Nick Frusco, Joe Strickland lead Miller Place boys basketball's satisfying turnaround

The last two boys basketball seasons have been arduous for Miller Place, but a positive attitude and a resilient mindset have sparked a turnaround.

The Panthers went 1-17 in each of the last two seasons, losing 14 straight games to end their 2022-23 campaign. But, in a remarkable shift, Miller Place won its first five games this season by an average of 24.6 points and sits at 5-3 heading into its holiday break.

“It shows you [our] perseverance – we’ve dealt with struggles for two years, and these kids were all part of these struggles,” Miller Place coach Joe Agostino said. “Their work ethic and their dedication to trying to get better has been excellent over the course of those two years.”

Agostino is in his third year at the helm after five years as Miller Place’s junior varsity coach. He inherited an inexperienced varsity program due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and injuries made things even tougher in year two.

Though the losses stung, Miller Place came out seasoned as a result. The Panthers have four returning starters this season and postseason goals.

“I feel like the losses are more important than the wins because we were growing as 10th graders and 11th graders. We [didn’t] have varsity experience,” said Joe Strickland, Miller Place’s senior point guard and a third-year varsity player.

Team captain and 6-5 junior center Nick Frusco is the Panthers’ go-to option, averaging 16.6 points. Agostino said Frusco has been “nothing but awesome.”

“Finally being able to go out my senior year, really just give it my all one last year, and get five wins straight,” Strickland said. “... It just really makes me excited for this league season.”

Edwards, Beard team at Academy Charter

Joel Beard has played three years of AAU basketball for coach Andre Edwards’ Deer Park-based Team Underrated. Beard certainly isn’t underrated by Edwards.

And now the two are on the same side with another team. Edwards is the new coach of Academy Charter’s combined team from the school’s Hempstead and Uniondale campuses. Beard joined him after playing last season at Epic South in Queens.

The athletic 6-4 junior forward is averaging a double-double. He’s at 18.3 points — including 27 vs. St. Dominic and 22 vs. St. Mary’s — and 10 rebounds for the 1-3 Panthers.

Edwards sees his top player as a college prospect under development.

“He’s a great slasher and rebounds the ball well,” Edwards said. “He’s a crafty lefty that can stretch it out to the three-point line.”

Edwards coached Wyandanch from 2007-10, concluding with a Suffolk Class B title. Then he coached St. John the Baptist from 2011-15. That stint included an NSCHSAA title in 2012. He’s also now the director and coach of a Suffolk-based prep school team, Shots With Patience.

“I wasn’t intending on coaching high school ball anymore,” Edwards said. “But someone came up to me with a proposition and asked me would I be interested? … I knew that it could be a conflict [with the prep team], but it’s not.

“And when Joel’s father found out I was coming back to high school, he said, ‘Without question, I want my son with you.’ ”