Two games into the season and the Newburgh Free Academy Goldbacks have two key divisional victories.

Just days after beating the defending Section 9 Class AAA champions – the Kingston Tigers – to open the season, the Goldbacks traveled to Pine Bush, where they hung an 88-54 loss on the Bushmen on Thursday at Pine Bush High School.

“This feels good,” senior Alejandro Florentino said. “I have good guys behind me. We practice every day. We work hard.”

Florentino was one of four Goldbacks to reach double figures and one of two to score at least 20 points. He scored a game-high 21 points and Ethan Tyson added 20. Jaeden Pagan scored 18 points and Legend Jones scored 10.

In one game, the Goldbacks showed anyone on their team can beat their opponent.

“Anybody can have a big night,” Florentino said. “You’re not really relying on one guy so much.”

It was the second big night the Goldbacks had last week as they opened the week on Dec. 9 with a 64-59 win over the Kingston Tigers. Tyson scored 13 points in that game, while Shaun Gonazlez and Florentino scored 11. Bryce Marshall scored 10.

“It was just work over the summer,” Newburgh coach Jason McAllister, Jr., said. “We’ve been working at this for a while and those guys have earned it. I told them every win isn’t given. You have to earn it, and you don’t earn it just by showing up for the game. You earn it in the offseason and those guys won the offseason.”

The Goldbacks have played two games and twice, they put four players in double figures.

That could be a problem for opponents going forward.

The Bushmen, however, only had two players – Daniel Hickman and Alex Russo – in double figures. Hickman scored 16 points and Russo scored 12.

“It was big for us, but it’s the 24-hour rule,” McAllister said. “You enjoy the win for the night, but when you wake up in the morning, just prepare for the next opponent.”

The Goldbacks didn’t have much time to enjoy their victory as they played host to the North Rockland Raiders on Monday. They will finish the 2024 portion of their season on Friday when they host the Middletown Middies.

After hosting the Middies, the Goldbacks will be off until Jan. 6, 2025, when they will visit last year’s Section 9 Class AAA runners-up, the Monroe-Woodbury Crusaders.

“We still have got to keep playing,” Florentino said. “We went 3-0 last season and then lost seven games in a row. So, we’ve got to keep playing and keep working.”