In the opening round: …………………………………………………… The top-seeded Melfort Comets and 2nd-seeded Weyburn Eagles received a bye. …………………………………………………… The 8th-seeded Humboldt Hawks nipped the 9th-seeded North Battleford John Paul II Crusaders 72-69. …………………………………………………… The 4th-seeded Moose Jaw Central Cyclones stomped the 13th-seeded Wilcox Athol Murray College of Notre Dame Hounds 78-52. “After we got off to a strong start the guys just couldn’t keep that intensity and focus up for the whole game,” coach Leigh Pethick told the Moose Jaw Times-Herald. “We turned the ball over a lot and we got into foul trouble. That was not a complete game. …Our offence and our defence were both aggressive right off of the start. We were attacking the rim when we had the ball and we had some open shots in the first quarter. On defence, we were trapping their players and creating a lot of turnovers.” Bryton Slater, Joel Forer, Parker Chow and Zach Lethbridge each had 11 points for Central. The Hounds (coached by Greg Pelletier) included Kaine Cyr. …………………………………………………… The 5th-seeded Warman Wolverines clocked the 12th-seeded Yorkton Sacred Heart Saints 86-59. The Saints (coached by Garrett Karcha) included Zach Goulden-Maddin, Brady Kormos, Tannum Wyonzek, Jake Javier, Bryan Buzinski, Evan Gleason, Noah Clarke, Teah Tannum, Cody Doll and Caleb Sutter. …………………………………………………… The 10th-seeded Regina F.W. Johnson Wildcats clipped the 7th-seeded Moose Jaw Vanier Vikings 62-47. The Vikings (coached by David Tardif) included Jordan Logan, Jacob Hillsdon, Colby Couzens, Joseph Lynes and Kade Yaschuk. …………………………………………………… The 3rd-seeded Meadow Lake Carpenter Spartans smacked the 14th-seeded Melville Cobras 81-38. “Because we came into regionals ranked third, we played a lower seeded team first,” Carpenter coach Kendra Paramchuk told the Prince Albert Daily Herald. “It was a nice experience for our team because everyone got a chance to be on the court, which isn’t always easy because you don’t want to change your pace too much in terms of who usually plays where.” Damon Martin-Durocher paced the Spartans with 26. …………………………………………………… The 11th-seeded Saskatoon Bedford Road Redmen defeated the 6th-seeded North Battleford Vikings 72-64. The Vikings included Keegan Chartier, Landon Aimoe, Damon Dutton, Austin Nielsen, Matt Dutton, Cole Toovey, Cole Simon, Karl Ottenbreit, Taylon Elderkin and Jesse McNabb.
In the
quarterfinals, the top-seeded Melfort Comets mauled the 8th-seeded
Humboldt Mohawks 90-71 as Troy Taylor scored 18. “You could tell we hadn’t played
in two weeks and it took a bit to get the jitters out,” Taylor told the Melfort
Journal. “It was good for us to play a closer game for a while but we battled
through.”
The 4th-seeded Moose
Jaw Central Cyclones clocked the 5th-seeded Warman Wolverines 86-71
on the strength of a 36-point fourth quarter. “Our guys one minute will do
something completely bizarre and the next minute, they’ll do something
fantastic. We need to see more of the fantastic, than the bizarre,” Central
coach Leigh Pethick told the Moose Jaw Times-Herald. Central trailed 25-15
after one quarter as Wolverine guards Cole Balaski and Josh Misskey dominated. “We
told them that they have two guys who are really good and our guys heard us
tell them, but they didn’t really believe it until after that first quarter was
over,” said Pethick. “After that, they did what we wanted them to do all along
— deny them the ball and stay in their face. That’s why we were able to come
back and tie the game by the end of the third and run away with it at the end.”
The game was tied at 55 after three quarters. Zach Lethbridge led the Cyclones
with 21. Parker Chow added 19, Abu Dukyly 15 and Joel Forer 8. The Cyclones
played without post Dez Hendrickson, who sprained an ankle in the Moose Jaw
city finals. Misskey led Wolverines with 33. Balaski added 25.
