The 2023-24 FMS boys basketball season was one to remember. Many great accomplishments were made under the leadership of Coach Andre Harris (Coach Dre), Coach Ricky Osbourne, and Coach Diego Salas. The strong bond between the coaches was instrumental to the team’s success. Coach Osbourne led the Colonials to multiple county championships at Morristown High School in the early 2000s when Coach Dre was the starting point guard. Also, Coach Salas has been Coach Dre’s best friend since childhood. This camaraderie helped the team this year through the ups and downs they faced during the season, such as a big win over West Essex, but also two straight losses during the county tournament. The team persevered through many challenges along the road to eventually becoming county champions.
The 2023-2024 team cruised through the first five games of the season, except for a little bump in the road against Heritage (Livingston), where they had to come from behind for most of the game to pull ahead and get the win. Their first big game was against West Essex, a team Coach Dre had never beaten in his tenure at Frelinghuysen. It was a tight game at the start, but then our team started to pull away from them. The FMS Falcolns team got the win. This was Coach Dre’s first time beating West Essex allowing him to go into winter break with a perfect, undefeated record.
The FMS boys basketball team had a 9-0 record going into a marquee matchup with out-of-conference opponent and rival, Delbarton. FMS knew Delbarton would be as skilled, if not better, than the West Essex team that they had faced earlier in the season. Although FMS was trailing for most of the game, late in the game, FMS started a run. The Falcons had several consecutive three-pointers and were even up briefly. It came down to the wire though, and FMS ended up losing a 61-60 nail-biter. In the team’s next game against Valleyview, another tough team, the Falcons started out flat and had to play from behind for most of the game. Unfortunately, the calls weren’t on FMS’s side for most of the competition and the Falcons simply didn’t play their best basketball. These two losses inspired the team to get ready for the upcoming county tournament.
Winning the county championship had been the ultimate goal from day one. FMS eased past both Mt. Olive and Heritage in the quarterfinals and semifinals. The Falcons next faced a hot Brooklawn team who had upset the two-seed West Essex the game before. Mackinnon Middle School in Wharton was a packed house of both Brooklawn and Morristown fans and there was electricity in the air. FMS started white-hot, but then Brooklawn came back and almost evened the score. Ultimately, FMS pulled away just enough to get the lead, secure the win, and achieve their goal of becoming county champions.
This win was one that the team was proud of, players and coaches alike. It was especially meaningful for Coach Dre to lead the Falcons to win their first county championship with Coach Osbourne before he moves to Charlotte, North Carolina this summer. I am grateful to have played for the FMS boys basketball 2023-2024 team for such an unprecedented season.
