The quintessential freshman: meandering through the halls, the size of a five-year old, trying to find his or her place in school.  That’s not the case for the 6’2” Anton Casey, who found his niche contributing to the boys varsity basketball team.

Casey was the first freshman player on the boys varsity team to ever receive substantial playing time, head varsity coach Chris Lun said.

“Anton [did] a nice job at working hard and getting better,” Lun said.  “He [looked] for his shot more and [rebounded] pretty well.”

Lun approached Casey after a JV summer league game and informed him that he’d be playing varsity.  Casey said that he had no idea playing varsity was even a possibility and was initially nervous about the idea.

Being in a completely new atmosphere with new teammates also caused him some anxiety, he said.  He thought that his teammates wouldn’t like to have a freshman on the team, but he said he was proved wrong.

“I thought at the beginning of the season that they were going to haze me a lot and I wasn’t going to fit in that well,” Casey said.  “But now I fit in well with all the guys.  We’re close.”

Forward Andrew Castagnetti said he understood what Casey was going through when he first started playing with varsity, but said it didn’t take long for Casey to get acquainted with everyone on the team.

“Being a freshman is hard on varsity because you don’t know what to expect and you don’t know how people are going to treat you,” Castagnetti said.   “But he fit in with everyone. He’s a good teammate and helps the team a lot.”

Casey faced many challenges due to his lack of experience, but displayed his potential with bursts of scoring, like when he hit three three-pointers against rival Churchill.

Lun said that Casey had to learn how to play varsity the correct way, adding that Casey needed to work on effectively reading defenses and using screens.

“At the varsity level, he’s had to go up against kids three to four years older than him,” Lun said.  “To be successful at the varsity level he needed to learn how to play. He got more comfortable as the season progressed.”

Casey said many older opponents gave him a hard time about his age and lack of experience, but he used those comments as an incentive to play harder during the game.

“I [got] hazed a little by the players on the court because they [said] stuff like ‘You shouldn’t be on the court,’” Casey said.  “But I [used] that for motivation.”

While Casey faced a lot of pressure this year, he saw the season as a crucial learning experience and is excited for the team’s future success.

Castagnetti said that Casey’s future potential is unlimited.

“He’s a pretty good all-around player, and he has some good size to him as a freshman,” Castagnetti said.  “I think if he gets bigger he could definitely dominate and hopefully help the team in the long run.”