Varsity Boys Basketball
Schedule
Roster
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Cooper Berkoff (captain)2025
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Bennett Cannon (captain)2024
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Griffin Chesson (captain)2025Raleigh, NC
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George Coleman (captain)2027
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Preston Copeland (captain)2025
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Hutch Marshall (captain)2025
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Grey McMahon (captain)2025Raleigh, NC
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John Misenheimer (captain)2026
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Kazim Oladipo (captain)2025
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Akila Proctor (captain)2025
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Jamir Smoakes (captain)2026
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Jake Stickney (captain)2025
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John Thagard (captain)2025Raleigh, NC
Coaches
Team Stories
Our Varsity Boys Basketball Team hosted the Lions of Trinity Academy on Friday Jan. 12th. The Warriors were trying to add to their conference wins and matched up well with the Lions. The Warriors started the game off a bit sluggish and went down by 7 points early. The Warriors were able to right the ship and by executing on offense and picking up their level of defense to tie the score. The Warriors went into the locker room up by 1 point at the half way mark. The Warriors came out playing together in the 3rd quarter. The Warriors would lose focus and miss rotations on defense which allowed the Lions to get back into the game. The contest was back and forth all night and was decided by 5 points. The leaders for the Warriors were Junior Preston Copeland who had 16 points and 8 rebounds for the Warriors. Freshman George Coleman chipped in with 11 points and 4 rebounds.
Our Varsity Boys Basketball Team compete in the Highschool OT Invitational Tournament on Saturday, January 13th against Greenfield School. The Warriors would enter the contest banged up and short one of their key players. With a game time decision, Freshman George Coleman was not available for this match up. The Warriors focus remained the same and they were destined to compete even though their bench was short. The Warriors started the game off flat and as a result had a couple of early turnovers. The Warriors would gain composure and settle into the game. The Warriors battled and tried to keep up their energy but had difficulty doing so with a short bench. The depth of the Knights proved to be too much for the Warriors.
Our Varsity Boys Basketball team competed in the High School OT tournament on Saturday, January 6th. The Warriors drew a tough matchup in the Cannon School out of Concord, NC. The Warriors had just come off of a double overtime victory the night before and had to face off against the at noon. The Cannon School has become a dynasty of well coached players that make a deep run into the State Tournament each year. The Warriors started the game off slow and could not seem to get their footing early on. The Cougars went on a run early and never looked back. The Warriors tried to muster some energy and fight back but the attack of the Cougars proved to be too much. Juniors Cooper Berkoff and Kazim Oladipo were the only Warriors in double figures with 11 points and 12 points respectively.
Our Varsity Boys Basketball Team advanced and earned the right to play for the championship in the Hickory Grove Invitational Tournament on Saturday, December 22nd. The Warriors were without some key players but were set and ready for battle. The Warriors seemed a little sluggish and did not display their usual uptempo pace to start the game. The Warriors were in a scoring slump in the first half and found themselves trailing the Crusaders for most of the half. The Warriors were in foul trouble to start the second half and were in an uphill battle. Although the Warriors were able to put together a few runs of their own foul trouble took its tole and the they were not able to overcome the deficit. Although the Warriors did not win the tournament, Juniors Cooper Berkoff and Preston Copeland were named to the All-Tournament team for their efforts over the weekend.
Our Varsity Boys Basketball got an invite to participate in the Jimmy V Classic for the first ever appearance by a Warrior team. The Warriors drew the host team Panther Creek as their match-up. The Catamounts are a tough team who always ends up in the State Championship game or the semi-finals of the state tournament. The Warriors were focused and ready to compete on the big stage. The Warriors jumped on the board first with a turn around jumper from the elbow by Junior Cooper Berkoff. The Warriors continued to execute early on by working the ball inside. The Warriors hot start was interrupted by a couple of three pointers from the Catamounts. The Warriors did not lose composure and continued to grind on the offensive side of the ball while scrambling defensively. The Warriors began to wear down and scoring became a little more of a challenge. Although the Warriors did not come out with the victory it was a solid showing for them in the Classic. Junior Preston Copeland led the scoring for the Warriors with 31 points and added 15 rebounds as well. Junior Cooper Berkoff also had a solid showing with 16 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals for the Warriors.
