The YRHS Sr. Boys Basketball team, fresh off of a tournament victory in Melville, travelled to Saskatoon to take part in the fourth annual Centennial Charger Charity Classic held at Centennial Collegiate on Friday, December 6 and Saturday, December 7.
The Raiders finished the tournament with a record of 1-2 in what head coach Jason Payne described as a 'top calibre competition', dropping game one to the tournament hosts Centennial Chargers by a score of 60-31. The Raiders then moved over to the 'B' side where, led by Alex Popoff's 14 points, they handed the North Battleford Vikings a 57-45 defeat to advance to the 'B' side championship.
The Raiders opponents in the 'B'side final were the Moose Jaw Central Cyclones and despite a valiant effort and a 12 point performance by David Balysky, the Raiders lost 49-34.
One major positive for the Raiders, however, was their defence. Although the Raiders lost two of three games their defence managed to hold two of their three opponents to less than 50 points, giving head coach Jason Payne one less thing to worry about in practice. "I think we've got a long list of things to focus on in practice over the next month or so," said Payne, continuing, "but our defence was still pretty solid. We have some work to do on offence but that's okay. As long as our defence remains solid we'll get caught up offensively."
The Raiders have the entire week to work on their offense before they begin play at an exhibition tournament hosted by their rival the Sacred Heart Saints on Friday, December 13 and Saturday, December 14 at the Halo Dome.
