Despite falling short of defending their state title, the Roosevelt Raiders have a lot to be proud of – and a lot to look forward to. After losing an impressive senior class, the Raiders began the season with a tightly contested opening loss to DeMatha. Despite their youth, the Raiders exhibited the talent that would lead them to a 19 to 5 season that included victories over archrival Bowie and D.C. powerhouse H.D. Woodson.
They began their title defense with a close 62 to 57 victory over Bowie last week, spearheaded by senior Augustine Okafor and sophomore Cameron Brown. While junior point guard Jaden Faulkner paced the Raiders’ offense on the night, and all season long, senior guard JaQuan Brown drew the most raucous reaction from a lively student section after drawing a charge foul – a tough defensive play that defines Coach Brendan O’Connell’s mindset.
The Raiders saw their season end with a tough overtime loss to the undefeated Wise Pumas. After building a double digit fourth quarter lead, thanks to key three-point shooting, a turnover laden final four minutes allowed the Pumas to force the extra period. The loss will be difficult to forget, but if anything that is motivation for a team that returns a core of underclassmen. For more on this story, click here.
