Boys' basketball notebook: Fledgling Muñiz Academy program soaring despite players still learning to play organized games

Boston Globe

20-02-2025

Learning on the fly, the Muñiz Academy Phoenix won 11 games and advanced to the state tournament in their inaugural journey, and they've taken another leap this year by winning the Boston City League East division and taking down East Boston, 57-55, in the BCL quarterfinals to make the conference semifinals at Madison Park, where they battled former co-op partner English in a close 67-64 loss Wednesday afternoon.
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'It works because the players have bought into it,' said Silva, the son of legendary Marshfield football coach
Lou Silva
and a longtime assistant coach at his alma mater (class of '92).
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'And they've bought into it because they've shown some trust in me, and in each other. We have some kids who can play, and just because they haven't played organized basketball before, doesn't mean they can't play. We've had a lot of success this year and it's been a steep learning curve, but they've done really well to meet every challenge along the way.'
Muñiz Academy's Ramón Cepedes put up a shot over English High's Edgar Escano in the Boston City League semifinals at Madison Park High School.
Barry Chin/Globe Staff
The challenges began three years ago when Silva was hired and began working as an athletic coordinator at Muñiz. Surveying students and staff to gauge their engagement, the administration was able to get approval for five athletic teams (boys' and girls' basketball, girls' volleyball, baseball, and softball) at the school, which previously only offered co-op athletics with other Boston Public Schools.
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In March 2023, the school received the green light to plan for athletics starting the next fall, and the staff and roughly 400-member student body voted on a mascot and school colors. After playing all games on the road or at neutral sites, the school received funds to renovate a 50-year-old gymnasium, allowing for home games this year.
'Now we have to think about seating capacity because our gym fills up,' said Muñiz principal
Dania Vázquez
, the founding headmaster at the 13-year-old school located in Jamaica Plain, which offers learning in English and Spanish for mostly bilingual students.
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'The kids were super excited about starting athletics programs and we were fortunate we had the right staff to pull it together. Now they seem really connected. It's inspiring. They have someone to cheer for, and it's a part of high school life.'
English High's Ronniel Luna tried to get to the hoop but found Muñiz Academy's Anibal Hatton in his way in the Boston City League semifinlals at Madison Park High School.
Barry Chin/Globe Staff
Senior captains
Anibal Hatton
and
Jaden
Barros
are in their second year. Junior captain
Koby
Nelson
was the only member of last year's team with organized basketball experience since he played JV for English High as a freshman.
Zyheire
Carr
transferred from Holland (Burke) and senior
Ramón Cepedes
offers international basketball experience, but many players are still learning the game.
'It definitely changed the whole game for them,' Nelson said of teammates who are newer to organized basketball.
'But it helped people get closer. We started taking things more seriously, with more teamwork coming into it. We had a few ups and downs, but we worked through it together. Now it feels amazing to know I have a team that has my back and that we all worked together to build it.'
For Vázquez, these second-year players are the founding athletes of a boys' basketball program that should gain momentum. Having athletics programs allows the administration to tie academic performance to eligibility, leading to notable improvement in the classroom.
Suiting up for a team with their school name on the jersey has motivated many athletes who didn't feel as connected in a co-op model, despite the welcoming attitude from English boys' basketball coach
Eric McKoy
and other host schools.
Muñiz Academy's Zyheire Carr tried to battle through a trio of English High defenders in the Boston City League semifinals at Madison Park High School.
Barry Chin/Globe Staff
'It was a great opportunity and experience, but I didn't feel very comfortable,' Hatten said about trying out for English his sophomore year. 'Playing for another school and coming back to my school the next day, it didn't sit right with me.'
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While he deflects credit, Silva has 29 years of coaching experience as one of the stewards of Muñiz athletics. He grew up learning from his father at Marshfield, became an assistant in 1996 when the Rams won a Super Bowl, learned basketball as an assistant at Holbrook, Middleborough, and coached track at Apponequet and Middleboro before getting his first crack to head a boys' basketball program at South Boston from 2010-16, taking the team to the BCL semifinals in 2013.
'We're trying to build a program and a culture for all our sports. And that's hard to do. I know that because I lived it,' said Silva, who uses analytics to demonstrate the importance of ball security and hustle stats to his team.
'I've taken so much from what I've learned from my father, and [current Marshfield football coach
Chris
]
Arouca
, and so many others along the way. I try to fit it with our school's culture and it's worked so far.'
Courtside chatter
▪ Behind a 29-point performance from junior guard
Giovanni Jean
, Lynn Tech earned a 68-64 win over previously unbeaten No. 6 St. Mary's on the final day of the Spartan Classic. After starting the season 1-6, the Tigers closed the regular season by winning 10 of their last 11. 'It was a rough beginning, but second half of the season, guys caught their winning,' said Lynn Tech coach
Corey Bingham
. 'They started understanding their roles and understanding the system, and we've been rolling ever since.'
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The Tigers slowed down St. Mary's star
JJ Martinez
by limiting his free throw opportunities and forcing him to take tough shots. On the other side,
Jean
and
Travis Sanchez
(16 points) delivered timely buckets for Lynn Tech.
'It was just a great Lynn basketball game with two of the best teams in the city, and arguably in the state,' Bingham said.
▪ Westport senior
Owen Boudria
has been lighting it up, averaging nearly 28 points per game with multiple 40-point performances — including Tuesday's 41-point effort in an 83-80 overtime win over Carver. 'It's really just been my teammates coming through and taking the pressure off of me,' Boudria said. 'I'm not going into any games worrying about me scoring. I know I don't have to score for us to win. It just happens.' Boudria is 33 points away from breaking the program's career record.
▪ In another stunning result Tuesday, Xaverian handed No. 1 Franklin its first loss of the season, 40-38. Senior
Manny Duran
led the Hawks with 15 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 steals, and Xaverian buckled down defensively, holding the Panthers to a season low in points. 'We played with great energy and never gave in when Franklin got up by double digits,' said Xaverian coach
Ryan Sheehan
. 'We knew it would be an up-and-down game but we just wanted to stay level-headed and play possession by possession.'
▪ The MIAA regular season wraps up Thursday, with brackets to be released Saturday. The tournament will begin on Monday, Feb. 24, although games are allowed on Sunday, Feb. 23. State finals will take place March 14-16.
Correspondent Mitch Fink contributed to this story.
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