By Ross Wilson

It used to be that Buena was the game on the schedule that other teams looked forward to. For 27 years, games versus Buena were good for padding stats and cake walking to easy victories. That's not the case anymore as Buena has turned their fortunes around and become a Cape Atlantic title contender.

"We all play together and we're well coached," said Brad Cocking, the teams point guard and leading scorer. "We know our strengths, our weaknesses and we're more experienced this year. We had a good year last year, but this year we know exactly what we're doing."

Buena's only loss this season came to Atlantic City in a close 60-55 battle by the bay. Atlantic City prevailed, but Buena played tough throughout and almost came away with the road victory as many of Buena's players rose to the occasion. But that's no surprise. That's the new Buena. Players have been stepping up all season long.

"Kevin Gunter is a junior who plays some good ball for us and Andrew Mack is a sophomore. Both start and have been great for us," said Cocking. Steve Shaughnessy didn't play last year but is back on the team this year. He can shoot the three and rebound. Dennis Burgey can also shoot the three. He's one of our guards that we can sub in and we won't lose anything. Frank Parisi is a big rebounder. When Frank rebounds, nobody's getting the ball," laughs Cocking.

Despite the fast 9-1 start, Cocking, who's averaging 20.3 points per game, knows that tougher games await. The Chiefs have a lot of big games ahead, but seniors Donte Nelson and Fred Sykes will also be ready to play a big part.

"The biggest game of the season is definitely going to be Middle Township," said Cocking. "They're the best team we're going to play and if we can beat them… we're looking good."

After not having a winning season in almost 30 seasons before last year's 15-10 mark, Buena is a legit factor. Welcome to the new millennium. BACK