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The schedule maker didn鈥檛 do the Holy Cross Raiders senior boys basketball team any favours making it open up its Niagara Catholic Athletic Association season Tuesday with a home date against the Saint Francis Phoenix.

Holy Cross ended up losing 72-22 to the reigning Ontario Catholic Classic champions and 2024 Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations AA bronze medalists but that didn鈥檛 dampen the feelings of optimism surrounding this year鈥檚 version of the Raiders.

鈥淲e have a decent shot to make some noise this year but where we are at right now is not where we need to be,鈥� Holy Cross coach Austin Anderson said, before the game. 鈥淏ut playing Saint Francis at this point in the season is a good barometer to see where we are at. Realistically, they will probably win the Standard (tournament) next week and it will give us a very good measuring stick of where eventually we need to be at the end of the season.鈥�

Anderson鈥檚 optimism is based on the good group of kids he has at his disposal.

鈥淭hey work hard, they want to be good, they put effort into practice every day and I think it is just the iterations of getting them game reps. We had a tournament at Notre Dame last weekend and we have a little two-game tournament at Eden this week.鈥�

He feels the biggest difference between the Raiders this year compared to last year is the makeup of the squad.

鈥淲e have more basketball players and less athletes (only) than last year. For a lot of our guys this year, basketball is their sport.鈥�

It will allow Anderson to do more coaching this year instead of focusing on fundamentals.

鈥淗opefully we can get more sets in, get more in-bounds plays and if we are stagnant at some point, we will have more options.鈥�

A key member of the Raiders this season will be Matteo D鈥橝ria.

鈥淗e is our point guard this year and he is kind of the focus of the offence. He is a great shooter, a good ball-handler and he needs to be that finisher for us if we are going to make it where we want to,鈥� Anderson said.

The Grade 12 student is in his second year of senior ball.

鈥淟ast year, he probably didn鈥檛 have the season he wanted to have. Some games he started, some games he didn鈥檛 and he was back and forth in the lineup. This year he is our main offensive hub.鈥�

Anderson feels there are differences in D鈥橝ria this season.

鈥淗e has gotten a little taller and a little more athletic. The talent has always been there and now he is putting it all together and we want to see where it takes us.鈥�

The 17-year-old has assumed a lot more responsibility this season.

鈥淗e wants me to be more of a leader on the court, he wants me to bring the ball up, have confidence and try to be the leader and more vocal.鈥�

D鈥橝ria feels the biggest difference in himself as a player this season is both mental and physical.

鈥淚t is the way I am thinking the game and I understand more. My ball-handling and shot making is also better but I am not showing it now.鈥�

He was clearly unhappy after the loss to St. Francis.

鈥淲hat we should have done is bring a lot more energy and hit more of our shots.鈥�

D鈥橝ria shares his coach鈥檚 optimism for the upcoming season.

鈥淭his year, we have more talent but we are not showing it right now like we need to. I think we will start showing it more as the season goes on.鈥�

The Raiders are looking forward to competing in next week鈥檚 Standard tournament.

鈥淲e know it is one of the biggest tournaments and we know what we need to bring to try and win. It鈥檚 a pretty big deal,鈥� D鈥橝ria said.

STATS PACK

Phoenix 72 Raiders 22

Cats Caboose Player of the Game: Saint Francis鈥� Awab Ali with nine points.

For the Saint Francis Phoenix: Ali 9; Andrews Ens 9; Elijah Quissua 9; Sam Riddell 7; Adriaan Alderson 6; Sadieke Hayden 6; Austin Hinds 5; Nawaf Kigab 5; Mike Arewa 4; Christian Ibrahim 4; Trent Dobson 3; Jack Ciocca 2.

For the Holy Cross Raiders: Matteo D鈥橝ria 9; Michael Osagie-Bright 6; Joseph Young 5; Hunter Herring-Dent 1; Joseph Martinelli 1.