Cathedral’s boys’ basketball team wins state championship
Many parts of the community of Cathedral High School in Indianapolis came together on March 28 to celebrate its boys’ basketball team winning Indiana’s Class 3A state championship by a score of 71-61 over the team from New Haven High School. (Photo courtesy of Oh Snap Indy)
By John Shaughnessy
The Bible study in the locker room before the state championship game had ended. Now, head coach Jason Delaney turned to the players on the boys’ basketball team of Cathedral High School in Indianapolis, wanting to share one last set of instructions before they ran onto the court at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, the home of the Indiana Pacers.
Trying to calm their nerves about playing in the biggest game of their season inside a National Basketball Association arena, Delaney reassured them that this moment “is something we’ve done 30 times together this season, not counting all the practices and summer games.”
“It was just about faith and believing and seeing things all the way through—and that we deserve to be here,” Delaney recalls telling his players. “It’s about having strength and finishing the job.”
Two hours later on March 28, the Cathedral players had finished the job and raised the Indiana Class 3A boys’ state championship trophy after beating the team from New Haven High School by a score of 71-61.
Amid all the smiles, hugs and shouts of joy that he shared with his players in the post-game celebration, Delaney also savored just how special this entire season has been.
“They just came together and believed in each other. That was the difference—the chemistry,” Delaney says. “This wasn’t our most talented team we’ve had here, but it’s the most cohesive group we’ve had here.
“They were willing to sacrifice for each other and love each other more than they loved their own personal gain. And so now, they get the rewards of it. They get the blessing of earning this place in history and earning the state championship medals and rings and the banner on the wall at school. They’ll always have that place in Cathedral history and Indiana basketball history.”
In a way, this championship season was a journey of redemption for Cathedral. After losing in last year’s sectional, the program embraced a motto of “365 days,” working to erase that heartbreaking feeling by keeping a commitment to try to get better every day.
“It started a year ago, 365 days, on March 8, 2025,” Delaney says. “We thought last year’s team was the team that would win it. We were number one in the state at the end of the season. In the fourth quarter of that game, we kind of fell apart, losing to a team that went to the state championship. We had to sit with that for 365 days. We had to go back to work, gain confidence again.
“And we graduated a ton. It wasn’t like we returned the same team. We graduated about 75% of our scoring and about 68% of our rebounding. Then our point guard left in the summer. A lot of guys had to step up. They had to battle adversity, and they bonded together. It was a very tight-knit group.”
Delaney is also proud of the players for the way they handle themselves off the court.
“The team earned an Academic-All State award,” their head coach says. “When I got here 10 years ago, our basketball GPA [grade-point average on a scale of a 4.0] was a 2.3. We got it raised to 3.8. We’ve got guys winning academic awards now.
“I think of how much they loved each other and how much joy they had together off the court, how their faith was so strong. We had Julien Smith, a senior, taking kids to youth ministry. He would drive them all around the city so they could hear God’s word. To see how some of them grew in their faith walk was remarkable.”
Besides Smith, Delaney praises the leadership of the two other seniors on the team, R’Mani Wells and Keaton Aldridge.
“They all led beautifully in their own way,” Delaney says. “R’Mani was just a positive force all the time. Even if things weren’t always going his way, he encouraged others, brought energy and could make you smile. Julien is a 4.1 student, academic all-state and a peer mentor—a leader in every aspect of that word.
“And Keaton really took the young guys under his wing and led them. He put this team on his back countless times.”
All those ingredients led to a special moment on March 30 at the school when the players, coaches and managers made what Cathedral calls “the champions’ walk” into the gym, where the team was celebrated by the school community.
“It felt really good, watching the kids have so much fun with it,” says Delaney, who has now coached four state champions in his 22 years as a head coach.
“You talk to them about what the feeling is going to be like after you’ve won a state championship. It’s the bond of the team that lasts a lifetime. They’ve accomplished it. So, you get to see them enjoy all their hard work. I just think of the kind of kids they are, and our managers and our coaches. It was a blessing for me to be a part of it.” †