Mt. Lebanon putting effort into successful season
Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
Mt. Lebanon head coach Joe David stresses a point to his players during a recent basketball practice.
Tanner Donati dribbles passes Brody Barber during a Mt. Lebanon practice session.
Zach D’Alesandro and Michael Pfueffer work on conditioning while doing sprints during a Mt. Lebanon basketball practice.
Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
Michael Pfueffer looks to pass the ball during Mt. Lebanon basketball practice.
Christian Powers takes a jump shot during a Mt. Lebanon practice session.
Mt. Lebanon head coach Joe David is uncertain about his basketball team’s future this winter. The Blue Devils have set goals that all teams do.
“Win section, WPIAL and states,” he said.
While that is a tall order for any team, David, who played basketball at rival Upper St. Clair and the University of Pittsburgh, knows those aims are achievable if the Blue Devils depend on a tried-and-true axiom.
“You get out of basketball everything you put into it,” said David.
As he enters his 21st season at the helm, David has coached Lebo to three WPIAL titles and and a PIAA final appearance. The Blue Devils were undefeated in section play but finished 9-9 overall after losing to Seneca Valley, 72-54, in the first round of the WPIAL playoffs last year.
“In order for us to achieve our goals, we have to continue to get better with every practice and game,” David said.
Lebo graduated it’s top scorer and rebounder in Jake Reinke, who averaged 17 points and 7 rebounds a game.
The Blue Devils also matriculated Evan Sentner, who managed 10 points and 2.6 assists per game, as well as Nick Estabrook.
A fourth senior, Jack Smith has elected not to play basketball this winter. An all-conference linebacker on Lebo’s WPIAL championship football team, he will be transitioning to baseball upon the season’s completion. Smith is a Harvard pitching recruit.
The Blue Devils thus return three starters from last year’s team in Zach D’Alesandro, Michael Pfueffer and Christian Mallon.
A senior, D’Alesandro averaged 7 points, dished up 3.5 assists and grabbed three rebounds a game. He was also Lebo’s top defender, taking 2.17 charges a game.
A junior, Pfueffer garnered The Almanac Rookie of the Year honors in 2021. He averaged 8 points, cleared 3 rebounds and picked up 1.5 assists per game.
Lucas Garofoli, Joey Peters, Christian Powers, JP Walters and Tanner Donati are battling to fill the vacancies in the starting line up.
The Blue Devils will rely upon Michael Gevadan, Patrick King and Brody Barber as top reserves.
Four former Mt. Lebanon standouts are currently playing at the collegiate level:
Caden Hinckley attends Allegheny College. A junior forward owns career averages of 10.5 points and 6.5 rebounds for the Gators. This winter, he is averaging 12.3 points and 9.3 rebounds.
Mark Lamendola is a two-year captain at Washington and Lee. He entered this season just outside the Generals’ Top Ten in career steals with 102. He is averaging 8.0 points and 3.4 rebounds.
Blaine Gartley is a freshman guard at Chatham College. Currently, he is averaging 3.0 points and 4.0 rebounds for the Cougars. He has 16 assists in five games.
Jake Hoffman is a sophomore guard at Wooster College. He is averaging 2.7 points and 2.3 rebounds for the Fighting Scots.