Our head coaches played college basketball, have coached at the high school level or have the experience to teach fundamentals.
ABOUT HBA
HBA AAU is a basketball program for boys and girls, that focuses on development by teaching fundamentals, skills, footwork and team play needed to succeed in basketball.
Skill development is THE MOST IMPORTANT foundation for success. We believe that it doesn’t matter what types of plays you run, how high your kids can jump. If your players don’t have fundamentals like taking care of the ball, shooting form, footwork, spacing, control of the game, balance and have the will to play defense they will not succeed in high school.
We require that our head coaches have either played college basketball, have coached at the high school level or have gained the experience in our program to teach the right fundamentals.
HBA COACHES
GEORGE MERCADO – HBA Director & Coach
Coach George has 20+ years coaching experience with over 700 wins in AAU basketball and 500+ wins with HBA teams. Coach George coached for several AAU organizations before starting HBA with the primary focus on teaching fundamental basketball. Coach George has won championships at all levels of AAU basketball as a head and assistant coach including: AAU Nationals, AAU East Coast, Select Events, ZG Events, Premier 1 Events, Ladies Ball Invitational Regional, and Hoop Group to name a few. Coach George was a 4 year varsity letter winner in high school and 4 year starter in college. Coach George is also an owner at Nex Level Sports where he is focused on training and development for youth basketball.
SHAYLE KEATING – HBA Coach
Coach Shayle has 7+ years of high school varsity basketball coaching experience and has coached on multiple youth levels for 8+ years. As a High School Coach he led the Koinonia Academy to their first ever Christmas Tournament Championship, their first ever Union County Tournament win, and the school’s first ever NJSIAA state tournament appearance. Coach Shayle is currently the Head Boys Basketball Coach at South Hunterdon Regional High School where he led the Eagles to the Over the River Classic Tournament Championship as well reaching the state and county quarterfinals in the 2022-2023 season. As a high school player, Coach Shayle was named one of the Top 10 Point Guards in New Jersey by the Newark Star Ledger, and during that time became a three-year Varsity letter winner at Seton Hall Prep where he won a Parochial A North State Championship. Coach Shayle played college basketball Rutgers University. Coach Shayle has coached with HBA since 2019.
SHYQUAN GIBBS – HBA Coach
Coach Shy was a 4 year letter winner at St Anthony’s High School playing for hall of fame coach Bob Hurley. Coach Shy, ranked among the top 25 New Jersey players in the Class of 2016 by NJHoops.com, led St. Anthony’s (26-0) to be ranked No.1 Boys High School basketball team in New Jersey and fourth-best in the nation, according to USA Today. …as a junior, he helped the Friars to a 28-2 record and sixth consecutive NJSIAA Non-Public, North B Championship. Coach Shy was also the Valedictorian at St Anthony’s for his class and earned a basketball scholarship to NJIT where he played point guard for 4 years. Coach Shy has coached with HBA since 2018.
BARRY WOLFSON– HBA Coach
Coach Wolfson, is trained in sports psychology and the methods that have enabled professional players, like Jameer Nelson of the Detroit Pistons and Trevor Ariza of the Los Angeles Lakers to improve performance and results for themselves and their teams, Coach Wolfson has helped youth, college, and professional teams and players at every level improve form and technique to reach peak performance, especially when it comes to shooting. Coach Wolfson has 11 years coaching basketball at the college level (including NCAA tournament appearances) and 33+ years as a mental health counselor and has helped hundreds of athletes optimize their talent, visualize their success, and score under pressure.
Coach Wolfson led Quinnipiac University Women’s Basketball team to a New England Collegiate Conference championship with a 24-2 regular season record, the team ranked 4th nationally, and advanced to the Elite Eight in the NCAA tournament.
SAM MASTRIANO – HBA Coach
Coach Sam Has coached for 8 seasons with HBA along side Coach Julius and Coach Shayle. Coach Sam has coached for the Hunterdon Horizon program as well as camps and clinics in Hunterdon County. Coach Sam Played at Hunterdon Central High School as well as Junior National AAU tournaments.
CHRIS GUITON – HBA Coach
Coach Chris played basketball and baseball at Haverford College where he is the third all-time leading scorer with 1,461 points and holds the record for most career three-pointers. Chris went on to play professional basketball in Europe for the Cardiff Clippers for the 1997-1998 season where he finished 2nd in scoring in the English basketball league at 27ppg and was named MVP of the Welsh league. In addition to running youth clinics throughout Wales during his tenure there, Chris also coached the Men’s and Women’s college teams at the University of Wales Institute-Cardiff, which included a small-school national championship for the men’s team.
Chris returned stateside where he was an assistant coach for two years at Haverford College and for four years at Ursinus College. He also spent three seasons as an assistant high school coach at the Peddie School in Hightstown, NJ. Coach Chris has coached with HBA since 2018.
TARA WUORINEN – HBA Coach
Coach Tara was a member of the 1998 TOC State Championship Team that finished 32-0. Coach Tara played at Ramapo College where she was a four-year member of the women’s basketball team. During her collegiate career, Tara was selected to the NJAC 1st Team All-Conference, All-Metro Team, and Co-Betty Logan Female Athlete of the Year. Coach Tara was inducted into the Ramapo College Athletic Hall of Fame in 2009 where she ranks third for women and ninth all-time in scoring for Ramapo.
OTIS BLACKWELL – HBA Coach
Coach O has a deep rooted love for the game of basketball. Coach O was a 2 year starter in high school, He played intramural in college while helping kids learn the sport. Coach O has experience coaching basketball at the middle school level. Coach O is also a boxing and certified self defense instructor.
JULIUS DAVID SR – HBA Coach
Coach Julius has 20+ years of high school and college basketball coaching experience. Coach Julius was the boys varsity coach at Kearny and Perth Amboy High Schools, as well as an assistant at Immaculate Conception and St. Anthony’s High School where he was the freshman coach under HOF Coach Bob Hurley. Coach Julius coached at the collegiate level as an assistant at Felician University where they won the 2022 Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference. Coach Julius was a 4 year varsity letter winner in high school and 4 year starter in college. Coach Julius has coached for HBA since it’s inception.