Dylan Coleman has always loved basketball. When he was just five years old and a kindergartener at Washington Primary School he would walk into the gym and ask the physical education teachers what was the activity for the day and if it wasn’t basketball, he was not a happy camper. Fast forward: The Huntington High School senior saved his best year for his final season in a Blue Devil uniform.
Coleman was Huntington’s feisty guard this past winter. He helped lead the team to 12 wins, including a playoff victory over Newfield. It was the Blue Devils’ best showing in many years.
The teenager twice dropped a season high 15 points in games against Copiague and West Islip. Coleman led Huntington in assists with 107. He had 35 steals and 66 rebounds along with 165 points.
The senior shot 51.8 percent from two point range, hitting on 57-of-110 attempts. Coleman was 33-for-48 from the free throw line or 68.8 percent.
It really is true; Coleman has always loved basketball. When he was a little boy, he went to Madison Square Garden to see the New York Knicks play on Christmas Day.
A gritty competitor, Coleman is all about winning. In must-win late season games against Bellport and Copiague, the teenager was splendid. He had 10 points and 10 assists against Bellport in a memorable Saturday afternoon game at Walt Whitman, where the team played games after the Huntington gym was flooded and became unplayable.
Against Copiague, again played at Walt Whitman before a large crowd on Senior Night, Coleman had 12 points, four assists, three steals and a pair of rebounds, contributing many key plays late in the game, including six-for-six shooting at the free throw line.
When the season finally came to an end following a loss at top seeded Brentwood in the Suffolk Class AA playoffs, Coleman was exhausted.
Since Ken Parham was named the head coach last June, Coleman and his teammates were on the go, striving to improve their game and gel as a team. Intramurals, summer and fall leagues and long practice sessions beginning in November resulted in Huntington reaching double digits in wins for the first time in a long time.
The senior expects to attend Binghamton University in the fall. While Coleman will be 215 miles from home, it won’t be surprising if his mind frequently drifts off to happy days with his Blue Devil teammates and all those games they won together in 2021/22.
