Before the boys varsity basketball team’s season began, it remained a mystery as to who was going to be the atypical “big” man the Raiders had in Liam Mahr, Justin Fletcher and Justin Guy of the past. The biggest question was how they were going to matchup against the likes of Davidson commit Sean Logan and the other premier big men in the conference. 

But now, with the Raiders 6-4, after securing their first home win over the Summit Hilltoppers (5-7) 67-61 Thursday, Jan. 27, and extending their win streak to four, it’s been made clear that that question has been answered. 

“We have [positions] one through five [able to] handle the ball and get up and down the court,” head coach Steve Siracusa said.  “It’s probably fun to watch from a fan’s perspective since it’s a little bit more fast paced up and down.”

The Raiders are more than up to the task.  

They have seniors Damon Schumann and Jaden Carter. Juniors Matt Nervi and Khadar Jackson. Sophomore Sam Sponheimer, who drew a difficult defensive task against junior sharpshooter Brett Colon, continues to inject the Raiders with juice on both ends of the floor. Even senior Zach Mawby who didn’t play varsity basketball last season — but possesses a tremendous basketball IQ — is contributing strong rotational minutes to give Schumann and other starters time to rest. 

“Number 13 on Summit is a great shooter. He had eight threes that game before us so we knew we had to try and close out on him and run him off the line,” Siracusa said. “I think Sam, especially in the first quarter, worked so hard on the defensive end to at least disrupt him — and it just shows he could do more than just handle the ball and score but really just lock down on defense, rebound and just be a versatile player.”

The Raiders are fun and they can be dangerous. 

 “A couple years ago we had the height on the roster, but we couldn’t get it done,” Carter said. “This team, we don’t have the height but we play hard, we’re scrappy, we get after it and that’s what teams have to look after.” 

The Raiders have yet to play a complete game for 32 minutes. There are stretches of brilliance mixed with mental lapses — like the 12-2 run the Raiders gave up to Summit to close the third quarter and cut a previously 21 point deficit to 11 points — that allow the opponent to climb back into the game, but when it mattered, the Raiders got the job done. 

“What I really do like about this team is we sometimes can be a little undersized but we don’t let that get the best of us and why I said gritty earlier is because we all have to get rebounds or we’re going to give up too many second chances and points,” Siracusa said. “It’s fun when we’re all playing together; it’s fun to see how many looks we can get on offense and just how we could play true team defense.” 

Schumann led the Raiders with 18 points Thursday, aggressively attacking the rim to get to the foul line, creating chaos defensively and setting the tone for this Raiders team that outhustles opponents. Schumann scored eight of his 18 during the Raiders’ red-hot first quarter that gave them a 23-5 lead. Carter, meanwhile, finished with 17 points scoring, hitting key shots down the stretch and emerging as a vocal leader on the court for this team. 

“Damon is just a warrior,” Siracusa said. “He plays so hard, with a ton of energy and he has a lot of athleticism and he’s realizing whether it is just getting rebounds or leading a break on transition, or just catching and squaring up — ‘hey, if I get the first step I could really attack and get some, easy baskets for us.’ I think he’s starting to realize his ability and how much offensively he could do for us. And so we want just want him to continue to stay aggressive and keep fighting like he has.”’ 

This senior tandem is the backbone of the Raiders.