Mount Si’s boys basketball program has many people expecting big things from them this season.

That’s normal for a team with an already-committed Division I college athlete. But with the league looking tough at the top this season, the team will have some work to do if it wants to reach the goal of winning a state title.

Back for his third season as head coach, Jeff D’Ambrosio helms a team with plenty of experienced players led by senior Tanner Riley, who will be playing college ball next year at the University of Portland.

“We return a bunch of guys, four of the five starters,” Riley said. “We’ve all played together since fifth grade. This is the year we’ve been thinking about since fifth grade, and we really think we can get to the state championship.”

Starting seniors include Zander Nelson, Taylor Campbell, Lucas Zupan, Justin Downer and newcomer Jordin Kinnune.

While those seniors are expected to provide a lot on the court, another key player this season is junior Dallas Smith. Last year, Smith developed into a secondary offensive threat behind Riley and he will need to do that again this season for Mount Si to be successful.

“Tanner’s probably going to get double-teamed because he’s a really great player,” Smith said

“I’m just hoping to be that secondary scorer.”

Depth is another asset to the Wildcat team this season.

“We’re going to have 12 kids on the varsity and all 12 are good players,” D’Ambrosio said. Younger players to watch include sophomore Anthony McLaughlin, brother of former Mount Si football and track star Frank, and Tanner Riley’s younger brother Trent, a freshman.

McLaughlin could be a valuable player off the bench.

“He’s a really great young player. He’s got a good shot, he’s got good post moves and he can rebound the ball really well,” Smith said.

Downer, fresh off his role in leading Mount Si’s student section during the football season, expects fan support, especially from his peers.

“I think we could really feed off of our crowd. We’re going to have a good one out there,” he said.

The continuity and trust among the seniors looks to be a big help to them this season.

“We play well together,” Riley said. “We know how each other plays; we know what each other likes to do.”

Mount Si knows that Mercer Island and Bellevue, plus a lot of good Metro teams, stand in their way.

“I don’t think it will be easy,” D’Ambrosio said. “We have a lot of challenges in order to be where we want to be.”

Those challenges largely are on defense.

“Especially, we need to be a much better defensive team,” the coach said.

Mount Si will not play a home game until after winter break; leading up to that are a couple of tournaments, including one in San Diego over the break.

They also welcome in O’Dea this season, and the Irish will be a team to keep close tabs on as they adjust to life without their longtime coach, Phil Lumpkin, who recently passed away.