December has arrived, which can only mean one thing: Westborough Rec Basketball. Coaches have drafted their rosters and the first games are only a few days away, so let’s see where our team of Lobby-O Rec Ball experts ranked the 16 teams. 

*Rankings agreed upon by respected rec-ball analysts Alex Badger, Ryan Guilbeau, Keegan Kerr, Cam Erickson, Basim Hussain, Will Burger

1. Team Barry – To put it simply, Team Barry has improved from last year and the competition has gotten worse. Reigning MVP Jackson Barry, Underclassman of the Year Tyler Nagi and Defensive Player of the Year Owen Gately are teaming up. Scary. Sidenote: Team Barry, please don’t do a full-court press. Nobody likes it. It’s rec ball. You’re going to win anyway.

2. Team Bersani – Pete Bersani and Brendan McCafferty are going to need to score over 20 points every game for this team to win. Fortunately for them, they’ll do just that. Look for at least one of them to be on the court at all times to carry the offensive load. On the defensive end, Team Bersani will welcome back the O’Keefe brothers, who will without a doubt bring extreme intensity and a nice spark to the squad. Seniors Aidan and Zeeshan will provide solid depth on both sides of the ball. 

3. Team Kelley – This team is stock full of seniors. Will Burger, Ryan Mackintire and Pat O’Neil are all very capable supplements to the teams two stars: Eli Richman and Patrick Kelley. Expect a pick and roll offense between Eli and Pat Kelley, with Will around the perimeter and Pat O’Neil and Ryan grabbing boards down low. Coach Kelley has himself another solid, well-rounded team this year that is poised for a deep playoff run. 

4. Team Mac – Team Macelhaney is led by senior Bruce Sousa, who played school ball last year. He is extremely fast, and can hit shots from anywhere on the court. The junior Sullivan brothers should give Bruce the help he needs, and provide championship experience from their time on Team Barry last year. Shoaib Pervez is very tall and will be able to grab a lot of rebounds. Bruce is the face of the franchise for Team Mac, but he has a lot of good players around him too that make this team look scary on the schedule.

5. Team Cespedes– Everyone who has a brain knows that this team will have by far the lowest field goal percentage in the league, and that includes Team Urban. `Look, this team does have talent, and they have more confidence than Arya at BSC, but this could quickly go downhill if people start forcing shots. This is a boom or bust team that should dominate the teams in the bottom of the league but has little shot against the Barrys and the Bersanis of the world.

6. Team Kaplan – The Kaplan twins are back for their second high school Rec Ball season. They took the league by torm last year with their aggressive, very persistent half-court trap defense. With their father coaching this year, expect the trap to be back and better than ever. Senior-looking sophomore Brendan McDermott should also have a solid presence down low. This will be a defensive minded team hoping to force turnovers for easy fast break points. 

7. Team Townsend – Unlike prior years, Team Townsend actually looks pretty good after draft day. Jeremy James was a solid player last year that is really good at getting to the hoop. Declan Van Nest is tall and was an amazing TE for the football team this year, so he will be able to do a lot more than just rebound. Cole Ellison played school last year, and his hustle and grit will add a lot of energy to this team. Senior Owen Primeau will also be able to put some points on the board for this team. Team Townsend doesn’t have one definitive #1 option, but past years have proved that this is not a bad thing. Any of these four players could have a great game at any time, so if they can work together well, this team will be dangerous.

8. Team Kerrbeau – Team Kerrbeau has a lot of potential. Carlton hasn’t played competitive basketball in years, but his athletic ability is undeniable. If he can return to his Mill Pond dominance, he could carry this team to the glory land. Senior Ryan Guilbeau will be looking to take a big step forward this year after spending much of the offseason playing pickup at BSC. Unlike Ryan, Keegan Kerr didn’t work much on his game. Nonetheless, he’ll need to improve on his (stellar) 4.5 PPG last year if this team wants to go far in the playoffs. Will Garvey and Navi Bimrah are quality additions and solid on both sides of the ball. This team will be interesting to watch unfold this year. 

9. Team Cardin – The talent on this team is solid, but unfortunately you don’t play basketball games on paper. No one on this team can really strap up and carry, unless James Fitzgibbons has changed his mold from pass-first to scorer. Anirban is going to need to provide senior leadership and Jack Cardin can also find the bottom of the basket. This team has potential, so let’s see what they can do.

10. Team Ramz – Arya will need to put the team on his back this season. Expect a high volume of shots—and a high volume of makes—from both the perimeter and inside the paint. Sam Schiffman and Eddie Silva will need to step up their game from last year to assist Arya. Look for Arya’s raw talent to carry this team to victories against the weak teams, but it will likely not be enough to beat the top-tier teams. 

11. Team Last – This team will be led by junior guards Macy Joseph and Jack McCarthy, along with senior veteran John White. Macy and Jack are both pass-first guards, so this team may need some time to figure things out. This team also has Jackson Cunningham, who can definitely snag some boards this season for the squad. Thee four guys will be doing most of the dirty work throughout the course of the season since the roster lacks depth.  

12. Team Meyer – Team Meyer will be led by junior Cam Erickson, and they’re going to need him to score because there aren’t many scorers after that. Aiden Hirsch and Arthur McMahon can get a lot of rebounds, and Hugh Burke will be a great defender. However, this team is going to have some trouble putting points on the board. They will be able to win some games, but it’s unlikely that they do any serious damage. 

13. Team Croft – The Kumar twins, Elliot Seymour, Aidan O’Sullivan and Dan McMillen will need to work together to provide offense for this team. That’s going to be a tough task, as Rec Ball history shows that teams without a clear number one scorer don’t usually succeed. Reigning Coach of the Year Stephen Croft views this as a positive. For that reason, we expect this team to finish towards the bottom of the league and bow out after the first round of the playoffs. 

14. Team Khoury – Sid and Robbie need to carry the offensive load for Team Khoury, which will be a tall order. Speaking of tall, this team has height. Jake Tags and Nick Choate will surely be snagging some boards this season. Unfortunately for Team Khoury, they’re going to struggle offensively and their roster lacks meaningful depth. 

15. Team Hogan – Keith asked for a trade in the Rec Ball Facebook group as soon as he saw his team’s roster. Honestly, that’s a pretty spot-on indication of Team Hogan’s talent at the moment. Keith’s post also doesn’t help team chemistry at all, which we all know is paramount in this competitive league. Joey Bellefatto will need to assist Keith on the offensive end, but we don’t expect this to be enough to win any games, or keep them close for that matter. 

16. Team Urban – Junior Drew Lewis-Keddy will have to prove to everyone that he has the ability to lead his own team. This will be hard considering he doesn’t have much of a supporting cast around him. Sadly, we here at the Lobby-O think Team Urban’s season ended before it even began. But it’s not all bad, Team Urban, at least you can look forward to next year!