Marc Narducci: Oakcrest pays tribute to Lewis with victory

MAYS LANDING, N.J. - There is no doubt that Dave Lewis would have enjoyed yesterday's boys' basketball thriller between Oakcrest and Middle Township.

Lewis, the Oakcrest coach who died in June of multiple myeloma, a blood cancer that attacks the bones, kidneys and immune system, was honored yesterday in a moving pregame ceremony.

Lewis' wife, Beth, and family were on hand to hear current Oakcrest coach Frank Brown and former players Alex Nelson and Rodney Guishard speak eloquently about their mentor and friend.

Then the team went out and performed in a way that would have made Lewis proud.

Oakcrest, still finding its way early in the season, won its second game with a 46-44 overtime victory over visiting Middle Township in a nonleague matchup. Middle Township will be a handful when the Group 2 tournament arrives, but yesterday it was Oakcrest's day, or really Lewis' time.

Proceeds from yesterday's game went toward the Coaches vs. Cancer charity. Lewis had coached Oakcrest since 2001.

And Lewis still motivates people, just from a different vantage point.

"We put our heart into it, and we knew he would be proud of us win or lose," said Kevin Miller, a 6-foot-2 junior who scored a team-high 12 points for Oakcrest and broke a 44-44 tie on a power move with 30 seconds left. "I knew toward the end of the game I couldn't stop thinking of him and said we have to win."

The pregame ceremony was brief but to the point. A good-size crowd turned out, and everybody was attentive listening to the tributes.

"It makes me feel good that so many people were touched by him in such a positive way," said Beth Lewis.

Lewis, who was 58 when he died, wasn't one for sideline hysterics. He did his best work one on one, and screaming wasn't really part of his persona.

"He was great to play for, and it was like playing for my father," said Nelson, one of the stars of last year's team. "He was so calm, and it was nice to see, because so many coaches freak out. You just wanted to play so hard for somebody like him."

Brown, Lewis' successor, is much more animated. The two came together to Oakcrest and formed a bond.

And the new coach truly felt the presence of his predecessor yesterday.

"The kids dedicated the game to Coach Lewis, and we knew he was looking down on us," Brown said. "He was our sixth man on the court."

Lewis made the same impression on everybody, whether it was a member of the Oakcrest family or an opponent.

"He was a real gentleman and an inspiration to all of us," said Middle Township coach Tom Feraco. "We watched him suffer, and he would never complain."

Nelson remembers winning a game and then seeing Lewis leave for an overnight hospital stay, only to return to coach the team the next day.

"It was so inspiring to see his dedication and perseverance," Nelson said.

Lewis loved the X's and O's of the game, but he was a teacher in a true sense. And many of those lessons have been lifelong teachings.

"He taught me more than basketball," said Guishard, a 2004 Oakcrest graduate. "He taught me how to be a man."

That's quite a lesson.

And based on yesterday's results, Dave Lewis is still inspiring others, displaying that his memory was truly alive on a special day at Oakcrest.