Our Varsity Boys Basketball Team hosted the Knights of Cary Christian, their second conference opponent, on Tuesday, December 12th. The Warriors had made strides as far as bonding more as a team and were looking forward to the challenge the Knights would bring. The Warriors started the game off hot hitting three 3 pointers to open up the scoring for the Warriors, 2 by Sophomore Jamir Smoakes and 1 by Freshman George Coleman. The Knights would not go away and countered by hitting 2 big shots of their own. After several lead changes in the first half the Warriors found themselves tied going into halftime. The second half mirrored much of the first with the lead going back and forth. The Warriors were ahead by 2 with less than 2 minutes remaining in regulation. A missed defensive assignment let to a Knights basket which forced overtime. The Warriors were not able to get things going in overtime and suffered their second conference loss.
Our Varsity Boys Basketball Team opened up conference play at home versus the Eagles of Grace Christian on Friday, December 1st. The Warrior were ready to play and make a statement within the conference. The Warriors came out the gate bursting with energy and opened up their scoring with a dunk by Junior Preston Copeland that came from an assist by Junior Cooper Berkoff. The lead changed often in the first half and the Warriors went into the locker room down only down by two. The Warriors came out flat in the 3rd quarter and this allowed the Eagles to go on a run. The Warriors battled back but costly turnovers and fouls proved to be to much for them to overcome. "We have to get better at executing and taking care of the ball. The games won't get any easier so we have to take care of business." -Coach Coley Junior Cooper Berkoff stepped up for the Warriors with 15 points, 4 assists, and 2 steals for a solid performance on the night. Junior Preston Copeland put up 14 points and grabbed 6 rebounds and Junior Kazim Oladipo chipped in with 11 points.
Our Varsity Boys Basketball Team traveled across town to take on New Life Camp. The Warriors would be without their starting point guard Cooper Berkoff due to injuries he suffered in a previous contest. The Warriors were looking for other players to step up in the absence of Berkoff and provide some much needed leadership. The Warriors started the game off slow and seemed to be having some trouble against the scrappy defense of the Storm. The Warriors made some costly turnovers early in the game and found themselves down at halftime. The Warriors continued to fight their way back into the contest with timely baskets from Juniors Preston Copeland and Kazim Oladipo. The game would go down to the wire and would be decided by free throws that would put the Storm on top 60-56 at the end of regulation. Junior Preston Copeland posted another double double with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Junior Kazim Oladipo chipped in with 17 points for the Warriors.
Our Varsity Boys Basketball Team hosted the Crusaders of Cardinal Gibbons on Friday, November 17th. The Warriors were excited about this match up and were looking to forward to competing in front of a packed home crowd. The Crusaders struck first with 2 quick baskets off of missed rotations by the Warrior defense that led to their 4-0 lead. The Warriors soon struck back when Junior Cooper Berkoff drove the lane and kicked the ball out to Freshman George Coleman for a 3 pointer. The Warriors would take a huge hit right after that assist. Cooper Berkoff collided with a player on the opposing team and suffered an injury that would remove him from the contest for the rest of the night. The Warriors would struggle without the leadership of Berkoff but would continue to fight. The Warriors clawed their way back into the game but costly errors and missed free throws would haunt the Warriors. The Warriors could not get enough stops to secure a win against the Crusaders. Freshman George Coleman led the Warriors in scoring with 16 points. Junior Kazim Oladipo chipped in with 12 points of his own.
Our Varsity Boys Basketball Team traveled to Highpoint to take on Wesleyan Christian Academy on Tuesday, November 7th. The Warriors were looking to see if they could put enough together to pull out a victory. The Warriors only had a few days of practice. "We pretty much have a new team with the additions this season. We have not been able to have a practice with all 12 players present and healthy yet so we knew this game would be challenging." - Coach Coley The Warriors played hard and but could not come together enough to get on a roll. The Warriors defense did not apply enough ball pressure to disrupt the game flow of Wesleyan. Newcomer, Junior Preston Copeland led the way for the Warriors with 23 points. Junior Kazim Oladipo, also a new addition to the team, chipped in with 11 points. The Warriors will be in action again on Friday, November 10th when they compete in the Durham Academy Tournament. The Warriors will play the host team at 8:00pm.
