Sports

Moore holds on against St. Peter’s for sixth straight win to start season

Tony Rafaniello could not have been happier to see a referee make a call.

His Moore Catholic team was up two when St. Peter’s guard Dan Monzi appeared to make a basket at the buzzer. The shot was waved off, though – the ball had left Monzi’s hands after time expired.

“I kind of simultaneously saw the ball and the official was very emphatic,” Rafaniello said. “It kind of stunned me, but it was pretty clear that it came after the buzzer had sounded. It felt good to see him wave his arms, though.”

Moore was able to hold on for a 49-47 win over St. Peter’s in non-league boys basketball Friday night in Graniteville. St. Peter’s is classified as a ‘AA’ team, while Moore is ‘A,’ so the game did not count toward either’s CHSAA record.

But what the victory did do was notch another impressive performance in Moore’s belt. The Mavericks have started 6-0 now after winning just seven games last year. They have beaten solid teams such as defending SIHSL champion McKee/Staten Island Tech, Regis and Cardinal Spellman already.

“This is progress,” Rafaniello said.

Now Moore can add St. Peter’s (1-3), lately the top CHSAA team on Staten Island, to the list. John Baggs had 14 points and Jordan Sanders added 13 points. Chris Ryan did a solid job locking up St. Peter’s star Andrew Cannon.

It has been a team effort all season for the Mavericks. Mark Fiorello, Frank Schettino and Scott Shaefer have all had big games. And Moore has yet to let any team score 50 points.

“If you do a good job defensively and you put four or five guys out there who can put the ball in the basket, it makes it a lot easier,” Rafaniello said.

The legendary coach – he’s Staten Island’s all-time wins leader – said he didn’t envision this kind of hot start. He took over at Moore two years ago after leaving New Dorp and hoped to build gradually. The freshmen and sophomores when he took over are juniors and seniors now and seem to be ready to contend for a CHSAA Class A intersectional title.

“Sometimes young guys don’t get better and you can’t wait until they graduate,” Rafaniello said. “But they’ve gotten better, they’ve gotten stronger and they’re buying into what we’re doing.”

All of a sudden, Moore Catholic is arguably the hottest basketball program – boys and girls – on Staten Island. Rich Postiglione’s girls team is the best in the borough with Division I guards Jamie O’Hare (Lafayette) and Christina Rubin (Iona).

“We’re hoping it starts attracting more and more kids here,” Rafaniello said. … “The kids are playing well, they’re confident. It’s a good way to start the season.”

mraimondi@nypost.com