The 2023-24 season was one of tremendous growth for the York University Lions men's basketball team under head coach Jermain "Jay" Holness, who was in his first year as full-time head coach after leading the team on an interim basis during the 2022-23 season.

The Lions returned to the playoffs for the first time in five years, bowing out to the Laurier Golden Hawks in the opening round in what was a hotly-contested affair.

While last season was about putting the program back on the map, this season is about the beginning of a long-term plan for success for Lions men's basketball.

"We were able to build a culture – a winning culture – that allows us to build a stronger program moving forward," said Holness. "We were able to bring in high-level high school talent, our starting point from a recruiting standpoint has been elevated, and now it's up to us to put the pieces in place to develop this young talent."

The Lions have a core group of five players returning from last year's team, namely Elias Panagiotopoulos, Travon Hamilton, Liam Rietschin, Reilly Klutchert and Nickele Harris.

"These guys are going to give us strong leadership and support on the court," Holness said. "It's up to us as a coaching staff to get the young guys up to speed with the strength and physicality of the league, the speed and the basketball IQ that's required to be successful at this level."

The Lions were led last year by a two-headed monster in Josh Noton and Evan Shadkami. With both those players having graduated, Holness put an emphasis this year on building a team with difference-makers up and down the roster.

"Moving forward, we want to build a whole team from top to bottom, so we have strength in numbers as opposed to strength in individuals," said Holness. "That's the program we're striving to build, where we can compete any night at any level. That's the goal."

 The Lions have used drastically different recruiting styles in the two years under Holness, a decision he says was a conscious one. 

"You have to use transfers to ignite a program, so last year we brought in transfers to put us in a competitive situation," he said. "Those guys have done their job, and now we're able to bring in the young guys to build the program."

Among the first-years joining the team are Jackson Mackinnon-Metcalf, Gabriel Quayson and Nate Makolo, all guys Holness sees as building blocks for the program over the next half-decade.

"Jackson is a great all-around player," Holness said of the 6'7 guard from Halifax. "He can shoot it, he can dribble it and he can pass it, so we look forward to seeing what he does.

"Gabriel is a long, can shoot, play defence at multiple positions," he continued on Quayson, a local product from Markham and fellow 6'7 guard.

As for Makolo, a 6'8 forward and native of Gatineau, Que., Holness describes him as an "athlete, who is somebody we can build around for many years to come."

Overall, Holness and his staff are extremely excited about the direction of the program not only for the future, but for the present as well.

"We have a lot of young guys who are very talented," he said. "We want to be competitive, we want to fight, scratch and claw. We want to get back to the playoffs and host a home game."

While winning on the court is important, Holness is a firm believer in making sure his players are fulfilling all aspects of what it means to be a student-athlete.

"It always comes back to academics," he said when asked what outside of wins and losses makes the year a success. "We want to make sure our guys are good ambassadors in the community, giving back not just to the York community but the at large. We want to go out and do things at schools and clubs, bringing the game back to York University and making it a central hub for basketball in the city. 

"We want when people talk about York basketball to know that York basketball is Toronto. It's our city."

The Lions open the season with a pair of games on home court this weekend at Tait McKenzie Centre. They tip things off Friday night at 8:00 pm against Laurier in a rematch of last year's opening round playoff game, before hosting the Ontario Tech Ridgebacks on Sunday afternoon at 3:00 pm. You can pick up tickets here or stream the games live on OUA TV.