Senior Nate Lurie scored his 1,000th career point during the Bison win against Trinity on Feb. 7.

Last night the Bison defeated Garrettsville Garfield  83-56 in the first playoff game.

The team travels to Niles on Monday for the second round game against Pymatuning Valley.

The Beachcomber spoke with Lurie earlier this month about the milestone of his 1,000th career point.

How much time do you spend practicing? 

The team practices six days a week for two to three hours and sometimes even watch film on top of that. I try to practice at least an hour outside of school practice, or if I don’t have practice that day then I just try to get my hour in and then maybe once a week I’ll take a day off and let myself recover. 

How long have you been playing basketball?

I started playing basketball when I was in fifth grade. 

What are the most challenging types of shots for you?

I’d say when I’m driving to the basket and I have a much taller defender and I have to lay it up to the basket. 

What is the easiest?

Definitely the wide open threes or open layups. 

Who are the people that taught you the most about basketball?

My middle school coach, Coach E., taught me a lot and then when quarantine hit my freshman year I was training a lot with John Davis, who also graduated from Beachwood in 2014, and that’s when I really started taking basketball super seriously. I’d say he taught me the most about basketball and he is a really big part of the reason that I am where I am today. Also my high school coach David Krasnow has taught me a lot about basketball, and none of this would be possible without him.    

How did you become such a great shooter?

The hours. The hours outside of practice, the hours when nobody was watching. I kept on taking shots each day, never stopped, and over time it just happened.  

How do you train in the off-season?

In the off season, I play AAU, which is a whole other basketball season, and I go out of town on the weekends for basketball tournaments. In the summer we also have a summer league for basketball and on top of that. I’m always training in the off season. I train extra with a trainer, and I’m lifting a lot more.  

When you’re not playing basketball, what else do you like to do?

When I’m not playing basketball I like to hang out with my friends and go get food with them. I play video games, and I love watching sports, especially the NBA. 

What advice do you have for younger players who are serious about basketball?

My advice would be to not let anybody tell you that you can’t do it. I’d say everybody told me I couldn’t do it. No one expected me to be here, but if you put the work in, you can show everybody that you can do it. 

Fondest memories of BHS basketball?

My freshman year, hitting my first varsity point. I hit a three at the end of a game and that was really nice. Sophomore year, getting my first varsity start was very nice and then my junior year, a special moment was getting a playoff win. This year, we are much better than we’ve been in the past and we have so many talented players. It’s just a special year all together. 

How do you feel about the team’s accomplishments this year?

I am really happy with our accomplishments this year. Last year we were 8-15, and this year we already have 14 wins with one game left, so we’re going to try and get our 15th win. Going into the playoffs, we want to try and get a couple wins. Since my freshman year we’ve only had 15 wins, so hopefully we can break that this year, and that will be the most wins we’ve had since I’ve been in the program. 

Who are the teammates that you will miss the most? Why?

I love this team, and I will miss everyone. I’m going to miss Noah Page. This was his first year at Beachwood, but it feels like we’ve been playing together forever, and I love playing with him. I’m really going to miss Michael Keselman. I’ve been playing with him since 5th grade, and I’m just going to miss him so much. Daniel Rub and I have been training together since 7th grade all the time, off season, on season and we just do everything together. 

What did you learn this year about leadership?

This year I’ve learned a lot about leadership. Last year I tried to be a leader, and I really couldn’t lead all by myself. This year I learned that we need more than one leader to be a good and successful basketball team. When times got rough this year I’ve had to step up and not get mad and encourage everybody that we’re going to get better, and it’s okay.   

Plans for next year?  

I have not decided yet if I’m going to continue to play basketball. I have a couple Division 3 basketball offers, but I don’t know if I want to go D3 though. If I can get a D3 offer in a good area close to a bigger school, then I’d love to continue playing basketball, but right now I do not know.