For as much as they struggled through 2022, the Newburgh Free Academy boys’ basketball team has been rolling through the early part of 2023, winning their first three local games of the year, after Thursday’s 71-52 win over the Monroe-Woodbury Crusaders in Central Valley.

Their only hiccup in the new year was on January 8 when they suffered a 52-42 loss to Canarsie in Brooklyn.

“Our motto coming into the new year was, ‘New Year, new us,’” Goldbacks point guard Aidan Brown said. “This is a whole new season that we bought into. We were 0-3 in the beginning, and we’re not going to lose again in the section.”

That will be tested this week as the Goldbacks are scheduled to visit the unbeaten Warwick Wildcats on Wednesday at Warwick High School, and then they are scheduled for a rematch with the Middletown Middies on Saturday on their home floor.

As they’ve continued to win, and get more in sync, they are quickly gaining momentum.

“It did a lot for us,” Brown said. “(Deondre Johnson) coming back did a lot for us. Once that came back, Newburgh culture started coming back.”

Brown and Johnson led the way, with Brown doing it all. He scored a game-high 21 points, he rebounded and found his teammates in a position to score when he needed to.

“Aidan is a Mr. Do-It-All for us,” Newburgh coach Jason McAllister said. “He’s a super floor general. He makes everything go for us. He rebounds. He scores and when he has to, he makes some good passes. He’s definitely, in my opinion, one of the best guards in the section.”

Johnson continued to do what he normally does: knocks down hit impactful dunks, and Thursday night, he even knocked down a 3-pointer, on his way to 19 points.

“Deondre definitely changes the whole dynamic of the game,” McAllister said. “Having a 6-8 big guy who can switch on everything, who can run the floor like a gazelle and just be an overall athlete, just makes everything a little smoother.”

Elnathan Johnson was the third Goldback to score in double digits with 15 points, nine of them on three 3-pointers.

“It was a solid team effort,” McAllister said. “We started off a little slow. I would like for our start to be a little more consistent. We eventually found our rhythm and we ended up closing the game pretty solid.”

Kyle McDermott led the Crusaders with 18 points, Jankarlos Mendoza added 12 points and Darrel Davis scored 10.

The win finishes the Goldbacks’ initial run though the Orange County Interscholastic Athletic Association Division I schedule with a 2-1 record. They will need one more divisional win to clinch an entry into Section 9 Class AA tournament.

Starting with the Middies on Saturday, they’ll also get another shot at the other two local teams they’ve lost to: the Valley Central Vikings and the Washingtonville Wizards, both on the road.

They’re ready for the challenge.

“I feel like we’re good in the section,” Brown said. “Going back-to-back-to-back (section titles) is what we’re planning on doing.”