Can't speak for the economic side of RC, but I highly doubt they are offering 85% "need-based financial aid" to public school athletes to come RC. If they were, considering their location in Roanoke City, to their above-average education, it would seem reasonable that RC would be winning titles in all kinds of male sports. But, take football for instance, they've only been to one title game in the last 20 years....
And sure, in reality for basketball, there's no point in NC playing RC (same in football). Who benefits from that game? Who benefitted from the 24-2 first quarter last year in the last NC/RC game? How did NC get better? How did RC get better? I guess that's where you and I disagree...you think by playing up and getting waxed by 50 points by a team that's been put together by re-classed and recruited athletes is somehow a good thing or "makes you better." I just disagree. How does getting beat down by 50 by another team help the loser, or the winner? And, If I'm going to lose to a team by 50, I'd rather lose to a team of legit high school kids, not a bunch of re-classed seniors who should be playing in college.
All that being said, there was time that RC did what NC does (in basketball)....in the late 90s and early 2000s. The generous financial aid package that you speak of, the putting together of teams of re-classed kids to make runs at titles...The hiring of big name coaches (for this area) and assistant coaches to pull kids from the public schools...and whenever anyone asked, it was just "hey, but we're getting these kids better for college, we're giving him an extra year to hone his skills. And we're winning titles, right? What's to complain about?" RC won FIVE Div II state basketball titles in 8 years from 2000-2008, (and THREE Catholic State Titles) and RC played Oak Hill every year. RC also beat Dematha in 2003, played in the Arby's Classic, The Alhambra Classic, and played in the historical ArchBishop Molloy Tournament in New York. They beat up on all the public school teams in Roanoke and the surrounding area so bad that RC is still paying for it when it comes to scheduling. NC needs to be careful. While they haven't seen anywhere near the success that RC did in basketball, NC will need to be on constant guard from letting their athletic department run the school. Eventually, like RC did many years ago, you could end up with a bunch of athletes who don't care about representing your school, don't care about the school, want preferential treatment, and will basically just use you as a ticket to the next level.