Pierson Boys Basketball Has Rebounded Nicely After Its Quick Three-Game Hiccup - 27 East

Pierson Boys Basketball Has Rebounded Nicely After Its Quick Three-Game Hiccup

icon 10 Photos
Pierson's Luke Seltzer tries to score through the Bridgehampton defense.   MARIANNE BARNETT

Pierson's Luke Seltzer tries to score through the Bridgehampton defense. MARIANNE BARNETT

Pierson's Charlie McLean goes up for two points.   MARIANNE BARNETT

Pierson's Charlie McLean goes up for two points. MARIANNE BARNETT

A trio of Whalers, from left, Luke Seltzer, Charlie McLean and Kyle Seltzer, quickly surround Bridgehampton's Alex Davis.   MARIANNE BARNETT

A trio of Whalers, from left, Luke Seltzer, Charlie McLean and Kyle Seltzer, quickly surround Bridgehampton's Alex Davis. MARIANNE BARNETT

Pierson's Logan Hartstein drives.   MARIANNE BARNETT

Pierson's Logan Hartstein drives. MARIANNE BARNETT

Pierson's Dom Mancino puts up a heavily contested shot over Bridgehampton's Kris Vinski.   MARIANNE BARNETT

Pierson's Dom Mancino puts up a heavily contested shot over Bridgehampton's Kris Vinski. MARIANNE BARNETT

Whaler Luke Seltzer drives on Killer Bee Kris Vinski.   MARIANNE BARNETT

Whaler Luke Seltzer drives on Killer Bee Kris Vinski. MARIANNE BARNETT

Pierson's Kyle Seltzer disrupts Bridgehampton's Dylan Fitzgerald.    MARIANNE BARNETT

Pierson's Kyle Seltzer disrupts Bridgehampton's Dylan Fitzgerald. MARIANNE BARNETT

Pierson senior Logan Hartstein looks for an opening on the court.    MARIANNE BARNETT

Pierson senior Logan Hartstein looks for an opening on the court. MARIANNE BARNETT

Pierson's Luke Seltzer tries to score in between Bees Alex Davis, left, and Jai Feaster.   MARIANNE BARNETT

Pierson's Luke Seltzer tries to score in between Bees Alex Davis, left, and Jai Feaster. MARIANNE BARNETT

Whalers Luke Seltzer, left, and Henry Butler are all smiles after pulling out Friday night's victory over Bridgehampton.    MARIANNE BARNETT

Whalers Luke Seltzer, left, and Henry Butler are all smiles after pulling out Friday night's victory over Bridgehampton. MARIANNE BARNETT

Drew Budd on Jan 17, 2023

The Pierson boys basketball team has seemed to put its three-game losing streak around the holidays well behind it. The Whalers’ 54-41 home victory over crosstown rival Bridgehampton on Friday evening was its fourth straight since that little bump in a road a few weeks ago.

Pierson improved to 8-2 in League V play, 8-5 overall.

“I think we’re starting to make some good changes,” head coach Will Fujita said on Monday morning. “Defensively, we’ve been much stronger and we’re doing a better job of rebounding the ball, and as we head toward the playoffs, those things are going to be really important to us.”

With just over two weeks remaining in the season, it’s slightly early for postseason talk, but the Whalers only need to win one of its final remaining seven games to ensure themselves of finishing the regular season with a .500 record, which is the prerequisite of any team in any league in the county. In a mixed classification league such as League V, which contains Class B, C and D teams, those parameters can be shifted a little bit with teams having the option to petition to get in.

There are only three Class C teams in Suffolk this season — Pierson, Port Jefferson and Southold. And in that order are where each team is in the standings as of Tuesday morning. Port Jeff seems to be in line of making the playoffs outright, while Southold, at 3-6 in league play, may need the help of a petition to qualify.

Fujita said the ideal scenario would be for all three teams to make it with his team earning the top seed and getting a bye into the county championship. That way, he said, he could scout both Port Jeff and Southold in the game prior. His least favorite scenario, Fujita said, would be no other Class C teams making the playoffs and therefore no meaningful games heading into the larger Section XI playoff games and all important regional and state games.

“We’ll be ready for whoever we end up playing,” he said. “We want to play basketball. We want to earn it.”

After losing to Mattituck, 63-42, on December 22, a game in which it was missing arguably its most potent offensive threat in Luke Seltzer, Pierson also lost, 52-49, to Class A school Mount Sinai, then suffered a 59-36 loss at home to Southampton in its first game out of the holiday break on January 4.

