Boys Basketball – Shore Sports Network 2022-23 All-Shore Teams: Third Team
Shore Sports Network 2022-23 Boys Basketball All-Shore Third Team
Players were selected by Shore Sports Network Basketball Editor Matt Manley based on stats, first-hand accounts, input from coaches and the impact the player had on his team. You can see the coaches' choices for All-Shore and All-Division here.
Check Out: All-Shore First Team | Second Team
Micah Ford, Jr., 6-0, Guard/Forward, Toms River North
2022-23 Stats: 14.5 points, 8.7 rebounds, 2.2 steals
After leading Toms River North’s football team to a 14-0 record and state championship in football, Ford took his winning ways to the hardwood and helped the Mariners win some hoops hardware. Ford was the top scorer and rebounder on a balanced Toms River North that spread the wealth on offense – a formula that won the Mariners the Shore Class A South division championship.
Will Surdez, Sr., 6-3, Guard/Forward, Colts Neck
2022-23 Stats: 14.7 points, 7.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.2 steals, 33 3-pointers, 67.3 FT%
Surdez endured losing for his first three varsity seasons, but finally tasted success as a senior while also putting together a strong statistical season that included his 1,000th career point. Surdez’s averages might have been better, but he played through an ankle injury while tuning up for the NJSIAA Tournament. It paid off, as the senior averaged 16 points and 6.7 rebounds in the state playoffs, including a 22-point effort in a win at Brick Memorial.
Zayier Dean, So., 5-10, Guard, Ocean
2022-23 Stats: 17.2 points, 6.35 rebounds, 2.35 assists, 1.65 steals, 39 3-pointers, 73.4 FT%
With Dean leading a young roster that includes three sophomore starters when all healthy, Ocean won its first Shore Conference division championship in 51 years. The Spartans clinched the championship with a road win over Central Jersey Group I runner-up Shore Regional in which Dean produced 15 points, seven rebounds and six assists and one week earlier, Dean hit a last-second three-pointer to send a road game at Monmouth into overtime – a game the Spartans would eventually win in order to set up the clinch at Shore.
Shane Ryan, Sr., 5-9, Guard, Point Pleasant Boro
2022-23 Stats: 15.4 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.65 assists, 1.38 steals, 35 3-pointers, 83.33 FT%
Ryan endured a difficult offseason with the passing of his father, Mike, in the fall, but that did not stop him from performing. Ryan honored his late father -- who was a standout in his day at Hudson Catholic before playing one year at Seton Hall -- by becoming one of the Shore’s most improved players – one who faced down a grueling schedule that included three games vs. St. Rose, two each vs. Manasquan and Ranney, CBA, Freehold Township, Jackson Memorial and South River. Despite all that, Ryan put up All-Shore numbers for a Panthers team that went 16-10 despite dealing with that murderers’ row of teams.
Kevin Burns, Sr., 6-2, Guard, Point Pleasant Beach
2022-23 Stats: 19.0 points, 10.8 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 2.73 steals, 23 3-pointers, 79 FT%
On pure stats, Burns can probably claim the best statistical season in the Shore Conference. The Garnet Gulls senior opened his season with a massive triple-double (25 points, 14 rebounds, 13 assists), the recorded another one two games later. The knock on players with Burns’s profile – a standout on a winning small, public-school team – is usually that they play weaker schedules and while that is true in Burns’s case, he also put up impressive numbers if you exclude games vs. Group I teams outside of Shore and Keyport: 18.7 points, 11 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 2.5 steals.
Miles Chevalier, Jr., 6-3, Guard, Central
2022-23 Stats: 17.2 points, 6.2 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 2.0 steals, 58 3-pointers, 84.5 FT%
Along with sophomore teammate Jaycen Santucci, Chevalier carried Central to a 20-win season that took the Eagles into the Shore Conference Tournament quarterfinals for the first time in 29 years and nearly got them into the South Jersey Group IV semifinals. Chevalier tied a single-game school record with eight three-pointers in a 30-point game vs. Barnegat, led the dominant defensive effort to go with 12 points and 12 boards in a South Group IV first-round win over Rancocas Valley, then put up 16 points, five assists and five rebounds to close out the season in an overtime loss at Eastern.
First Four Out
In the spirit of the NCAA Tournament getting underway on the same day as the All-Shore release, here are the first four players who just missed making the cut, as well as the next four out. Eighteen All-Shore players in a sport is not a whole lot compared to the All-Shore teams we do in other sports, so while we like to keep the honor special with three teams, the other players who were on the doorstep deserve to be acknowledged.
Jayden Hodge, Fr., 6-4, Guard, St. Rose (12.3 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.96 steals)
Chauncey Brown, So., 6-0, Guard, Matawan (17.5 points, 57 3-pointers, 80.3 FT%)
Samir Padilla, Sr., 6-0, Guard, Jackson Memorial (12.9 points, 2.35 steals, 45 3-pointers, 75.4 FT%)
Drew Buck, Jr., 6-3, Guard, Ranney (13.6 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.9 steals, 55 3-pointers, 81.8 FT%)
This group is a mix of scorers who have other big players to help support the winning cause, but probably disperse the numbers somewhat. The one exception is Brown, who averaged 17.4 points and close the year averaging 21 in Matawan’s final 11 games and 23 over its last five. Padilla and Hodge both averaged in the 12-point range on Top 10 teams and in Hodge’s case, it was for the No. 2 tea in the Shore Conference – hence the first player out status. Buck made a strong case for himself in the Shore Conference Tournament, averaging 16.4 points during Ranney’s runner-up performance.
Next Four Out
Griffin Linstra, So., 6-4, Forward, Manasquan (7.0 points, 7.2 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 71.7 FT%)
Bryan Ebeling, So., 6-2, Guard, St. Rose (9.1 points, 3.5 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.44 steals)
Luke Schorr, So., 6-2, Guard, Rumson-Fair Haven (15.4 points, 72 3-pointers, 76.6 FT%)
Tyler Burnham, Jr., 6-5, Center, Red Bank Catholic (14.8 points, 9.5 rebounds, 1.4 blocks)
This group is headlined by two lockdown defenders who have no doubt sacrificed the potential for bigger numbers in order to be defense-first underclassmen who pick their spots as scorers. Linstra and Ebeling both draw rave reviews for their defense and their willingness to guard anyone -- particularly Linstra, who can match up with quick guards and bruising big men just the same. In Burnham and Schorr, it is hard to find two less similar players. Burnham reps the big men on an All-Shore list that is somewhat light on them, while Schorr made a run at an All-Shore spot as a sophomore thanks to his elite shooting and crafty offensive game.
All-Shore Final Vote
All eight players, as well as others, will be part of the annual All-Shore Final Vote, which will begin voting on Monday, March 20 and end Thursday afternoon. That will be an opportunity for Shore Conference fans and Shore Sports Network readers to pick the last two members of the 2023 SSN All-Shore teams from a select list of players who were strongly considered for one of the first three teams.