Our Varsity Boys Basketball Team traveled to Durham to participate in Durham Academy's Tip Off Classic. The Warriors are still trying to figure out how to play better as a team and get everyone on the same page. The Warriors started the game off very competitive. Although the Warriors have several new players this season, they continue to play hard while trying to create team chemistry. The Warriors had several bright moments in the contest but it was not enough to top the Cavaliers. "We will continue to work at getting better and executing as a team." -Coach Coley
The Varsity Boys Basketball Team hosted the Sabres of South Wake on Tuesday, December 13th. The Warriors started the game off strong and were able to take the lead early. Sophomore Grey McMahon hit a 3 pointer which happened to be the Warriors first basket of the game. Sophomore Cooper Berkoff followed that up with a hard drive to the basket and finish. The Warriors played well on defense in the first quarter and seemed to be clicking on all cylinders. In the second quarter the Sabres made some adjusts and started to claw their way back into the game. The Warriors continued to fight with 2 more 3 pointers by McMahon and several tough drives to the basket by Berkoff which resulted in a basket or a trip to the free throw line. The Sabres were still able to hang around and the Warriors went into the half down by 5. The Sabres continued to their run to open up the second half but a couple of 3 pointers by 8th grader George Coleman and a 3 by Sophomore Cooper Berkoff accompanied by more driving attacks to the basket kept the Warriors close. As the game went on the Warriors defense declined. With the back line of the Warriors defense in foul trouble, the Warriors found themselves short handed when it came to rebounding. "We have to continue to work on defensive positioning as well as boxing out and rebounding. It costs us tremendously tonight." -Coach Coley Sophomore Cooper Berkoff led the scoring for the Warriors and finished the game with 15 points. Eighth grader George Coleman added 11 points to the total and Sophomore Grey McMahon chipped in with 9. The Warriors will be in action again on Friday, December 16th as they host Arendell Parrott.
Our Varsity Boys Basketball Team traveled over to New Life Camp on Tuesday, December 6th to compete against the Storm for the second time this season. The Warriors are still looking for their first win and wanted to have a good showing headed into this game. The Warriors got off to a slow start an could not seem to make a basket. The Warriors scrambled and hustled on defense but suffered with the defensive rotations and lack of boxing out. "We have to do a better job of contesting shots and rebounding," said Coach Coley. The Warriors went on a small run but could not overcome the 3 point shots of the Storm. Although the Warriors battled until the end they just did not have enough to come back from the deficit. "We have to get better defensively. We have to do a better job on our defensive rotations and with boxing out and rebounding." - Coach Coley. The Warriors will take the court again in a conference match up on Friday, December 9th when they travel to Cary Christian to take on the Knights.
Our Varsity Boys Basketball Team hosted Ravenscroft on Tuesday, November 22nd. The Warriors entered the game against the Ravens trying to improve upon their performance in previous contests. The Warriors were up against a very tough opponent in the Ravens. The game started out with Ravenscroft hitting the scoreboard first. A string of turnovers found the Warriors in a whole that it would prove to great for them to recover. Although the Warriors were not at full strength and still had players unavailable for the contest, they fought until the end and showed resilience and heart. The Warriors were finally able to get on the board after an offensive rebound and put back by Senior Jackson Rouser. "We have to get better at our execution on the offensive as well as defensive end of the court. We have a willing group that works hard so I am sure that we will continue to get better." - Coach Coley The Warriors will be in action again on December 2nd as they host conference opponent Grace Christian.
The Warriors traveled to Cary Christian to take on the Knights in a surprise second round matchup of EPIC teams in the playoff. St. David’s had played well in their win at Coastal Christian and were looking forward to the challenge of facing a very talented Cary team.
