Former high school teammates Cavanaugh, injured Coleman meet as opponents
Three years ago, DaJuan Coleman and Tyler Cavanaugh celebrated a victory at the Glens Falls Civic Center.
It was no ordinary victory but rather one that capped a three-peat of New York State Public High School Athletic Association Class A championships, further establishing Jamesville-DeWitt High School as a powerhouse in New York.
But when No. 2 Syracuse (19-0, 6-0 Atlantic Coast) visits Wake Forest (14-6, 4-3) on Wednesday, the 6-foot-9 sophomores will be on different sidelines for the first time — Coleman for the Orange and Cavanaugh for the Demon Deacons.
Even though Coleman’s season-ending knee surgery will prevent him from playing for the rest of the season, he and Cavanaugh still share a special bond that extends beyond the hardwood.
“We became very close on the court and that correlated to off the court,” Cavanaugh said. “We were hanging out, especially during the basketball season, and doing a lot of things together along with our other teammates.”
Many of Coleman and Cavanaugh’s teammates across the four years of varsity basketball include Division I talents such as Lamar Kearse, former Syracuse guard Brandon Triche and current Syracuse lacrosse freshman Jordan Evans.
To the casual fan, Coleman and Cavanaugh were two tough big men who showed no mercy on the court. To those closer to them, there’s much more to their personalities.
“They’re both pretty shy guys,” Evans said. “They have close groups of friends, but off the court, they’re just like everybody else. They play video games, hang out, go out to dinner with each other.
“They just like to hang out and chill just like any other teenager would.”
Jamesville-Dewitt head coach Bob McKenney mentioned how Coleman and Cavanaugh supported the other athletic teams at the school and were well respected by the entire school community as more than just athletes.
Cavanaugh even poked fun at the 280-pound Coleman’s off-court demeanor.
“He tries to be a tough guy on the court, but he’s really not at all,” he said. “He’s just a laid back, big kid.”
There was no doubt that this Jamesville-DeWitt team had a duo of superstars, which was evident by the fact that both were nominated for the Mr. New York Basketball Award in their senior year, an award that Coleman ended up winning.
Sometimes there’s not enough to go around when there are two superstars on the court. But Coleman and Cavanaugh shared the spotlight effortlessly.
Cavanaugh mentioned how he’d let Coleman handle most of the duties on the inside while he worked on the outside — a deadly combination that he said allowed their individual games to coexist.
McKenney regarded them as the most formidable frontline he’s ever coached. This season, Cavanaugh is averaging 8.8 points and 4.8 rebounds in 21.7 minutes per game. Before his injury, Coleman was averaging 4.3 points and 4.2 rebounds in 13 minutes per game.
“In terms of blending the two of them, it was never hard,” McKenney said. “Tyler never had a problem throwing the ball inside to (DaJuan). They had a great high-low combination. They thrived off each other.”
In addition to making their presence felt during games, their influence on the team was also felt in practice and in the locker room.
Evans said they were leaders by example and McKenney said they were both vocal leaders in practice and off the court.
“Tyler was probably a little more vocal in practice, and DaJuan kind of went about his business,” McKenney said laughing. “But when (DaJuan) spoke, obviously everybody listened. Usually, it was when he didn’t think he was getting the ball enough.”
Although Coleman won’t play and the hometown matchup will have to wait one more year, Cavanaugh is still anticipating the Orange’s visit to Winston-Salem, N.C., more than any other opponent. He added that his family will travel for the game and that he has grown close to a lot of Syracuse players after summer workouts.
But while he’ll have many friends wearing orange on Wednesday, Cavanaugh holds a much closer relationship with one.
Said Cavanaugh: “We’ve been playing together since we were in sixth grade. I miss playing with him.”
