July 29, 2020

Recent Sparta grad Aidan Mastandrea knows the situation that High Point rising senior Brendan Franko is about to be in on the basketball court.

Four out of five starters gone, a starring role anticipated and college prospects looming.

Mastandrea hit the gym hard in the summer heading into his senior year and altered the trajectory for the Spartans. A season after serving as a role player on Sparta’s tri-county championship team, the guard elevated his game up another rung and averaged 17.8 points per game to help it reach its first sectional title game since 2014 this past season.

Mastandrea’s play set a prime example for the power of hard work, a guiding principle he hoped to pass on to the next generation of Sussex County basketball players last week at the BT Basketball Camp at the Sparta PAL.

“Just keep on working, getting stronger,” Mastandrea said. “As long as you keep on working hard, anybody can achieve anything when it comes to high school. It’s not always the best kids coming in freshman year (who are) the best kids at the end of senior year. Keep on working so you can achieve what you want to achieve when you play.”

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