ANSWER: The 43rd Bangor Daily News All-Maine Schoolboy Basketball Team first team.

QUESTION: What has seven gold balls, eight regional championships, innumerable individual honors and awards, and more than 5,000 career points?

Lone first team repeat selection Angelo Salvaggio from Cheverus High School in Portland welcomes Austin Ganly from Greely of Cumberland Center, Tom Waterman from Bangor, Mount Ararat of Topsham’s Rickey White, and Braden Clement from Skowhegan – the only underclassman on the squad – to the 1998 edition of the NEWS Dream Team.

The NEWS Second Team isn’t exactly bereft of hoops hardware either. Repeat second teamer James Cerino from Bonny Eagle in West Buxton teams up with fellow seniors Jon Masin-Peters from Camden-Rockport and Houlton’s Lucas Ritchie and juniors Robert Pilsbury of Portland and Roger Levesque of Falmouth to represent two state titles and five regional crowns between them.

The third team may not match the mound of team trophies piled up by the first and second, but its combined talent is no less impressive with seniors Joe Gutierrez of Westbrook, B.J. Alley from Jonesport-Beals, Brandon Ashby from Washington Academy in East Machias, and Mount Ararat’s Mark Gilbride joining junior Mike Mathien from John Bapst in Bangor.

The NEWS All-Maine Team honors the state’s best 15 players, regardless of position, grade, school, class, or region. The selections were made by the NEWS sports staff with input and ballots from high school and college coaches, Maine sports media members, high school officials, and veteran basketball observers.

First Team

Perhaps the best testament to GANLY’S season was the fact he was the most selected player despite being the only non-Class A player among the vote leaders. Ganly appeared on 82 percent of the ballots to outdistance Class A players Waterman (78 percent), Salvaggio (73), White (67), and Clement (62).

“I don’t care what class he’s in, he can play for anybody,” said Bonny Eagle coach Bob Brown.

After shooting 53 percent from the field and 77 percent from the free-throw line while averaging 3.2 blocks, 2.4 assists, and 1.8 steals per game, Maine’s Mr. Basketball and Gatorade Player of the Year will be the University of New Hampshire’s player on a basketball scholarship.

Greely’s all-time leading scorer (1,171 points) helped the Rangers compile a 76-9 record and win three state titles in four years.

His 6-foot-6 frame masked Ganly’s surprising quickness.

SALVAGGIO returns to the first team after leading his Stags to a second straight Class A state-game appearance and a 19-3 mark. He scored more than 1,200 points and led Cheverus to a state crown (1997) in his three years as a starter.

The 1998 Southern Maine Athletic Association Player of the Year and two-time West tourney MVP also excels in other sports. He is the state’s high jump champion as well as two-time all-conference wide receiver and Maine Shrine Lobster Bowl invitee in football.

“His athleticism is something you can see on film, but until you play against it, you’re not totally prepared for it,” said Skowhegan coach Mike Nelson.

The lightning-quick guard has received a scholarship offer from the University of North Florida, but is also interested in attending Bowdoin College in Brunswick.

The word that keeps popping up as coaches talk about WATERMAN is “winner.” Waterman led the Rams to two A state crowns and a 79-6 record as a four-year starter.

“There are very few players I’ve coached or seen like him who refuse to allow his team to lose, and he doesn’t care whether he gets any glory or press,” said Nelson. “He’s cast in a mold by himself.”

“I just love his competitive spirit. I’ve been watching him since he was a freshman,” said Camden-Rockport coach Jeff Hart.

You won’t get any argument from Bangor coach Roger Reed.

“In my estimation, he’s the premier point guard in the state this year. As a defender, he was probably the best,” Reed said.

Waterman, who averaged 6.4 assists and 3.4 steals while shooting 44 percent from the floor and 73 percent from the line, was a finalist for Mr. Basketball and football’s Fitzpatrick Award, and is a favorite to be a Maine Mr. Baseball finalist.

WHITE will join Waterman on the University of Maine basketball team next year to form an impressive recruiting class.

Mount Ararat’s 6-5, 195-pound scoring machine did just about everything for the Eagles offensively and defensively.

A matchup problem for opponents, White exceeded the 1,000-point plateau last year and averaged two steals, four assists, and two blocks a game this year.

“I’ve coached against White since he was a freshman. He is the best athlete I’ve ever coached against, without question,” Nelson said. “We just couldn’t keep him away from the glass. He killed us, and he’s the only guy who did that against us with regularity.”

With his rebounding and shot-blocking abilities and ability to score almost at will, White can single-handedly take over a game.

Anyone who watched CLEMENT play at least a couple of games this year would be hard-pressed to keep him off this squad.

“He reminds me a lot of Tommy [Waterman],” said Reed. “He will do whatever he has to to help his team win.”

Clement won acclaim all over the state after people outside the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference finally got a chance to see him in plenty of postseason action as he helped lead the Indians to the state title.

“He’s a great defensive player and he’s very good at creating his own shots. He really impressed me in the state game,” said Portland coach Joe Russo.

The unassuming guard scored 407 points and grabbed 142 rebounds in 22 games while guarding the opposition’s best players and leading the 1998 Class A champs to their first Eastern semifinal, final and state final appearances.

“I wouldn’t trade him for any player in the state,” Nelson said.

Second Team

MASIN-PETERS erased two years of injury-related frustration by leading his Windjammers to the Eastern Class B title.

The KVAC Class B player of the year, who was hampered by mononucleosis and a career-threatening knee injury last year, raised his scoring average 10 points in the postseason to 24.3 this year while also averaging 1.9 assists and 1.5 steals per game. He’s undecided about college and may attend prep school.

