Three seasons ago, Catasauqua’s boys’ basketball team stumbled through a 1-21 season.

This year, the Rough Riders had an 0-13 mark to begin the week. However, longtime head coach Eric Snyder doesn’t make too many comparisons between the two campaigns.

“This is different,” said Snyder. “The 1-21 team had Derek Troxell, Derek George, and Andrew Martinez. They weren’t big, and there really weren’t any pure shooters.

“This team has better shooters, but they don’t handle the ball as well. The 1-21 team had more to give. They knew more about the game. No one knew more about the game than Derek Troxell. Derek George had a really good year.”

Snyder sees progress, but he realizes his club still has to take some major steps down the stretch.

In the team’s latest defeat to Northwestern, it marked the season high for points scored in the 63-47 loss. Previously, the Roughies were averaging 35 points per game.

Bryann Rivera led the team with 14 points, Cedric Bright added 13, and Ian Juica chipped in with 11.

“That was our highest point total, and it was good to see three guys in double figures,” noted Snyder. “We have had a chance to be close in our last few games.

“The kids play hard. We just need better ball handling, court sense, and basketball IQ.”

Snyder also continues to search for a consistent point guard to run the offense. Rivera, Bright, Juica, and Brendan Nye have seen time in the role.

“We don’t have a true point guard,” he stated. “We don’t have anyone with real experience. Rivera started there, but he is a better shooting guard. Bright has played some, and Juica and Nye have tried as well.”

Snyder has been pleased with the development of Juica and freshman Matt Fotta.

“Juica is very, very aggressive, and he has some of the best court sense on our team,” said Snyder. “He also shoots well at times. Fotta is doing really well. He is a decent three-point shooter, and is progressing in many areas,”

However, it is all about the basics.

“We just have too many unforced turnovers,” drummed Snyder. “We had to make better decisions and box out better. Our rebounding has to be an intense undertaking.”

The Roughies had a busy week scheduled with home games against Northern Lehigh Tuesday, Saucon Valley Thursday, Salisbury Friday, and at Northampton Saturday.

“We’re playing better,” stressed Snyder. “We had 10 threes in our last game. We’re shooting better, and we just have to learn to finish.”