WESTON, Mass. — Brewster Academy’s national team hadn’t faced a real test through its first five games of the season, winning by an average margin of 58.8 points in its undefeated start.
On Wednesday night, the Bobcats finally got a fight – at least for a half.
Brewster, ranked No. 15 in the country in ESPN’s Top 25, pulled away in the second half with a 61-42 road victory at Rivers, but the final score didn’t indicate how tough it was. The Red Wings, the three-time reigning champion in NEPSAC Class B, led for stretches in the first half of their season opener and the game was tied at 28 at halftime.
A year after Rivers came seconds away from pulling off an upset over Brewster, it looked like this one could be another thrilling finish. But after Rivers star Andrew Alekseyenko feasted in the first half, Brewster shut him and his teammates down, holding them to just 14 points in the second half. The Bobcats went on an 8-0 run out of the break – which included a coast-to-coast Preston Fowler three-point play – and never really looked back.
Brewster won convincingly without star wing and Arizona commit Dwayne Aristode, who was on the sidelines but had a boot on his right foot.
Rivers was without starting point guard Robby Fiore, who sprained his ankle in a scrimmage against Dexter Southfield and missed Wednesday’s game mostly out of precaution. Rivers star Ryan Altman was also slowed by a foot injury he suffered Wednesday. But with some newcomers playing significant minutes, the Red Wings led 9-3 in the opening minutes and hung around throughout the first half before Brewster’s depth, talent and athleticism proved to be too much.
For Rivers, head coach Keith Zalaski likes to schedule hard opponents early in the season to figure out where the holes in his team are, and he came away from Wednesday with some ideas on areas it needs to improve in. The Red Wings will now head to the Zero Gravity Prep Classic this weekend to play another hard opponent, Vermont Academy, on Friday.
“I don’t want to be like, ‘Wow, we’re really good, we’re awesome,’ and then all of a sudden we play a big game against a really good team and we’re like holy moly, we weren’t ready for any of that,” Zalaski said before the season started. “I don’t want there to be any surprises. We call bad games or games where we don’t play well or games that we lose, we call them good film.”
Let’s dive into some standouts from Wednesday’s game.
Andrew Alekseyenko, Rivers
Class of 2025, 6-8 forward
Hometown: Brookline, Mass
NCAA: Colgate
With Fiore out, Alekseyenko played a lot of point forward and was extremely successful, at least in the first half. He finished with 14 points, nine rebounds and three assists, with 12 of his points coming in the first half. He was very aggressive and effective in getting to the basket. He had one play where he spun around Brewster star Sebastian Wilkins for two, a move I didn’t know he had in his bag. Even as Brewster increased his defensive pressure on the perimeter, Alekseyenko stayed calm and made great decisions with the ball, as he balanced his scoring with some playmaking.
Patrick Costello, Rivers
Class of 2028, 6-4 guard
Hometown: Natick, Mass.
Imagine you’re a freshman and in your first career NEPSAC game, you’re starting against one of the best teams in the country? That was Costello’s reality on Wednesday night, but he didn’t flinch. He had 11 points, which included three 3-pointers in the first half as he helped Rivers stick around. Costello looks to be a strong building block for Zalaski.
Chais Harriette, Rivers
Class of 2026, 6-0 guard
Hometown: Mattapan, Mass.
Harriette had just four points in his first game for Rivers, but the junior still performed admirably against his bigger, more talented opponents. He stripped Wilkins for a breakaway layup early in the game, and while he certainly struggled in some moments in the face of immense pressure from Brewster on the perimeter, he made some really good decisions and passes, too.
Ebuka Okorie, Brewster
Class of 2025, 6-2 guard
Hometown: Nashua, N.H.
NCAA: Stanford
Okorie, who recently flipped his commitment from Harvard to Stanford, was a menace on both ends as he took advantage of some smaller defenders. He finished with 12 points as he constantly put pressure on Rivers’ defense with his speed and quickness with the ball, and he was instrumental in putting the Red Wings away in the second half. He scored five consecutive points to build Brewster’s lead to double digits before he recorded an outstanding chase-down block moments later.
Darien Moore, Brewster
Class of 2026, 6-3 guard
Hometown: Hudson, N.Y.
NCAA: Seton Hall
Moore finished with 12 points for the Bobcats, which included a pair of important 3-pointers in the first half that helped quell some Rivers runs. He was also all over the offensive glass and had a putback two for his efforts.
Killyan Toure, Brewster
Class of 2025, 6-3 guard
Hometown: Calmont, France
NCAA: Iowa State
Toure was the third Brewster player to finish in double figures with 11 points, and he was a big piece of their defensive pressure that disrupted Rivers all night. His size and defensive tools overwhelmed Rivers’ guards in several moments and led to transition opportunities for Brewster.
