By Nate Beutel
WHEATFIELD — It’s not a secret that the Falcons are struggling this season. But Jake Hughes is keeping his head up.
After all the Niagara-Wheatfield junior knows all about adversity. He’s been battling it since middle school.
As a lanky sixth-grader, Hughes dislocated his hip. He was confined to a wheelchair for about 10 weeks. Then just as he was hitting his stride at the JV level as a sophomore, Hughes broke his ankle. He missed another six weeks or so.
While admitting he often gets nervous he might suffer another serious injury, Hughes believes he’s nearing full strength. By his play thus far this winter, he’s probably right.
The 6-foot-5, 240-pound “quiet giant,” as N-W coach Joe Casale affectionately calls him, is leading the team in rebounds and is close to the team lead in scoring as well.
“He’s made himself a presence to where people are trying to take him away now,” Casale said. “We’re starting to run a lot of our stuff through him now.”
That’s probably not a bad idea since Hughes’ strength is versatility. The big man is solid on the block, but also sports an impressive face-up game that even includes the ability to step back and hit the 3.
“I’m willing to play wherever coach wants me to play,” Hughes said.
That statement just shows the type of maturity Hughes displays on a daily basis, Casale said.
“He’s a pleasure to coach,” Casale added. “He’s willing to learn. He learns from his mistakes. You can get on him and right away he makes corrections. He’s super coachable.”
Casale is also excited that he has Hughes for another season. He plans to pair Hughes with 6-foot-4 classmate Jarrett Smith as this season progresses and into the summer, giving the duo time to develop a repoire with one another on the floor.
That offseason work will be key to a turnaround for the black and red.
“For us to be the best that we can be, basketball has to become a primary sport for some of these guys,” Hughes said. “We need to be more prepared and not come into practice cold.”
A smiling Casale agreed.
“I’m looking for basketball players, ones who are committed to the game year-round,” he said. “That’s why I love Jake. Even though he plays volleyball, too, he’s still always thinking or talking or working on basketball.”
Contact reporter Nate Beutel at 282-2311, ext. 2262.
JAKE HUGHES
• SCHOOL: Niagara-Wheatfield
• SPORT: Boys basketball
• GRADE: Junior
• POSITION: Forward
• STAT: Leads the Falcons in rebounding
• COACH’S QUOTE: “We’re starting to run a lot of our stuff through him.”
— Joe Casale
