St. Catharines, ON – The River Lions officially announced today that Head Coach and General Manager Victor Raso will return as bench boss in 2021 for the third Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) season. It was also announced that Assistant General Manager, Antwi Atuahene , who joined the the organization for the 2020 CEBL Summer Series , will return as well.
“It was a no-brainer for us to have Victor return as we head into 2021,” said River Lions President, Jeffrey Sotiriou. “Over the last several years, Victor has been instrumental in the success of the River Lions on and off the court, and we have full confidence in him leading the team once again.”
Raso has been with the organization since 2017 when he began as lead assistant coach before eventually taking over as head coach and general manager for the CEBL’s 2019 Inaugural Season . He was named the CEBL Coach of the Year that season after leading the River Lions to a league-best regular season record of 15-5. During the 2020 CEBL Summer Series , the team fell short of their goal and finished 2-5.
With an overall record of 17-11 with the team, Raso looks to continue to build on the foundation he has laid over the past couple of years, while making some changes in order to reach the ultimate goal of winning a CEBL championship.
“We’re eager to get back to some normalcy in 2021 and take advantage of our situation in Niagara,” said Head Coach and General Manager, Victor Raso. “We didn’t accomplish our goals in 2020, but we’ve been working tirelessly to make sure we fix that for 2021. We have a unique situation in Niagara that allows for us to be the best place for professional basketball players to help grow their game and grow as people. We are making the necessary changes to see the success we believe we can achieve as an organization."
Adding Assistant General Manager Antwi Atuahene to the basketball operations staff will be a big help to Raso in player recruitment and acquisition as Atuahene is very well respected and connected in basketball circles throughout North America.
“Bringing in Antwi has been game-changing for us, and more specifically, myself,” continued Raso. “We work together very well, we’re both hungry to be successful and build something special in Niagara, and he brings the best out of me. We’ve got lots of work to do and I’m thankful he’s on our team!”
The CEBL is preparing for its third season in 2021 following the success of the 2020 CEBL Summer Series hosted here in St. Catharines, which saw a record 1.2 million viewers across Canada tune in to four days of live programming on CBC .