CERINO did everything and then some for the Scots and was particularly effective on defense, averaging 13.8 deflections and 3.6 steals.

“He destroyed teams all by himself,” said coach Brown. “He’ll probably be the best player I’ll coach in the next few years.”

Last year’s SMAA player of the year and a 1,200-point scorer, he also averaged 3.4 assists while shooting 51 percent from the field and 74 percent from the line.

Words like “explosive” and “pure shooter” stick to PILSBURY, who is called “the most natural scorer I’ve ever seen” by coach Russo.

Rival coaches admit guarding Pilsbury one-on-one was futile. Despite contending with gimmick defenses specifically geared to stop him, he scored 300 points in 12 games after coming back from a preseason knee injury.

“He’s one of the best offensive players in the state,” Brown said.

LEVESQUE is another underclassman whose future looks unlimited. The heady guard, who is being recruited in soccer by several Division I schools, averaged an impressive 5.4 assists and 5.1 steals while shooting 50 percent from the field and 72 percent from the line.

“He’s our best defensive player, he’s very unselfish, and he’s always there at crunch time,” said Falmouth coach Dave Halligan.

RITCHIE is another senior second-teamer who made up for a junior season lost to injury by leading his Shiretowners to the regional final. He’s Houlton’s second male player ever to surpass 1,000 points (1,130) after scoring 454 points in 21 games this season. Ranked fourth in his class, he will attend Duke, Dartmouth, or Boston College and hopes to play soccer.

“It was a sheer joy to coach this boy and a rare pleasure,” said Shires coach Jerry Adams.

Third Team

Called the SMAA’s best defender by most opposing coaches, GUTIERREZ did little to lose the label this year, averaging 3.5 steals a game. He also shot 73 percent from the line and averaged 6.0 assists despite constantly matching up against fellow all-staters Salvaggio, Pilsbury, Cerino, and Gilbride. He’ll continue playing basketball at Colby College.

When you play for Jonesport-Beals, a team synonymous with offense, and coach Ordie Alley calls you “maybe the best, if not the best offensive player to ever wear a Royals’ uniform,” praise doesn’t get much higher. After leading J-B to the East D crown this year and piling up 1,279 career points, ALLEY will take his game to UM-Machias.

Another UMM-bound player excelling in an offensive system, ASHBY is considered “one of the best offensive players we’ve ever had” by coach Buddy Wood. WA’s go-to player scored just under 1,000 points in two years as a starter and averaged 4.0 assists and 2.4 blocks a game while leading the Raiders to the Eastern Maine Class C title.

Despite being expected to distribute the ball to Mount Ararat’s considerable offensive talent, GILBRIDE still managed to be one of the Eagles’ top three scorers while averaging 7.8 assists a game. Many coaches expect him to be even better in college. He has been accepted at the University of Chicago.

MATHIEN, co-Eastern B League player of the year, was literally a one-man team for the Crusaders this season. Although opponents knew he was the prime weapon, they couldn’t stop him as he shot 58 percent from the floor, 70 percent from the line, and played his best when the stakes were highest.

1998 All-Maine Schoolboy Basketball Team

FIRST TEAM

Name School Yr Pos. Ht. PPG RPG

Austin Ganly Greely Sr. F 6-6 18.1 9.5 Angelo Salvaggio Cheverus Sr. G 6-0 17.9 5.1 Tom Waterman Bangor Sr. G 5-10 14.2 3.6 Rickey White Mount Ararat Sr. F 6-5 15.9 10.0 Braden Clement Skowhegan Jr. G 6-0 18.5 6.5

SECOND TEAM

Name School Yr Pos. Ht. PPG RPG

Jon Masin-Peters Camden-Rockport Sr. G-F 6-2 16.3 6.9 James Cerino Bonny Eagle Sr. F 6-3 18.2 5.6 Robert Pilsbury Portland Jr. G 6-1 25.3 3.1 Roger Levesque Falmouth Jr. G 6-2 13.4 3.7 Lucas Ritchie Houlton Sr. F 6-3 21.6 9.7

THIRD TEAM

Name School Yr Pos. Ht. PPG RPG

Joe Gutierrez Westbrook Sr. G 5-10 16.4 4.5 B.J. Alley Jonesport-Beals Sr. G 6-1 27.0 8.5 Brandon Ashby Washington Acad. Sr. F 6-5 21.4 9.7 Mark Gilbride Mount Ararat Sr. G 5-11 15.8 2.0 Mike Mathien John Bapst Jr. C 6-7 23.4 7.1

HONORABLE MENTION: Jim Hunt, So., Mount Ararat; Mike Arsenault, Sr., Bangor; Kevin Toohey, Sr., Oxford Hills; Jared Look, Sr., and Nick Lyford, Sr., Narraguagus; Nick Wiberg, Sr., Deer Isle-Stonington; Kevin Walcott, Sr., Hyde; Derek Rodgerson, So., Hampden; Jon Blanchard, Sr., and Torey McPherson, Sr., Presque Isle; Marc McElroy, Sr., Winthrop; Nathan Marquis, Jr., Van Buren; Ryan Rivera, Jr., Central; Justin Norwood, Sr. and Ian Jones, So., Mount Desert Island; Matt Simard, Jr., Biddeford; Chris Willer, Sr., Valley; Travis Seaver, Jr., Greely; Casey Hamlin, Sr., Penquis; Corey Streams, Sr., Stearns