The Whalers haven’t lost since, though, rattling off four straight victories, most of the them lopsided, at Smithtown Christian (71-52), home over Shelter Island (76-23), at Ross (53-25), and then this past Friday night over Bridgehampton. The Killers Bees, to their credit, gave the Whalers their toughest, most competitive game of that stretch, and even held a 13-8 lead after the first quarter. Pierson eventually turned things around and didn’t separate itself really until the fourth quarter when it outscored Bridgehampton, 16-6.

Luke Seltzer led all scorers with 24 points in the win while Dom Mancino and Charlie McLean each scored 12 points. Fujita said he was not surprised at all by how well Bridgehampton played, especially early on.

“They have a good team. They came out of the gates with energy and we didn’t match that early,” he explained. “And that seems to be the theme this season. We’ve been able to continue to make adjustments throughout games where we win, but it would be nice to start the game with a lead and finish the game with that same lead. But it’s good during the regular season to face that kind of adversity early on. Come later in the season, I think we’ll be more prepared because of that, no matter what the circumstances are.”

Following its game at Greenport on Wednesday, Pierson will start a stretch where it will play larger “B” schools for the second time this season, including rematches against Mattituck and Southampton, before finishing the regular season against fellow “C” schools Port Jeff and Southold.

But first, Pierson will host its annual Spirit Night this Friday. The Pierson/Bridgehampton girls basketball team will get things started when it hosts Southold/Greenport at 5:15 p.m., followed by the boys who play Center Moriches. Fujita said it will be fun for him to be able to watch his youngest sister, Aiko Fujita, play in the girls game before manning the sidelines in the night cap, so he’ll be able to be a fan first before a coach.

“I’m excited about this second go-around,” he said. “I think we’re making the right efforts to get to where we need to be. I’d like to see better ball movement, especially as we gear up to play the ‘B’ schools again. That’s always a tough little stretch.”

You May Also Like:

Winter Standouts: Pierson and Bridgehampton Student-Athletes Recognized

PIERSON Pierson Boys Basketball Team Awards: MVP Orion Aubry Coaches Award Paul Roesel Most Improved Player Casey Finelli Pierson Girls Basketball All-League Josie Mott, Cali Wilson League VII Rookie of the Year Molly Wolfson Unsung Hero Lola Eldridge All-Academic Cali Wilson Team Awards: MVP Josie Mott and Cali Wilson Coaches Award Lola Eldridge Most Improved Player Molly Wolfson BRIDGEHAMPTON Bridgehampton Boys Basketball Second Team All-State Jai Feaser Third Team All-State Alex Davis All-County Alex Davis, Jai Feaster All-Conference Jaylen Harding League VII Rookie of the Year Jordan Harding All-Academic Xavier Johnson Small Schools Suffolk County Coach of the Year Carl ... 24 Jun 2025 by Staff Writer

Despite Valiant Fourth-Quarter Comeback, Bridgehampton Loses to Panama in State Championship

Trailing Panama by 27 points with 48 seconds remaining in the third quarter of the ... 23 Mar 2025 by Drew Budd

Bridgehampton Defeats Loudonville Christian To Advance to State Championship

When Alex Davis and Jai Feaster were brought up to the Bridgehampton boys basketball team ... 21 Mar 2025 by Drew Budd

Bridgehampton Gets Over the Regional Final Hump, Propels Itself to State Final Four

Consider the proverbial hump smashed. Since winning its ninth New York State Class D Championship ... 16 Mar 2025 by Drew Budd

It's the Wild Wild West, or East, in Suffolk County Right Now, With Athletes Benefiting in Court

By Drew Budd Three different judges decided in the past month that New York State ... 11 Mar 2025 by Drew Budd

Bridgehampton Boys Basketball Reclaims County Championship

From the outside looking in, the Bridgehampton boys basketball team was favored to defeat St. ... 3 Mar 2025 by Drew Budd

Pierson Girls Basketball Loses Lead Late, Falls at Mattituck in County Semifinal

The Pierson girls basketball team was in the driver’s seat for much of its county ... 25 Feb 2025 by Drew Budd

Late Three at Port Jefferson Spells Doom for Pierson Boys Basketball's Playoff Hopes

A three-pointer with five seconds left led to a 50-48 loss at Port Jefferson on ... 12 Feb 2025 by Drew Budd

Local Basketball Teams Are Preparing for a Postseason That Won't Begin for Some Until Many Weeks Later

They’re in. Now what? Nearly a half-dozen basketball teams from the South Fork have qualified ... by Drew Budd

Pierson Girls Basketball Finishes Regular Season on Four-Game Win Streak, Preparing for Playoff Game in Over Two Weeks

The Pierson girls basketball team officially clinched a spot in the Suffolk County Class B ... by Drew Budd