Nick Giordano Reaches Career Milestone

EAST STROUDSBURG, Pa. – Marple Newtown High School alumnus Nick Giordano (Class of 2015) registered his 1,000th career point in East Stroudsburg’s victory over Kutztown on Wednesday, February 27th.

Giordano entered the game 15 points away from obtaining the career milestone. The sharpshooter hit that mark midway through the second half on a step-back three.

That bucket propelled Giordano into the East Stroudsburg record book, becoming the 32nd player in team history to reach the 1,000 point plateau in his collegiate career.

“I’m extremely humbled to reach 1,000 points and I don’t think I could script a better journey for myself,” Giordano said. “As we say at East Stroudsburg (ESU) every individual accolade is a team award and I firmly believe that. All of my best friends were at one point in time my teammates and I’m thankful for all of our experiences and growth throughout high school and college and growing up. It’s been a hell of a ride.”

He has excelled at the high school and collegiate ranks, attaining this career achievement at both levels. Quite an accomplishment. Back in high school, he tallied 1,129 career points at Marple Newtown.

Since third grade, Giordano was watching Marple Newtown basketball in the stands. He envisioned himself playing on the court with his older brothers who were on the court at the time. He believed having two older brothers was an advantage for him in addition to gaining great perspective at a young age.

Having older siblings was certainly beneficial for Nick, while also having a tremendous coach in his father. His dad taught him how to shoot at a young age and shared his love for the game with him. Those around him continuously provided guidance even when he just starting out.

“I would always receive negative and occasionally positive feedback from my dad after my games even at a young age. This instilled a lifelong lesson for me that there should never be a time where you stop learning and growing.”

He credited his high school coaches in Coach Shane, McFadden, and Houck for his development over three years at Marple Newtown. “We went from winning two games my sophomore season and then ended up winning 13 games my senior year. We invested a lot of hours and we worked extremely hard as a team to earn our playoff berth.”

Giordano is referencing Marple Newtown’s playoff game with second seeded Methacton back in 2015. He mentioned it was his favorite memory as students traveled an hour on the road for cheer on the Tigers. “In sports, I’m not sure it gets any better than that win or lose.”

There were two deciding factors when it came to deciding where he would play at the next level. The first being the amount of fun the players were having with the style of play that East Stroudsburg runs. The Warriors have an aggressive approach by pressing the whole game and flying around to cause havoc.

The other factor was the way the team cheered on its teammates, meaning that players at the end of the bench were excited when one of their teammates made a good play. It’s a family atmosphere in a sense. Lastly, he wanted to be a part of something special.

It’s safe to say that certainly happened.

“Looking back I’m happy about my decision, and I made some lifelong friends and memories along the way. I truly believe that I have been blessed to be a part of a special program at East Stroudsburg.”

During his time at ESU, the Warriors have compiled a .743 winning percentage (87-30) under head coach Jeff Wilson. Giordano praised the coaching staff, especially Wilson and the culture he has created.

“He’s the hardest working coach out there and watches hours upon hours of film and he keeps adapting and learning, but one thing remains constant. The culture and style of play, as incoming freshmen we are baptized by fire. I believe this is a huge part of my individual player development because every guy at every position is always battling for minutes day in and day out.”

He continued on to speak about the culture at East Stroudsburg.

“This culture breeds consistency and makes us bring our ‘A’ game every day. For me to have a successful career the biggest mark I can make as a captain is to lead and pass along this winning culture to my younger teammates.”

This tradition of success has been in full effect under Wilson, who was recently awarded the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) East Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season. Wilson earned his 300th career victory early this season when the Warriors defeated Felician by a final score of 109-85. Giordano tied a career-high with 24 points in that win.

The shooter is slated fourth all-time in career three pointers for the Warriors and only the fourth Warrior to reach 200 made triples at East Stroudsburg. He is behind Whis Grant (268), Andy Heimbach (236), and Will Brown (219). He’s currently at 204 and counting.

The obvious choice for his favorite memory at ESU was the championship run the Warriors went on last year. What a ride the 2017-18 campaign (27-6) was for the squad, who collected several honors en route to the first Elite Eight appearance for East Stroudsburg in hoops.

The trip to South Dakota was something he will certainly remember, considering it was his first time on a plane. He flew in luxury on the way home as the team was provide with a private jet (Bucket List Item) to avoid the snowstorm.

Giordano contributed toward the Warriors being the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Atlantic Region champions, PSAC champions and regular season champions last year.

All of his success over the years in hoops has made him very thankful.

He thanked all his teammates from Paxon Hollow Middle School to his days at East Stroudsburg. His experiences from basketball have taken him many places in his life and he can’t imagine life without it.

He is set to graduate from East Stroudsburg in the spring with a major in Economics and concentration in Finance. Your last chance to see Giordano in action is in the PSAC Tournament held in Indiana, Pennsylvania this weekend and the Division II NCAA Tournament in the upcoming weeks.

Stats Provided By: https://esuwarriors.com/index.aspx

Photo Courtesy of Nick's Twitter Page.