Brook Stewart Having Big YearDecember 30, 2010
Masco's Stewart is having an explosive junior season
MIKE GRENIER STAFF WRITER
The Salem News
Thu Dec 30, 2010, 11:47 PM EST
Bounce Passes
Mike Grenier
Masconomet's Brooke Stewart was subjected to a hard foul in Wednesday's marquee basketball matchup against bitter rival Pentucket. Stewart, who was in the middle of a 24-point, 7-rebound, 5-assist game at the time, was shoved into a wall that had fairly thick padding, so she wasn't injured. Inwardly, Stewart might have been seething, but she didn't manifest that anger. She calmly went to the foul line for a pair of shots and Masco also retained possession due to the deliberate foul. By now, Stewart, a 16-year-old junior who's been starting since midway through her freshman season, is starting to understand the nuances of the game.
She's elevated her game to a new level of excellence this season, averaging 27 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists (the team leader in all those categories) while displaying the versatility of a 6-footer who can play all five positions. That's the kind of performance that will get the opposing team's attention, and they'll try to mess with Stewart's head by getting extra physical with her.
Stewart realizes that she can't let it affect her demeanor or her play. She wants to be on the floor at all times — she needs to be there for her team, not just herself. "They want to rattle you," Stewart said of opponents in general. "I've kind of learned how to deal with all that just from messing up (in previous years). I didn't even score in last year's game against Pentucket."
Stewart showed considerable raw talent as a freshman two years ago, when she scored 7 points per game. That average zoomed to 14 points per game last season, when she earned Cape Ann League all-league and Salem News All-Star status, but she readily admits that she was still in the middle of the learning curve.
The biggest differences in her game this season are patience, discipline and mental toughness. With Pentucket's defense swarming her in the opening quarter Wednesday night, Stewart concentrated on delivering the ball to her teammates and didn't take a single shot. After the Sachems defense loosened up, Stewart found her scoring rhythm and accounted for 11 points in the second quarter and added 13 more in the second half. That's been her pattern all season. Stewart has averaged better than 8 points in the fourth quarter, when the game is often on the line. "She's one of the best players in the state," Pentucket coach John McNamara said after Stewart wrapped up the Masco Christmas Tournament MVP Award despite the Sachems' 61-60 win in the final. "What makes her so tough? She can drive to the basket or step back and hit the three. She can beat you in a lot of ways."
Stewart says she'll "do anything for a win," and she obviously plays like she means it. She's as much of a whirling dervish as she was earlier in her career, but last year she was always in a hurry to get to double digits, figuring that's what the Chieftains needed to put themselves in a position to win. Now she lets the game come to her, which is what the exceptional players do.
"She's always been a big part of this team," said Danielle Davis, who is a junior captain along with Stewart, "but this is her breakthrough year. She works her butt off. She's in the gym before and after practice, shooting around and doing her dribbling and ballhandling drills. I think that this year, being a captain, she feels this is her gym and it's also our gym. She's not being selfish — she's doing it for the team — but she's also personally strong."
Coach Bob Romeo has seen an explosive type of development in his young player in just two-plus seasons and there seems to be no end in sight. "She's only six games into her junior season and she still has a ceiling to reach," Romeo said of Stewart. "Given how hard she works and how much she wants it, I still don't think she's close to that ceiling. And the thing is, she has the physical tools to match her great desire. I tell her to never be satisfied."
Like any player who aspires to be great, Stewart has been doing her homework in the offseason. One night in the summer of 2009, Scott Hazelton found Stewart playing ball at Gordon College at 11 p.m. Hazelton, a former star at Central Catholic who was recruited by UConn and went on to play at Rhode Island, told Stewart he was going to put a team together and would she be interested in playing for him?
Hazelton's AAU team, based in Plaistow, N.H., was named the New Hampshire Rivals. This past summer, the Rivals traveled to Tennessee, Kentucky, Vermont and Washington, D.C. and Stewart's individual skills blossomed. So did her team assessment skills. "It was everything," said Stewart. "My dribbling and handling skills got much better because Hazelton had us dribbling all the time. I also see the court much better than I used to. The thing is, when you're playing against girls who are better, you have to get them the ball or they get mad. Everything kind of clicked and I've taken that back (to Masco)."
Stewart grew up in a basketball household. She's close to her older sister Caroline, who had a fantastic career at Masco and ended up with a scholarship to Division 1 Boston University, where she is currently a junior captain. Brooke has always had to listen to comparisons to her sister even though they have vastly different styles (Caroline is a classic low post player; Brooke is all over the building) and while she feels honored in many ways, she's also eager to break those chains. It's no secret that Brooke aims to be even better than her older sister. "Caroline always gives me a call when we play," said Brooke. "She tells me about the little things I need to do and I really listen. I mean, why wouldn't I listen to someone who has more experience than I do? Coach Romeo tells me not to compare my skills to Caroline, but it's always going to be there and I do want to be better."
Brooke is already drawing interest from St. Joseph's in Philadelphia, Rutgers and Princeton. She's visited Villanova. It's early in the process and more schools are bound to get involved, especially if she remains on the developmental fast track that Romeo talks about. "St. Joe's is in the Atlantic 10 and that's good, but in my mind, I want to go bigger," said Stewart, who is an honor roll student. "The Big East would be nice."
She realizes that a lot of things could change in the next year. For now, she wants to be the best player she can be for the 4-2 Chieftains, whose only losses have been by a point. "We're competitive," said Stewart, "and we want to get better. Last year we lost to Andover in the second round (of the Division 1 North Tournament). We should do well this season and if we get some home games (in the state tourney), it would be even better."
