Jeremy Ruka, varsity basketball player
“Jeremy is one of our seniors we are really relying on this year. He works hard every day and really wants to win. He will do anything he can to help the team win and that is a great quality for an athlete, putting the team above yourself.”
— Coach Sean Trotter
What is your favorite part of basketball?
“The ability to escape from the world and dive into a game that I know I can control.”
In what way has the sport benefited you?
“Basketball has shown me how to work with other people and become a leader; to demand the best out of myself and my teammates.”
What is your biggest challenge in basketball?
“Dealing with the losses and being able to bounce back and forget about the bad and stay positive.”
How do you get ready for a basketball game?
“I take lots of mental reps, envisioning the ball going in the hoops off a shot or sliding to a spot to cut the ball handler off and things like that. If I ever feel myself getting anxious before a game, I watch Kobe Bryant’s short film, ‘Dear Basketball,’ to help me remember that it’s just a game and isn’t the end of the world.”
What’s your favorite memory of this season?
“Bouncing back to beat Millburn after a brutal loss to Caldwell. Everyone banded together and realized that we all needed to work harder to have the
season we wanted to.”
Who are your favorite professional athletes?
“Tom Brady. He’s the classic story of an underdog just working his tail off and becoming the greatest. I can relate to his situation in the sense that I’m not the most physically gifted person so, for me to excel at basketball, it took a lot of hours in the gym and on the court to make myself stand out from everyone else.”
What is your favorite subject in school?
“Mostly business electives or math.”
What are your plans after high school?
“I plan to play baseball at Penn State Abington and pursue a degree in finance.”