Andrew Savulich
Aaliyah Jones used to play for state Federation basketball champion Bishop Ford but will not play for Murry Bergtraum, the 15-time defending PSAL champion.
Bishop Ford won the state Federation Class AA girls basketball tournament last year, but following its championship season the team’s future was in doubt.
With popular coach Mike Toro already serving a suspension and on his way out, players like Aaliyah Jones were forced to ponder their next basketball moves.
So Jones, the driving force behind the Falcons’ state championship, wondered if she wanted to finish her career with a program in flux. After Toro decided to leave Ford to become the coach at Medgar Evers in the PSAL, Jones followed him out the door and entered Murry Bergtraum, the 15-time defending PSAL champion.
Jones told the Daily News that she based her decision to enter Bergtraum on the fact that she has family that lives in the area of the school, on lower Manhattan near the Brooklyn Bridge.
Jones – The News’ girls player of the year last season – is now at home in a place that used to be enemy territory. Her previous team knocked the Lady Blazers out of the Federation tournament in the semifinals last season. Not that Bergtraum coach Ed Grezinsky minds that anymore.
“We are getting someone who is a state champion and a proven winner,” Grezinsky said. “It is like getting a superstar.”
“I knew everyone already and it’s nothing but love,” Jones said of her relationship with her new teammates. “We are all striving for the same goal, to win the championship and play basketball.”
The Lady Blazers have three returning starters, and with the addition of Jones, may be stronger than last year. Jones has already taken a leadership role on and off the court, Grezinsky said.
“She is a tremendous competitor with a very high basketball IQ,” Grezinsky said. “She is a coach on the court.”
Transitioning from Ford to Bergtraum has been easy for Jones, considering she has played with or against several of the players on the Lady Blazers already. Jones is comfortable, and her new teammates have accepted her with open arms – and with tons of respect.
“My role is going to be a leader and doing what I do best – scoring,” Jones said.
Jones has already had an impact on the court, using her wisdom to teach the team’s younger players proper positioning and constantly giving them tips. After a state championship and a commitment to play her college ball at Fordham University, Jones has little more to accomplish, so she relishes such opportunities.
“I don’t have anything to prove,” Jones said. “I am already where I need to be. I am just trying to learn and teach the younger players here.”
After deciding that leaving Ford was the best thing for her, Jones was adamant in wanting to stay in New York City to play out her high school career. She knows many of the city’s best players often leave the city to play elsewhere, but she doesn’t want to be far from her father.
“I like being home in New York City,” Jones said. “My dad is my number one supporter and he gives me great wisdom.”
After so many consecutive city titles, Bergtraum does have pressure to keep the streak alive. Winning another Federation title would be nice, too.
“That’s what my goal here is, to win the State Federation,” Jones said.
http://newyork.greatlocalnews.info/?p=17841
via Great Local News: New York http://newyork.greatlocalnews.info
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