Raiders hope to make another run at section title
Waynesburg Central boys basketball coach Michael Juliano beefed up his team鈥檚 non-section schedule last year to help prepare for section play.
The result was a 0-7 start but the plan worked.
The Raiders wound up 9-14 overall but were 7-3 in Section 4-3A and were in the battle for first place up until the final week. Southmoreland won the section with a 10-0 record but was taken to overtime in its second meeting with Waynesburg before prevailing, 58-51.
鈥淚 didn鈥檛 imagine that we were going to start out 0-7,鈥� Juliano said with a chuckle, 鈥渂ut we did play some competitive games early and it actually did prepare us well for section play.鈥�
Juliano foresees his team getting off to a bit of a better start in his third season at Waynesburg.
鈥淥ur schedule is very similar this year in terms of who we play in the non-conference but I think we鈥檒l be much more prepared for those games this time around,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 again think that will help us when we get to section games.鈥�
The Raiders have a trio of returning starters.
鈥淲e lost two starters from last year, Alex VanSickle and Alex Eck, and we also lost Dom Benamati who came off the bench for some spot minutes.鈥�
Senior Jackson Dean and junior Ace Litwinovich will step into those roles.
鈥淛ackson came off the bench and started a couple of games last year and Ace was out all of last season because he tore his ACL playing football but he鈥檚 back,鈥� Juliano said. 鈥淎ce is our glue guy, our hype guy. Even last year when he couldn鈥檛 play he was present at everything we did, vocal and communicating with the guys.鈥�
The three returning starters are junior Cole Headlee and seniors Dane Woods and Austin Surber.
鈥淥ur top returning scorers are Headlee, then Woods and Surber,鈥� Juliano said. 鈥淐ole is our point guard who has started every game with us since his freshman year. I think he is primed and ready for a breakout year.
鈥淐ole is going to be an impact player at the next level. He鈥檚 our best player, our leader, our floor general, a little bit of everything and a high-IQ guy. He鈥檒l usually play 32 minutes a night for us.鈥�
Woods is a force inside but is very versatile.
鈥淒ane is going to be our big guy, our bruiser underneath, offensively and defensively,鈥� Juliano said. 鈥淗e鈥檚 one of those all-around guys. We鈥檝e referred to him as our Draymond Green. He鈥檚 a big guy who can handle himself along the perimeter. He has good court vision, a good feel and knack when he has the ball in his hands.
鈥淒ane doesn鈥檛 shoot a ton from the outside but the last two years he鈥檚 been our highest percentage 3-point shooter. He can do a little bit of everything. He鈥檚 been our best player at times.鈥�
Surber is a high-energy guy.
鈥淎ustin is our energizer bunny. He really gets going,鈥� Juliano said. 鈥淗e gets after it on both ends of the floor. When he can play free and in space his athleticism allows him to make plays. He plays great in transition. He鈥檚 also one of our top defenders.鈥�
Waynesburg鈥檚 bench is a work in progress.
鈥淚t鈥檚 going to be a bit different from last year,鈥� Juliano said. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 have a ton of depth. We鈥檙e going to rely on that first five a good bit. Early in the season we鈥檙e going to try to groom and develop some depth, some role players.鈥�
Juliano singled out a few of those players who he will hope to get quality minutes from.
鈥淎 senior, Dom George, is one and Quentin Williams, who is a sophomore, those two will be the first off the bench. We鈥檒l have kind of by committee some big guys off the bench who can give us some minutes. Hayden Housel is a junior and is our tallest player (6-3). We have two sophomores, Landon Darr and Mason Loughner, who will likely see some time, too.鈥�
Juliano prefers to play man-to-man defense although he may alter that plan slightly this season.
鈥淲e鈥檙e predominantly man-to-man. Our goal is to not just get to the playoffs but compete in the playoffs and if you want to do that you鈥檝e got to be able to match up and get stops man-to-man in the halfcourt,鈥� Juliano said. 鈥淎lthough, we will play a lot more zone this year than we have in the past due to our lack of depth and size. But our bread and butter is still man-to-man.鈥�
The 2025-26 Raiders have earned Juliano鈥檚 respect.
鈥淚 have a really great group of guys who are very responsible,鈥� Juliano said. 鈥淚 teach at West Greene so I don鈥檛 always get to practice before it starts but my assistants are there, except for a week or so ago.
鈥淲e had a situation where no coaches could be there so I walk in late but there they are, they had stretched out, had shot their free throws and were in their pre-practice shooting routine. They had taken it upon themselves to do that all without any coaches present. That鈥檚 the kind of players I have. They鈥檙e all leaders in different ways and just high-quality guys.鈥�
Juliano again sees the Scotties as the team to beat in the section.
鈥淪outhmoreland returns most of their team and they won the section last year so you鈥檝e got to figure they鈥檙e going to be heavy hitters again,鈥� Juliano said. 鈥淟igonier Valley will be right up there again. Brownsville is returning everybody so you鈥檝e got to figure they鈥檒l be improved. Charleroi are very different personnel-wise than they were last year and play a different style than what they have traditionally. I figure it鈥檚 going to be a pretty competitive section again.鈥�
Waynesburg opens section play at Brownsville on Dec. 19.