Cary opened the game with great pressure and forced SDS into early turnovers to gallop out to a 6-2 lead in the first minutes of the quarter. The Warriors regrouped after a timeout and responded with a 14-8 run to take a 16-14 lead into the second quarter. The first quarter run was spearheaded by Riley Berkoff’s 8 points. Jackson Rouser and Hank Madden also joined in with 4 points each. The Knights would respond in the second quarter to outscore the Warriors 19-12 to take a 33-28 lead into the locker-room at halftime. Hank Madden kept St. David’s close with 6 points in the quarter.
The third quarter was a faced paced back and forth contest as both teams refused to give in to the other. Cary would take that quarter by a slim 15-12 margin to hold a 40-48 lead. Riley Berkoff slashed his way to 4 points in the quarter. The fourth quarter was a defensive affair with both teams strategically trying to limit the other. The Warriors came as close as 5 points but could not keep pace with the Knights who made timely outside shots and gathered numerous offensive rebounds to put things out of reach on the way to a hard fought 57-45 victory. Hank Madden and Riley Berkoff each pumped in 16 points and Jackson Rouser worked his way to 8 points in a starting role. The defeat ended the Warrior season a 7-19.
Coach Coley added "it was everything but the win tonight. We played Warrior basketball out there tonight. The coaching staff is so proud of the effort and perseverance tonight. We could have very easily come in and offered no resistance to a strong Cary team that has beaten us soundly in our first two meetings. We left it all out there tonight. They should be proud of their effort. It has been a joy to watch the maturation process this season. Our young men have endured a lot, but they have shown great character. This is what the coaching staff is most proud of. We have 8 seniors, and we will miss them all. We have nothing but great things to say about how they worked. This is bittersweet but I think we will look back on it later and be glad that we had this experience and this time together. "
Thank you so much for all the support for our Warriors this season.
The Warriors went into rival territory on Friday, January 28th for their second matchup of the year against conference opponent Cary Christian. The Warriors started the game off slow struggling to score on offense and stop the Knights on defense leaving the Warriors down 0-8 in the first 2 minutes. The struggles continued into the 2nd quarter as Cary Christian got hot from deep and shut down the Warriors' attempts to close the gap. The Knights led 38-13 at the half after outscoring the team 38-13. After a fiery halftime speech by head coach Will Coley, the Warriors came out of the break looking to claw their way back into the game. The Warriors had a solid third-quarter holding the Knights to 12 points in the period and scoring 11 themselves led by buckets by seniors Ghalon Chisley (10 points), Riley Berkoff (9 points) and Hank Madden (8 points). The lead the Knights had built was just too much to overcome, even with solid defensive efforts from John Hauser and Luke Nelson in the fourth, the Warriors lost by a score of 63-31. The Warriors look to forget this loss and head into Tuesday's (February 1st) game against Parrott Academy looking to win on Senior Night.
The Warriors, coming off a win last week against NRCA, looked to build off that win against a quality opponent in New Life Camp on Tuesday, January 25th. The Warriors started off strong first quarter fueled by the shooting of seniors Hank Madden and Riley Berkoff. The Warriors continued strong play on both ends of the floor into half time taking a 25-20 lead into the break. The Warriors came out sluggish and struggled in the third quarter allowing New Life Camp to close the gap. In the fourth New Life and the Warriors went back and forth trading the lead several times. Late in the fourth with 20 seconds left the Warriors took the ball up the court down 42-46 looking to cut the lead and come back. The Warriors looked around on offense and found senior John Hauser for a clutch corner three that cut the New Life lead to 45-46. The Warriors fouled a New Life player and sent him to the line with about 7 seconds left. The New Life player made the first free throw but missed the second. The Warriors moved the ball up the court and found Madden in the corner for a three that would’ve put the Warriors up by one. Unfortunately the three rattled out and the Warriors lost by a score of 47-45. A tough loss for the Warriors but one that they can learn from. Madden lead the team in scoring with 16 points and had 4 assists. The Warriors look to get back in the win column against Grace Christian at home on Thursday, January 27th at home.
