Playing a supporting role a year ago on the Class 3A state runner-up team, Brother Rice junior Zach Grabowski tried to make the best of the situation.
Grabowski only played in 17 games, but he knew his time would come. This season, it has.
He had eight points and four rebounds to help the Crusaders get past De La Salle 55-48 on Dec. 2 in the Catholic League Blue.
“Last year I learned I had to go in, do my job, stick to my role and work my hardest,” Grabowski said. “I didn’t get a lot of minutes, but when I did, I tried my best. I used last year’s experience going into this year. It’s working off that.”
Seniors Charlie Wizgird (13 points) and JJ Manos (eight points) and junior Kevin Salkauskas (seven points, seven rebounds) all chipped in for the Crusaders.
Senior Remi Edwards powered De La Salle with 12 points, 17 rebounds and two steals. Also starring for the Meteors were sophomores Stephen Dixon (nine points) and Roosevelt Thomas (seven points, four rebounds) and senior Carlos Cueva (eight points).
Four of Brother Rice’s starters — Grabowski, Wizgird, Manos and senior Joe Niego (four points, six rebounds) — played off the bench last year.
“We’re all new. We’ve got nothing to lose,” Grabowski said. “None of us really got a lot of playing time, so we want to show what we can do and prove everyone wrong.”
Where last year’s squad was led by seniors Marcos Gonzales and Jack Weigus, the 2025-26 Crusaders don’t feature one dominant scorer.
Instead, it’s who’s hot on a given night.
“Our depth has come through,” Grabowski said. “We’re built off hard work and outworking the other team. … We’re all contributing to the wins.”
Grabowski is one of the team’s top perimeter shooters.
His corner 3-pointer on a Wizgird assist early in the third put the Crusaders up 30-14.
“My 3-point shot is a big (part) in my game,” Grabowski said. “But I can slash to the basket and like to get to the rim. Any opportunity I get, I’m going to take it.”
Brother Rice led by as much as 19 in the second half before a furious De La Salle rally over the game’s final four minutes.
Coach Rick Romeli wants to see his talented but inexperienced roster own the moment more and stay calm.
“We’re super inexperienced,” Romeli said. “We saw that in the end. Those are the moments we need to grow up in. Who’s going to make a play? We can be a really good basketball team. It’ll take some time.”
Wizgird hit three of four free throws over the final 40 seconds to help ice the game. He’s a captain along with Grabowski and Niego.
“I definitely want to be calm and collected late in games where it’s kind of chaotic,” Wizgird said. “I want to be the guy to step up. I want the ball. I’m confident in myself bringing the ball up or at the free-throw line.”
De La Salle returns a strong core from last year’s squad but had two key players leave via transfers.
Edwards said the team is confident in the talent on the roster.
“We focus on everybody who is here,” Edwards said. “Those guys are gone. We’ve got to move on. We focus on what we have, train and get right for the rest of the season.”