Revere High’s dynamic duo: Leone and Ellis lead with heart and hustle

By Dom Nicastro

The Revere High School boys’ basketball team is looking to finish strong as the regular season winds down this month. The team won’t be going to the postseason but has played competitively all year. And if you ask those around the program who’s helped keep the team competitive and striving to win, it’s senior co-captains Andrew Leone and Luke Ellis.

The duo caught up with the Revere Advocate to discuss the season and what’s next.

Andrew Leone: making the hustle plays

Leone’s role on the team this year was to basically play the 3, 4 or 5 frontcourt positions depending on the lineup or game situation. “I’d say that my biggest role is to provide hustle plays such as rebounds and defense while also trying to help facilitate the offense if I’m able to,” Leone said.

What made Revere tick this year when it was on and winning? “When the team is playing well, I’d say what’s going well is the tempo for us,” Leone said. “When we play fast but under control we always seem to play better. I think the area that needs growth are just simply being able to close out games, which we have struggled with all year.”

It isn’t easy playing in the Greater Boston League. The league was already challenging before the entry of the Lynn teams a few years ago. “The competition this year in the league was good but I wouldn’t say anything surprising,” Leone said. “The teams I think could do well are Everett and Lynn English in the postseason.”

As for Revere’s future, Leone said he thinks this team is going to be really good next year because it has a lot of talented players returning who have already proved they can play well at the varsity level. “The message I’d have for next year’s team is start workouts earlier and start playing together as soon as possible,” Leone said. “This way you don’t come into the season with chemistry issues or rust. As captains we have just tried to make sure that everyone is giving it their all and having fun, but we still want to win every game possible regardless of our record.”

Leone is unsure of where he will be attending college as of right now, but his major will be finance.

Luke Ellis: defender at heart

Ellis’ role on the team this year was to play defense around the rim and make jump shots and layups when needed.

As for the team, the Patriots play at their best when they all work together and play as a complete unit, complementing each other’s play styes and maximizing everyone’s individual strengths, Ellis said. “The team can show growth through winning more games next year and making an effort to improve in a multitude of areas, including reducing our turnovers and rebounding,” Ellis said.

The league was pretty evenly matched this year, which Ellis said is great for everyone. “Lynn English and Everett have bright futures and they played extremely well this season,” Ellis said. “I think RHS will be fine next year and will definitely improve, especially with the many players staying who have grown in their varsity experience. In terms of keeping morale up throughout the season, it was quite easy. We just used our naturally positive and lighthearted personalities and kept pushing forward.”

Ellis said he’s undecided for college. His major will be business management.

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