise has made at Hun helped him land a spot at University of Maryland-Baltimore County where he will be playing for the school’s men’s basketball program.

“I based it on where I felt comfortable,” said Wise. “They are having a rough season but I think character is more than basketball. I looked at schools in bigger conferences like Fordham but UMBC was the right one for me. I think I can go in and do damage immediately.”

In the meantime, Wise is looking to do some damage in his final games at Hun.

“My time is running out so I am coming out with fire,” said Wise. “I would rather us peak late rather than go undefeated and lose in the end. We need to keep going, keep pushing. We are looking to finish this thing strong.”

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