The Warriors had a home game against Cary Christian on Friday, January 14th. The Warriors came into the game looking to continue their streak off their last win against Parrott Academy. The Warriors started off the game scraping and keeping it close but Cary started the game on an 8-0 run. The Warriors fought to keep it close and finished the first half down just 28-22. The Warriors weren’t done fighting. The Warriors and Knights went back and forth in the third keeping it within reach, being down 9 going into the fourth quarter. Unfortunately, the opponent made a couple of key threes in the fourth and pulled away far enough that the Warriors couldn't recover. The Warriors took a tough loss but look to learn from certain mistakes that were made and get better going into a the next games. Seniors Hank Madden and Riley Berkoff led the Warriors in scoring with 16 and 10 points each. Coach Coley told his team that they "played hard and that our defense was fairly solid. Struggling offensively after that was the difference in the game but I am proud of their effort." The Warriors look to get back on track on Thursday, January 20th at NRCA.
The Warriors came back from winter break with a game away at High Point Christian Academy, the Warriors did not have a good night shooting from the floor averaging a poor 20% for the game. The Warriors' offense stalled and were just outplayed by high point. Senior Riley Berkoff was a bright spot for the Warriors, scoring 15 points along with 4 rebounds and 2 assists. Senior BJ Seabrooks also tacked on 5 points, 4 rebounds, and a block. The Warriors were simply unable to keep up with the Cougars and lost by a score of 76-28. The Warriors took this loss in stride and looked to fix their mistakes and play better in their next game against Fayetteville Academy. The Warriors only had 7 active players for the game but that did not stop them from having arguably their best half of the season where the offense and defense played efficiently and the Warriors only trailed by 1 going into the half. Unfortunately, the third quarter did the Warriors in as they only scored 5 points in the 3rd. Even with the lack of players and being down entering the fourth the Warriors fought hard and never gave up, even playing the last minute of the game with 4 players on the court. Seniors Riley Berkoff and Hank Madden lead the Warriors in scoring with 15 and 13 points respectively. In the end, the Warriors fell to Fayetteville Academy by a score of 58-47. The Warriors look to take this strong performance into conference play where they have their first game in Kinston, NC vs rival Parrott Academy on January 11th.
The Warriors traveled to Greenfield, NC over the break for the annual Greenfield Christmas basketball tournament. They played three games over a three-day span and competing in all three they finished the tournament with a record of 1-2 but got better every game. The Warriors started off opening night against the host team of Greenfield Academy. Greenfield hit the ground running outsourcing the Warriors 45-17 in the first half and never looked back. The Warriors tried to fight back but poor execution and sloppy play sunk the Warriors as they lost by a score of 76-32. Seniors Hank Madden and Riley Berkoff lead the Warriors in scoring with 10 points apiece. The Warriors looked to learn from their first game and clean up their play in their second game against Richmond Christian. The Warriors played significantly better against Richmond and were a lot sharper on both sides of the ball. The game was close throughout as both teams traded baskets no team ever gaining a lead of more than 7. Madden kept the Warriors in the contest scoring 16 points (a season-high for Madden), 3 assists, and 3 steals. The Warriors kept it close throughout but unfortunately lost in the end by a score of 43-38. The Warriors went into their third game against Raleigh Trinity looked to take what they had learned from the first two games and get the victory. The game was similar to the second in that it was very back and forth throughout the game. The Warriors entered into the fourth quarter down 35-38 looking to rally, and rally they did. Berkoff scored 8 points in the quarter singlehandedly outscoring Trinity. The Warriors near the end of the quarter found themselves tied with Trinity 43-43 with 1:03 left to play when Senior Ghalon Chisley drove baseline and found Senior BJ Seabrooks on a beautiful pass inside that Seabrooks converted which put the Warriors up by 2 with a minute to go. The Warriors’ defense clamped down and did not allow Trinity to score for the remainder of the game and won by a score of 46-43. Seniors Berkoff and Madden were named game co-MVP by assistant Coach Tiffany Clifton after a great performance by the seniors. Coach Coley added comments about the tournament saying "our players played so har. I am so glad that we were able to finish with a win. I hope this gives the boys some renewed confidence. We are proud of their ability to persevere and hold on through this tough part of the season. We will be better for all that we have gone through and the coaching staff I looking forward to the rest of the season!" The Warriors look to use their positive momentum after the break with their first game back being at High Point Christian on January 4th, 2022.