Matt Krass’ return to St. Patrick about building a legacy as much as winning games

Matt Krass is back home.

The senior guard has a young St. Patrick team gunning for a district title in his return to the Fighting Irish following a season at Gulfport.

Despite losing four starters from a season ago, St. Patrick holds an 18-7 record and has won seven straight games. The reintroduction of Krass to the lineup has kept the Irish as one of the better 3A programs in the south side of the state, benefited the growth of his younger teammates, and has allowed him to play freely and grow as a leader on the floor.

“Matt is a smart player, he’s coachable, he listens,” St. Patrick coach Keith Robinson told the Sun Herald. “I knew when he came back that we would be OK. ... He does what we ask him to do. Nothing against Gulfport in any way, but Matt got over here and realized he was a St. Patrick kid. He knew it.”

You don’t have to hear it from Krass, himself. You can see his coach’s sentiments manifest in the way he plays: without fear and with full trust in those around him.

Krass dances around double-teams and routinely hits difficult, contested jumpers. He also uses his vision and IQ to set up teammates with easy buckets. The chemistry that comes with playing alongside his lifelong friends has paid dividends.

“I am definitely glad to be around some of my friends and a coach who believes in me,” Krass said. “Any program is special to me, but especially this one. Some of my best friends are around here. It’s just a blessing, getting up every day and coming to see them and getting to compete at practice every day and get better.”

If you haven’t made it to a game, the numbers do much of the talking, themselves. Krass is averaging 29 points and five assists in his final high school season.

He dazzled with six 3-pointers on his way to a 37-point outing against Perry Central and then gave the same team 39 points just two weeks later.

In between those two games, Krass dropped 41 points with five assists against West Marion. In an early season matchup with George County, Krass nearly outscored the Rebels by himself with 42 points in an 83-43 win.

Against rival St. Stanislaus on Tuesday, he poured in 22 points on what he called a “bad night.”

“I just know from a self-confidence standpoint that I have the potential and the skills to do great things,” Krass said. “I just take it as it comes and play the game.”

Leaving a legacy

Krass isn’t the first of his name to leave his mark on the court at St. Patrick. His older brother, Nick, graduated from the school in 2022 with 1,750 career points before landing at Oregon State.

The older Krass is now playing at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College and continues to be someone Matt looks up to.

“That’s my best friend,” Krass said. “That’s the person I wouldn’t think twice dying for or anything. It’s definitely great seeing him every day. He makes me a better person, a better basketball player, a better man overall.”

Between the two, the Krass brothers have led the Fighting Irish to 123 wins and counting.

Krass has a chance to add to that total this year with three guaranteed games left on the docket. Though his team is inexperienced, there’s athleticism in forwards Alex Triplett and Brendan Moton, plus experience at point guard in Jack Hewes.

Robinson believes the group is beginning to pull together at the right time.

“I think we’ve played together awhile now and they understand each other,” Robinson said. “We’re starting to figure out some things. ... We want to go as far as we can and work to get better.”

Krass is proud of what the Irish have been able to accomplish this season, already, but remains focused on the future, both in the short and long term.

“I think we’ve built the chemistry on and off the court and really progressed as a team,” Krass said. “I couldn’t be prouder, we have the potential to do something special... Honestly, I want them to be better when I leave St. Patrick, too. Just knowing I did a great job helping them become better people, too, that’s the most important thing.”

St. Patrick wraps up the regular season on Thursday against Vancleave before hitting the district tournament as a top-two seed.