Lucchetta and Irish advance to semifinals
Aidan Lucchetta did it all for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish Thursday in the championship quarter-finals of the 68th Annual Welland Tribune Basketball Tournament at Notre Dame.
The Grade 11 student was solid on both ends of the floor and netted 16 points to help the Irish record a 56-47 victory over Denis Morris to advance to the semifinals against the A.N. Myer Marauders.
“He is our go to guy and he does it all,” said Andrew Lucchetta, Aidan’s dad and Notre Dame’s head coach. “He brings up the ball, he is a rebounder, he scores and plays defence and he rarely comes off the court. He has high energy, loves playing ball and he’s a guy that we depend on in the crucial moments because he can do it at both ends of the court.”
The 16-year-old tries to do it all for Notre Dame.
“I run the offence and try to be an everything guy. If my team needs defence I am there. If my team needs scoring, I am there. Shooting, passing, leadership, I step up to the role.”
The Grade 11 player loves being described as a go to player.
“Absolutely. All summer I have been training for this, wanting to step up and be the guy. I want it, my teammates believe in me and I do my best to show up for myself and the team to get the win.”
The Pelham Panthers travel player’s summer included lifting weights, running and working on his skills, especially shooting.
“Compared to last year, my free throws have taken a huge increase in making them and being consistent,” the 6-foot-4 player said. “Every facet of my game I have been working to improve.”
His motivation is simple.
“I dream of going to D1 and I dream to be a success in basketball. I want to create a legacy for myself.”
That dream was sparked last season playing prep basketball with Brampton City.
“My minutes took a cut and I was upset that I couldn’t be there when my team needed me. I wanted to take that extra step because going D1 has always been a dream ever since I was a kid. Especially last year, I realized it was attainable.”
Denis Morris looked much better than it did a month ago when the Reds went two and out at the Standard tournament.
“I wouldn’t say I am happy right in this moment and it will take me a little bit of time to digest how well we actually played today,” Reds head coach Wade Pychel said. “The effort has been improving as the season goes on and I can’t hang my head that much because we came out, we fought and we had them on the ropes at some points and we just couldn’t finish with the knockout punch.”
He has seen improvement in a number of areas.
“We have better organization and effort in rebounding and all the little plays — the loose balls and the 50/50 balls — that we weren’t getting in the Standard tournament. We picked it up yesterday and today and I am really happy with the effort.”
Pychel is excited about the rest of the season.
“This is a good building block to play on a Thursday night at 8 o’clock and come within a few possessions. It will be good for future tournament and league games.”
The Reds gave the Irish all they could handle, considering how the two teams fared when they met in league action.
“It was tighter than we expected, for sure,” Andrew Lucchetta said. “We didn’t play the way we wanted to play and give the whole credit to Denis Morris. They came out strong and hard and the last time we played them it was not like this. I think the guys thought it was going to be a cakewalk but I told them that those guys were going to come out gunning for it and they did.”
He was least pleased with the Irish offence.
“Our defence and rebounding was great but our offence just wasn’t there.”
Aiden Lucchetta is excited to be playing in the Tribune semifinals.
“I know the fans are going to be packing it up. All my teammates will be there for each other and we will be ready to play. I’m hyped.”
STATS PACK
Irish 56 Reds 47
Policella Homes Players of the Game: Notre Dame’s Aidan Lucchetta and Denis Morris’ Geremy McRae.
For the Notre Dame Fighting Irish: Aiden Lucchetta 16; Will Benko 10; Re’O Damus 9; David Babalola 7; Trent Groulx 5; Anthony Ventresca 3; Sean Paul Imosikeme 2; Kurt Augustin 2; Eric Hills 2.
For the Denis Morris Reds: Geremy McRae 14; Landon Purdue 13; Travis Palmer 8; Cole Kelly 8; Waldyn Peralta 4.
Tournament admission: Cash-only admission for the games on Friday and Saturday is $5 for adults and $3 for students.
