Catholic Classic opens Friday
February wouldn’t be February in Niagara without the staging of the All-Ontario Catholic Classic.
The 48th edition of the 16-team tournament kicks off Friday with games from 9:30 a.m. until 5 p.m. at Denis Morris and concludes Saturday at Denis Morris with the consolation final scheduled for 6 p.m. followed by the championship game at 7:30 p.m.
“The tournament is almost 50 years old now and it obviously represents the best Catholic schools across Ontario,” Denis Morris coach and tournament convenor Wade Pychel said. “Just looking back at the history of the tournament a lot of great coaches and Catholic educators built the foundation for this tournament. To see it continue year after year and have other coaches carry the torch for those who started it is really great. It is nice to see that coaches are still dedicated to programs.”
Pychel, who took over as convenor from Mike Pullar who retired, urges basketball fans to come out and check out the action.
“You are going to be able to see some of the best basketball in the province. We have teams from Brampton, Peel and other regions who are at the top of their standings and have played a high level of basketball all year,” he said. “We have OFSAA (Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations) medallists from last year going and a collection of some of the best basketball players in the province who will eventually be moving on to prep school, OUA (Ontario University Athletics), U SPORTS and even the NCAA.”
A look at previous MVP winners at the tournament shows plenty of players who achieved success at the highest levels.
“It is great to see them all come together and compete in something that brings Catholic schools together.”
Denis Morris, Notre Dame and Saint Francis will be representing Niagara in the tournament and Pychel is excited for his team to experience the Classic.
“Being the host school and one of the original schools, this is circled every year on our calendar. We had the opportunity to compete for the consolation championship a couple of years ago and winning three games in this tournament is big time. I was really proud of that group and every year I tell the team that comes through that this is our tournament and the one that we get to play in our gym and invite other schools to see where we practise and play every day. It is very special for us and exposes us to a high level of basketball that we might not see around here all the time. We have such great programs around here but this showcases the chance to play at an elite level.”
The top four seeds of the tournament are Holy Names from Windsor, Hamilton Cathedral, St. Michael’s from Toronto and Saint Francis. Saint Francis is the defending champion after making the semifinals in 2023.
Pychel will have a lot of help to make the tournament a success but he singled out the efforts of Anthony DiPaolo.
“He is teacher here and committee member and has been instrumental in running this thing. He has been working behind the scenes, taking care of the program, the rosters, making sure the sponsorships align with the tournament and head hunting for sponsors. Guys like that don’t get enough credit.”
