Athlete of the Week: Mike Sukeena, Pottsville boys' basketball
- Feb 21, 2022 Updated 12 hrs
ago
The 6-foot-4 Pottsville senior recorded a double-double in both games of the Schuylkill League
boys' basketball playoffs, combining to score 33 points and collect 23 rebounds and help the Tide win the league title.
Athlete
of the Week: Mike Sukeena
Grade: Senior
Age: 17
Residence: Pottsville
Family: Father,
Mike Sukeena; mother, Dana Sukeena; Brother, Nick Sukeena; Sister, Virginia Johnson
Sport: Boys'
Basketball
Position: Forward
Other sports you play: Baseball
Favorite
professional athlete: Kevin Durant
Favorite professional sports team: New York Giants
Favorite
college sports teams: Michigan
Favorite school subject: Math
Favorite
food: Steak
Favorite movie: Inception
Favorite TV show: The
Office
Favorite musical artist: J Cole
Favorite color: Blue
Hobbies: Playing
sports, hanging out with friends
Plans after high school: Attend college and major in computer
science
How does it feel to win the Schuylkill League championship as a senior, especially after losing in last year's
final?
It feels great to win a Schuylkill League championship. Our loss in the championship last year really sucked
especially since we felt like we had a good chance to win it. We've been working really hard all season to get to this point.
You
went scoreless in the first half. Near the end of the first half, your coach took you out and said you were going to have
a big second half. How does that feel to have your coach have that much confidence in you?
It's really nice to have
a coach that trusts me as much as Coach Wartella does. No matter how bad I'd be playing in a game, he would always back me
100% and tell me not to stop shooting and playing my game.
Back-to-back double-doubles in the Schuylkill League playoffs.
How satisfying does that feel?
It's very satisfying. I definitely did not expect myself to pull down as many rebounds
as I did, but with me being one of the only big men we have now, I had to step up.
You went against a pair of centers
taller than you vs. Jim Thorpe, yet still pulled down 12 rebounds. What was the key?
I tried to time my jumps and use
my length to my advantage. Boxing out and having better position than your opponent is also very important when you're going
against taller players.
Q: Did you feel you had to step up after Jazce Carabello-Snowell was injured and lost for the
season? In what ways?
A: Yea, Jazce was one of our best players and it really hurt us to lose him. I had to try and
fill his position in playing center which I have never really played before. It was definitely something I had to get used
to, but after a few games I felt a lot more comfortable in the position.
Q: How much pride does your team take in playing
defense?
A: We take a lot of pride in our defense. At some points this year we kind of got away from the way we play
defense. Throughout the league playoffs we got back to playing real hard defense and that really helped us win.
Q: How
did it feel to hit five 3-pointers in semifinal win over Tri-Valley? How key was that to your team's victory?
A: Hitting
those 3-pointers felt great for me, especially since I haven't shot the ball as well as I would've liked to this year. Our
team as a whole shot the ball at a very high percentage. The 3-point shot was very big for our team in that game.
