@liampreilly852
By Liam Reilly
Brewster Academy (NH) High School boys basketball started its 2024-25 campaign off strong, leaping to a 16-2 record. The Bobcats have recorded wins against Montverde Academy (FL) in the NBA Cup and Long Island Lutheran (NY) at the La Porte Invitational.
During the last 25 years, head coach Jason Smith has helped Brewster become a top program in the country. Smith pioneered the Bobcats to 641 wins and seven National Prep Championships, the most recent being in 2020. His success over the years stems from his priority of finding players that want to win opposed to those who care more about their stats.
“If you go to our website and see our game summary, we never list leading scorers,” Smith said. “We list who had the highest efficiency because it impacts the game in terms of winning and losing more than being a volume scorer. I joke that I’m the modern day Dean Smith in that I held Donovan Mitchell to 11 and 12 points a game in his last few years of high school, and he’s never scored less than 20 a game in the NBA.”
Brewster has produced an abundance of college and NBA talent, most notably Mitchell who was a five-time All-Star, and former 2014 first round pick T.J. Warren. Since 2001, the Bobcats have sent almost 200 players to Division I schools. They most recently sent ESPN’S No.70 recruit in the class of 2025 Nojus Indrusaitis to Iowa State University. To Smith, developing Division I and NBA talent is all about the evaluation process.
“A lot of times we have guys that are under the radar,” Smith said. “Our competitors would say ’Well geez they always have all-americans’ and I counter that you’re probably not going to find a lot about Semaj Christon before he arrived at Brewster, you can’t find a lot about Donovan Mitchell. Taking the time to find the guys under the radar that haven’t been poisoned by social media being told how great they are.”
The team was invited to the 2025 Hoophall Classic, where they matched up against IMG Academy (FL) and Oak Hill Academy (VA). On Saturday, Jan. 18 Brewster beat IMG 55-51. James Madison University commit Preston Fowler was named the MVP of the game, notching 17 points and 15 rebounds.
Fowler transferred from Connecticut’s East Catholic in 2022, becoming a key player for the Bobcats since his arrival. When it comes to acquiring transfers during the summer, the first thing that Smith evaluates is character.
“For 20 years I worked in admission, so I had access to recommendations from teachers and I put that in highest regard because teachers are the ones who see the kids everyday,” Smith said. “They’re going to let us know about strengths, weaknesses and relationships with peers. I’ve told this to kids over the last 25 years, you’re not the best 12 players that wanted to come here. You are instead a collection of the 12 best people that I want to work with on a daily basis.”
Fowler’s time at Brewster has been impactful, as he has gotten the chance to play against the top players in the country. Improvement has happened off the court as well. Since becoming a Bobcat, Fowler has increased his grades. On the court, Fowler has learned lessons to bring to JMU.
“Anything to do to win,” Fowler said. “Last year I wasn’t the main guy, this year I’m not really the main guy but I just do whatever I can to win.”
Brewster started their game against Oak Hill strong, building a 13-4 lead. The Bobcats kept their first quarter momentum heading into the second as junior Sebastion Wilkins rose up and posterized an Oak Hill defender. Fowler added a windmill layup to end Brewster’s lead, but a three from sophomore Howard Williams brought the game within eight points.
At the start of the second half Wilkins once again started with a slam, shaking the hoop and crowd inside Blake Arena. Oak Hill refused to let the game get out of hand, as a three from senior Deondrea Lindsey kept Brewster bound to a seven point lead. As the fourth quarter ensued, Oak Hill cut into Brewster’s lead. Their efforts weren’t enough however, as the game was put away after Pemberton put in a layup with 20 seconds left. The Bobcats went on to win 67-60.
Wilkins received MVP honors with 22 points and eight rebounds. Wilkins is currently ranked ESPN’S No. 41 recruit in the class of 2026. He hasn’t had any visits yet, but has caught the interest of programs such as Rutgers, Texas A&M and Alabama.
Dwayne Aristode is another top recruit in the Bobcat’s den. He’s ranked as ESPN’s No. 20 recruit in the class of 2025. Aristode lived in the Netherlands for most of his life until he came to Brewster in 2021. As of Oct. 13, 2024, he committed to Arizona University.
Aristode and Wilkins hope to follow the path of NBA rookies Matas Buzelis and Devin Carter. Both of the Brewster alums were taken in the lottery of the 2024 draft, Buzelis taken at No. 11 by the Raptors and Carter acquired by the Kings at 13 overall.
“I’m very proud of them,” Smith said. “It’s funny because we were on the road in Indiana last weekend when Devin played in Boston and he had dinner with his coach from Providence. Coach English sent me a photo of Devin wearing a Brewster jacket and I jokingly sent the photo to Devin and said ‘You haven’t been NBA long enough for them to give you team-issued gear?’”
Just like Devin, Smith keeps in contact with a lot of his NBA alumni.
“I just texted [Donovan] and [TJ] in the last couple of days,” Smith said. “We texted Donovan yesterday when we were at the Hall of Fame and saw his sneakers. Donovan is a great player, but a better person.
Photo by Kyle Valentine/Springfield Student