GREEN BAY — 2 years ago, the Notre Dame Academy boys basketball team won their first regional championship in program history.
Last year, they came up short of their expectations falling short in that regional final game and this year, they’re off to a red hot 9-2 start and they say that’s because they’re being the hunters instead of the hunted.
“Being hunters means we can’t sit back and relax,” said senior forward Andrew Rader. “We have to go get a win and I think that’s a testament to what our culture is.”
When head coach Brian Bobinski took over the Tritons program four years ago, he was looking to instill a winning culture and he knew this senior class could build something great. This year, they’re second in the Fox River Classic conference.
“When people think over Notre Dame, he wanted them to know that basketball is a thing we do here, and with our recent success, I think people are starting to know that,” Rader said.
“From a coaching standpoint it’s always special to see the growth that a group can make over time and when you start to experience real success it’s really gratifying because that’s what you want for the kids,” said Bobinski.
2024 didn’t go how they wanted, but they saw some encouraging signs down the stretch that carried over to 2025.
“The defensive concepts, the offense – sharing the ball and just being willing to sacrifice their own individual achievements for the good of the team,” Bobinski said of his team’s growth last year. “You could just see it happening last year, you could feel it.
They’re also healthy this season. Senior big man Andrew Rader, who’s averaging nearly double-double, and guard Drew Siudzinski are playing at 100% for the first time in a few years.
“We've put them together with juniors and sophomores who have bought into our team concept,” Bobinksi said. “It's just all together a really special group to be around.”
A special group that is deep. 6 different Tritons average eight points or more.
“There's been plenty of games where we’ve won just because of one guy scoring 10 plus over their average,” said senior Adam Guyette, the second leading-scoring on the team. “It's really just been big – it’s hard to scout because anyone can have a good game on any night.”
As for the rest of the season, the seniors just want to set the bar high for future Tritons.
“It's huge for all of us. when we come back here like next here, or the year after, or even in a few years as alumni and see the success – we want to know we had a huge part in that,” said Rader.
