Underachieving to Unstoppable: The Magical Rise of the Rebels in the 2024-25 Season

Last year, Stuyvesant’s Junior Varsity (JV) basketball team, the Rebels, capped off the 2023-2024 season with a narrow five-point loss to East Side Community on January 31, 2024. After beginning the 2023-24 season with three consecutive wins, the Rebels suffered three consecutive losses and were forced to play catch-up. Despite following up with a  three-game win streak, the Rebels were outpaced by Bayard Rustin and missed the playoffs. The loss in their 10th and final game was just salt in the wound.

This season, however, proved to be a remarkable turnaround. Exactly one year later—on January 31, 2025—the 2024-25 Rebels avenged their loss to East Side Community, securing the team’s first undefeated season since 2007 with a 10-0 record. The team was also ranked first in the Manhattan-III division. 

For the first time in over 20 years, the Rebels had not only been seeded for a home playoff game, but they won. Their success is a testament to their dedication and determination. 

Last offseason, the Rebels faced several predicaments in building the perfect roster. A large part of their 2023-24 core was composed of rising juniors who advanced to varsity, including guard Eric Liu and forward Kobe Lee. Forward Max Peker and guard Izo Kawaguchi also played important roles on the team that year, but the two quit basketball after the season due to personal reasons.

Another important piece of the Rebels was Isaac Sprung, a rising sophomore and one of the team’s most impactful big men and leading rebounder. However, despite having one more season of JV eligibility, JV Coach Howard Barbin and Varsity Coach Charles Sewell agreed to promote Sprung to varsity. “[Sprung] last year was a very special player and I knew he was capable. He was ready for varsity,” Barbin said. This belief quickly became a reality, as Sprung became both a starter and one of the most versatile big men on the varsity team, with success in all finishing, rebounding, and shooting.

Despite these team members’ departures, the JV team had a major gain: in one of the most notable stories of the season, sophomore Oliver Ma, who had made the varsity team as a freshman, asked to be moved down to JV for his sophomore season. After a season in which he was largely overshadowed by the upperclassmen on varsity, his decision to move down was considered understandable from the perspective of both the varsity and JV teams’ members. 

In the end, Ma’s move down to JV largely contributed to the team’s development into playoff contenders. Ma took up a starting role on the team and made a considerable impact on the court through his superb playmaking and accuracy from beyond the arc, leading the team in  three-point goals. “It all has to start with Oliver Ma, who is the engine of this team,” Coach Barbin said. “He was everything I expected, then more.”

This season also saw immense growth from returning sophomores. Co-captain Timothy Lee showed incredible improvement coming into this season, becoming one of the team’s most consistently productive performers, averaging 12.4 points and 4.7 assists per game. Additionally, forward Odin Boughal became the team’s primary big man in lieu of Sprung. Boughal blossomed into a dominant physical presence, leading the team in both scoring and rebounding, as well as boasting a diverse skill set that allowed his success at perimeter offense and placement in the team’s top three in three-point shooting.

Other sophomore contributors included the likes of Gavin Cheng, who grew into a starting role as the team’s shooting guard, and two very powerful big men: Elias Kersnowski, who excelled as the team’s starting center, and Muhamed Durmic, who was able to perform frequently off the bench in place of either Boughal or Kersnowski.

Several freshmen were also able to make a large impact on the team, with players like guard Thehan Abeyweera, forward Charles Li, and forward Benjamin Klare getting rotational minutes and putting up decent numbers. Sophomores on the Rebels admired the freshmen’s resilience and growth as they adjusted to playing on the team. “I think a lot of the freshmen at first played nervously, but as the season went on they played more confidently. They’ll listen to coach; they’ll listen to the sophomores; and they’ll learn and adjust,” Lee reflected. 

In addition to improvements in playing talent, team chemistry among the returning players helped establish a winning culture on the team. “Not only the improvements of the freshmen from last year, but the meshing too just created a championship-caliber team,” Coach Barbin said.

Rebels players shared this sentiment, noting the effects of team chemistry on the season’s outcome. “The chemistry really was great this year, and it helped us get to a playoff spot,” Lee said. 

Thus, Stuyvesant was able to solidify itself as the top team in the Manhattan-III division. Undefeated in regular season play, the Rebels breezed through their division schedule aside from an emphatic three-point victory against Bayard Rustin at home. However, when pitted against other divisions in non-league play, they had trouble gaining momentum and ended up going 2-2, with wins against Bronx Science and High School for Health Professions. In a season where the playoffs were imminent, experience with a greater strength of schedule would have been beneficial to playoff success. “I was always very concerned with making sure that my team could have quality wins. You have Bronx Science, Health Professions, and then real playoff teams,” Coach Barbin said.

At the end of the season, the Rebels were 16th-seeded, meaning that they would play the 17th-seeded James Madison of Brooklyn-V at home. Despite initial concerns about having to play a team from the usually tough Brooklyn-V division, the Rebels earned a dominant 57-39 win—their first home playoff win in 20 years. 

Spirits were high among the Rebels after the game, but their positive outlook turned dim after news broke that their next opponent in the playoffs would be Eagle Academy, the top seed in the tournament. In what seemed like a moment of certain death, the Rebels lost to Eagle Academy by 31 points, ending their magical 2024-25 season. Eagle Academy was ultimately crowned the NYC JV Basketball Champions.

Despite the demoralizing loss to Eagle Academy, the Rebels squad has generally kept their heads high and remained proud of their season’s outcomes. “I guess that losing to the eventual champions makes things better, but I’m still proud of what we did,” Boughal said. However, as they reflect on their recent success, the team has also started to look ahead to the future. 

Coach Barbin is excited to continue his efforts next year by growing a strong team from this year’s freshmen. “As I say many times, it’s a process. We have good guys we’re developing. They were very cooperative this year—very willing to learn. The chemistry was also great this year, and next year, it’s going to be even better,” he said.

Meanwhile, sophomores like Timothy Lee are starting to focus on the transition to their varsity years. “JV is a great experience, but varsity is the real thing,” Lee said. 

The 2024-25 Stuyvesant Rebels were a historic standout in Stuyvesant basketball history. While some viewed their success this year as uncharacteristic, the Rebels proved this year that they are a team that is capable of greatness. They will aim for an even better result next year, but with sophomores advancing to varsity and a new generation of freshmen incoming, many question marks pop up around the team’s future. Only with time will we find out whether this season was truly a fluke or the start of a new dynasty.