The 2nd-seeded Weyburn Eagles stomped the 10th-seeded Regina F.W. Johnson Wildcats 83-47.
In the last quarterfinal, the 3rd-seeded Meadow Lake Carpenter Spartans edged the 11th-seeded Saskatoon Bedford Road Redmen 65-62 on a trey by Blake Prete with 20 seconds to play. “They had some fast-paced guards, but we were able to adjust our defence to gain a 10-point lead,” in the first half, Carpenter coach Kendra Paramchuk told the Prince Albert Daily Herald. The Bears tied it early in the second half and it was close to the final buzzer. “They’re likely to have more games like that at provincials,” Paramchuk said. “But it was great to see the team work so well together and it was especially nice to have so many fans come out and support us throughout the weekend. That kind of support truly does help the team succeed.” Prete said “we didn’t play our best basketball this past weekend, but we ended up making it happen and that’s all that matters.”
In the semis, the top-seeded Melfort Comets dusted the 4th-seeded Moose Jaw Central Cyclones 71-47. “Our guys really stepped up in the fourth quarter, holding them to only four points while Alex (Linnell) and Troy (Taylor) sparked the offense with a handful of three pointers,” coach Mitch Taylor told the Melfort Journal.
In the other semi, the 3rd-seeded Meadow Lake Carpenter Spartans stunned the 2nd-seeded Weyburn Eagles 78-66.
In the bronze medal match, the 4th-seeded Moose Jaw Central Cyclones dispatched the 2nd-seeded Weyburn Eagles 51-45. The Eagles included Adair Borys.
In the final, the top-seeded Melfort Comets defeated the 3rd-seeded Meadow Lake Carpenter Spartans 73-65. “I’m super proud of our kids for the way they stepped up this weekend. Though we’d beaten everyone we played in our category thus far, Tim (Johnstone) and I tried our best to drive home the point that everyone is going to play their best game of the season against us. Our guys met the challenge with intensity the entire weekend,” Comets’ coach Mitch Taylor told the Melfort Journal. Taylor added that Curtis Glanville, Jomar Malaggay, Tyler Jones and Troy Taylor all made major contributions. As well, “(Kalen) Senecal kept the defense in line, helping our intensity to stay through the roof. Lee (Taylor) had a big rebound near the end of the game, wrestling the ball away from the Meadow Lake player, following it up by scoring our last points that didn’t come from Alex (Linnell).” Linnell hit six straight free throws with the game on the line to ice the win. He finished with 22 points, four rebounds and 10 steals. “Alex stepped up in the clutch, making the free throws when it mattered to ice the game,” Taylor said. “To win a provincial championship, it takes a real team effort. It began with our kids who didn’t get any court time this weekend pushing our starters in practice all week. This prepared them for the defensive intensity they would see at Hoopla, and it was finished off with the eight kids who saw the floor this weekend.” Taylor said. Damon Martin-Durocher paced the Spartans with 24.
The bronze medalist Moose Jaw Central Cyclones: Bryton Slater; Joel Forer; Ryan Reidy; Caleb Havanka; Parker Chow; Bailey Wong; Austin Drake; Abu Dukuly; Zach Lethbridge; Dez Henrikson; Samuel Rigetti; Austin Cardinal; coach Leigh Pethick
The silver medalist Meadow Lake Carpenter Spartans: Blake Prete; Kamren Leschuk; Damon Martin-Durocher; Travis Greyeyes; Aaron McIntyre; coach Jesse Shakotko; assistant Kendra Syrota
The gold medalist Melfort Comets: Alex Linnell; Troy Taylor; Curtis Glanville; Lee Taylor; Kalen Senecal; Tyler Jones; Jomar Malaggay; Ty Pederson; coach Mitch Taylor; assistant Tim Johnstone