Preseason game reunitesthe coaches O'Shea

The Ohio University-St. Michael's College exhibition basketball game in Athens, Ohio, last November was more than just a tuneup for the regular season. It was also a special moment for brothers Tim and Tom O'Shea, Wayland High captains and point guards from the late '70s and early '80s who have gone on to become head college basketball coaches.

Tim, who played at Boston College and was an assistant coach for 13 seasons with Al Skinner at the University of Rhode Island and BC, is in his fourth season at Ohio U. Tom played college ball at the University of Vermont and has spent 15 seasons at St. Michael's, including eight as head coach. The exhibition game, won by OU, was the first time the O'Sheas have been on opposite benches as coaches. Ohio is an NCAA Division 1 school; St. Michael's is Division 2.

''I did coach against Vermont as a Yale assistant when Tom played for UVM, and I felt terrible because they beat us," said Tim, who is two years older than his brother. ''But this was the first time we've been on the same court as coaches. It was great fun and no pressure. It was a chance to help his team get better and for them to give us a good workout. We also get to see each other when we're on recruiting trips and in the summer when our family returns to New England and we rent [a vacation home] for a month in Rhode Island.

''We've always been mutually supportive of each other. We understand what each of us goes through as coaches. There are always ups and downs. Things are cyclical in our profession," added Tim, whose Ohio Bobcats drew 8,000 fans last weekend for a home game. ''I think our greatest memory as high school teammates was when Wayland upset Lynn Classical, a dominant team back then, in the postseason tournament."

Their father, Joe, who got both boys started in CYO basketball, played for the St. John's of Concord, N.H., team that won the New England high school title at the old Boston Garden.

Tim, who graduated from Wayland High in 1980, and Tom, a 1982 Wayland graduate, played in the state high school championship game against Hyde Park, a game that Tim remembers well because he was recovering from pneumonia. (Hyde Park won that game.) ''After Tim graduated and during my junior year of high school, we won the state title and were undefeated," recalled Tom, who, along with his brother, was coached in high school by Joe Porrell.

''Both brothers were excellent students, not to mention gym rats of the highest order," recalled Richard Schaye, Wayland Middle School principal from 1982 to 2004 and class adviser to Tim at the high school. ''They both played in pickup games with the teachers as early as the seventh grade, and if you didn't play defense, they burned you even though they were 13 or 14. They never needed pushing on the court or in the classroom. They were self-motivated. No one in Wayland is surprised that they ended up as college coaches."

Tom, whose team took a 14-hour bus trip to Ohio for the exhibition game, began his coaching career as a graduate assistant under current UVM coach Tom Brennan. He received the Sunderland Award as Vermont's Outstanding Senior Athlete and also has an award named after him, given annually to a UVM player for commitment and dedication.

''We wanted to be coaches," said Tim, ''and we were fortunate to get into it young and find good mentors." Tom added: ''It's neat to have a brother in the same profession. A lot of issues we deal with are similar, from the X's and O's to relationships with players. Probably our biggest challenge is to stay steady and even and keep it all in perspective while helping those players develop."

Pair put their skills

to work on the ice

Sophomore forward Andrea Ciarletta of Watertown and freshman defenseman Audrey Deguire of Milford have been key players on the UMass-Boston women's ice hockey team. Ciarletta was named Eastern College Athletic Conference (East Division) Player of the Week this month for the second time this season and third time in her career. The country's leading Division 3 women's scorer last season with 30 goals and 26 assists, the Watertown High graduate leads UMass-Boston in scoring this season with eight points and six goals in 13 games. For her career, Ciarletta has a school-record 36 goals and 28 assists in 39 games. She holds 28 school records in all. Deguire had two assists in 13 games through which the team posted a 5-8 record.

''Andrea has a great personality and is well liked by her teammates and coaches. She has outstanding puck-handling skills, and when we are in crunch time she is our go-to player," said UMass-Boston coach Melisa Heitzman. ''She creates many offensive opportunities, has a blistering wrist shot and a knack for scoring, and overall is just a strong presence on the ice.

Ciarletta was a four-year letterwinner at Watertown High, where she was the leading Division 2 scorer in the state her senior year with 56 goals and 14 assists. A three-year captain in high school, Ciarletta once netted nine goals in one game and was honored as a Globe All-Scholastic. She had 237 points for her high school career, which ranked fourth all-time in Massachusetts public schools. She also batted .500 her senior year for the high school softball team and was a two-year captain of that squad and a league All-Star.

Deguire earned four letters in ice hockey and coached lacrosse at Phillips Academy in Andover. She scored her first collegiate point Dec. 10 with an assist on the game-winning goal in a 3-0 victory over Southern Maine.

''Audrey has a passion for the game and she has stepped up to become an integral part of the defensive squad," Heitzman said. ''She will see more time on both our power play and penalty kill units."

Belmont Hill wins

despite injuries

It has been a rough season injury-wise for the Belmont Hill School basketball team, but a successful one on the court, thanks in part to the contributions of several players from the suburbs west of Boston. Belmont Hill successfully defended its Rivers Holiday Tournament championship in December and took an 11-2 overall record and 5-0 record in the Independent School League into yesterday's game against Lawrence Academy.

Twin brothers Taylor and Rob Glor of Wellesley, both 6-foot 4-inch junior frontcourt players, are among those sidelined by injuries. Rob, who was projected as the team's starting center by head coach Ted Martellini, suffered a torn patella during football season and underwent surgery, while Taylor, who began the season as a starting forward, dislocated his shoulder in the Tabor game and will be reevaluated in about a week.

''We've had to overcome a lot, but we've won by being a team," said Martellini. ''Both of our losses have been very close, and considering our adversity, I've been pleasantly surprised."

The Belmont Hill roster includes sophomore swingman Stephen Cusano of Waltham, senior guard Samer Dweik of Weston, sophomore swingman Mark Wachtmeister of Wellesley, and senior forward Grayson Holland of Sudbury. ''Cusano is a good defensive player off the bench and he's fourth on the team with 16 steals, and Dweik is a backup point guard who practices hard and is a solid player," said Martellini.

''Wachtmeister is athletic and a good defensive player, and Holland, who is an excellent soccer player and headed for Amherst College, came off the bench in our last game [a 41-35 win over Buckingham, Browne & Nichols] and contributed six big points. Players like those make us a better basketball team."

If you have a suggestion for a SportsWest item, contact Marvin Pave by e-mail at pave@globe.com; by telephone at 508-820-4223; by fax at 508-820-4258; or by mail at The Boston Globe's West office, 111 Speen St., Framingham, MA 01701.