Scott Machado believes he is getting a second chance with coach Tim Cluess, an opportunity to make up for the time they missed together at St. Mary’s HS on Long Island.
“I felt like he didn’t have a chance [for him] to really coach me the first time,” the 6-foot-1 Iona College sophomore said. “He only got a year with me, but now he gets to finish my college career off with me. Now he gets to emphasize what he could have did earlier in my high-school years.”
Cluess left the Manhasset school when Machado, a Queens Village native and point guard, was only a freshman to take the head coaching job at C.W. Post. He was recently hired as the Gaels’ head man and Machado hopes he can help him.
“He is emphasizing fixing my jump shot and making it more efficient so that I can keep making shots,” Machado said. “That’s another part of my game that I am trying to put in.”
It was on display in the Rosedale Blazers’ 106-91 win over Warriors 4 Christ at Hoops in the Sun at Orchard Beach in The Bronx on Saturday. He scored 25 points and drained two 3-pointers. His second just beat the shot clock buzzer from the left side early in the fourth quarter and he quickly got a steal and layup on the next possession. Rosedale is the only 4-0 team in league.
“There have been a lot of games in which he has taken over,” Rosedale coach Hayden Brown said. “He is possibly our most dominant guard.”
The same can be said about him at Iona. Machado was the MAAC Rookie of the Year, broke the school’s freshman assists record with 150 and led the team with 288 points, an average of 9.3 per game. Last season he averaged 12.5 points per contest along with 3.9 assists and 3.2 rebounds to help the Gaels to a 21-10 record overall and 12-6 in the conference.
Machado is versatile and strong with a quick first step that allows him to penetrate at will. He knows his shooting — he shot just 34 percent from 3-point range last year — and his turnover numbers (97 to 122 assists) will need to improve. Still, he never doubted he could make an immediate impact at the Division I level.
“I felt like I was a little underrated coming out of high school,” Machado said. “I felt like the route that I took was a hard route. [Now] I’m being blessed with what I am capable of doing.”
After Cluess left, Machado spent two more seasons at St. Mary’s playing with former North Carolina star Danny Green. Machado said the high level colleges that were recruiting him early started to dry up, so he transferred to St. Benedict’s Prep in Newark to play for coach Danny Hurley. Starting at point guard, he led the team to a No. 2 national ranking with a 24-1 record, the best in school history.
“I try to do everything for the team,” said Machado, a proven winner.
That is where teaming with Cluess again comes in. The first-year coach has won at a high rate everywhere he has been and Machado doesn’t see that stopping anytime soon. He can’t wait for him and the rest of his teammates to get a chance to work with the well-thought of coach on an everyday basis. The Gaels have one of the conference’s best returning cores, so the expectations are certainly high.
“I just want to win,” Machado said. “I’m trying to get to the Big Dance next year.”