In the Toronto Metro regional quarterfinals, the St. Michael’s Blue Raiders whipped the Stephen Leacock Collegiate Lions 85-44 as Leo Rautins scored 34. Tom Smith led Leacock with 24. The Lions (coached by John Volpe) also included Tony Simms, Scott Noell, Noel Nedrick, Mike Czirjak. …………………………………………………… In the other quarterfinal, the Runnymede Redmen edged the Earl Haig Haigmen 63-62 in overtime as Jamie Blair scored 18. Herman Altun paced the Haigmen with 27. The Haigmen (coached by Craig Williamson) also included Dave Ruskanen, Dick Zabunyan, Uton Wilson, Bruce McBride, Bob Binnington. …………………………………………………… In the semis, the Kipling Wildcats dispatched the Oakwood Barons 67-55 as Dan Morrison scored 20. Robert Clarke led the Barons with 17. Norm Clarke added 16. The Barons (coached by Terry Thompson) also included Darryl Outschoorn, Mark Jones. …………………………………………………… In the other semi, the St. Michael’s Blue Raiders clocked the Runnymede Redmen 59-39 as Leo Rautins scored 34. Ron Szezepanski led the Redmen with 14. John Weatherup added 10. The Redmen (coached by John Petruschak) also included Jamie Blair, Steve Julien, Mike Denuzzo, Mitch Zuk, George Schiraldi, John Michalopoulos. …………………………………………………… In the final, the St. Michael’s Blue Raiders defeated the Kipling Wildcats 73-56 as Leo Rautins scored 27, Danny O’Diroco 16 and Mike Heller 12. Mark Hopkins led the Wildcats with 14. Matt Hollister added 12. “They always had one guy on Leo and one close by,” Blue Raiders coach Dan Pendergrast told the Globe & Mail. “But the key was Leo and Mike Heller controlling the boards so effectively.” Wildcats coach Gene Moher said “Mark Hopkins did a good job covering Rautins but they won by cleaning the boards and getting that fast break.”
In the South region playoffs, held in Hamilton: …………………………………………………… In the quarterfinals, the Hamilton Westmount Wildcats (then the Highlanders?) edged the Niagara Falls Stamford Hornets 50-48 as John Grumbach scored 18, Cheddi Warner 17 and Paul Disimoni 9. Wildcats coach Jim Schram told the Hamilton Spectator that “we made a few changes at the half. We went to a press and they tried to press us back, which is what we wanted them to do. Breaking a press is one of our strengths.” The Hornets led 13-5, 34-25 and 38-32 at the quarters. John Kulik paced the Hornets with 17. Wayne Moroz added 13 and Chris Bain 8. Hornets coach Bob Coull told the Niagara Falls Review that “we had a cold spot in the third quarter and they got hot.” The Hornets (coach Bob Coull, manager Jeff Salt) also included Bruce Mateyk, Murray Mateyk, Mark Furlong, Mark Todd, Robin Morse, Paul Thomas, Sandy Furlong and Dave Taylor. …………………………………………………… The Hamilton Collegiate Institute Cougars dumped the Oakville Queen Elizabeth Park Eagles 83-68 as Ed Zubas scored 22, Perry Kazuliak 19 and Jim Steep 10. John Hees led the Eagles with 35. Tony Novielli added 17. …………………………………………………… The St. Catharines Governor Simcoe Redcoats dispatched the Hamilton Southmount Royals 68-62 as Kerry Lichty scored 21, Mark Korchok scored 19, Kerry Lichty 19, Doug Fast 17, Harry Van Laar 6, Frank Peters 3 and John Oliver 3. The Royals led 20-12 after one quarter but the Redcoats opened the second quarter with an 11-0 run and led 37-34 at the half and 52-49 after three quarters. The Royals led 61-60 when layups by Van Laar and Fast gave the Redcoats the lead for good. Redcoats coach Ken Walsh told the St. Catherines Standard that “we got off to a slow start. Southmount is bigger than we are and very aggressive. It took the players a while to get used to being bounced around. We did a good job on their big men on the boards. Our guards played excellent defence. Korchok played the second half with four fouls and Fast started everything moving to change the tempo of the game with his steals to let us come back quickly. Peters shored up our defence by blocking up the middle and forcing Royals to shoot outside.” Jude Kelly led the Royals with 19, while nabbing 10 boards. Rob Kerr added 15 and Bob Phillips 14, while nabbing 12 boards. …………………………………………………… In the last quarterfinal, the Oakville T.A. Blakelock Tabbies dusted the St. Catharines Denis Morris Redmen 71-56 as Rick Bevington scored 25, Steve Atkin 16 and Al Cameron 16. Colin Lyons led the Redmen with 19. Tim Tronzo added 18, Paul Phelan 13, Rico Natale 3 and Wayne Gaudet 3. The score was knotted at 12 after one quarter. The Tabbies took the lead for good with an 8-0 run in the second quarter. Redmen coach Maurice Prindiville told the St. Catharines Standard that “their outside shooting killed us.” The Redmen included Colin Lyons, Tim Sullivan, Paul Phelan, Tim Tronzo, Dave Graffi, Rico Natale, Ed Ulrich, Wayne Gaudet, John Riordan. …………………………………………………… In the semis, the St. Catherines Governor Simcoe Redcoats dispatched the Oakville T.A. Blakelock Tabbies 66-61 as Doug Fast scored 24, Mark Korchok 20, Kerry Lichty 10, Eric Hilton 4, Greg Moffat 4, Harry Van Laar 2 and John Oliver 2. Steve Atkin led the Tabbies with 31, while nabbing 16 boards. Rick Bevington added 13 and Al Cameron 11. The Tabbies led 16-13, 35-27 and 53-43 at the quarters. …………………………………………………… In the other semi, the Hamilton Collegiate Cougars whipped the Hamilton Westmount Wildcats 71-42. The Wildcats (coach Jim Schram) included John Grumbach, Cheddi Warner, Paul Disimoni…………………………………………………… In the final, the St. Catharines Governor Simcoe Redcoats nipped Hamilton Collegiate 53-51, as Kerry Lichty scored 16, Mark Korchok 13 and Doug Fast 10, Greg Peters 6, Harry Van Laar 4, along with 11 boards, John Oliver 2 and Greg Moffat 2. The Redcoats led 19-13 after one quarter. The Cougars led 33-31 at the half. The Redcoats led 45-39 after three quarters. Redcoats coach Ken Walsh told the St. Catharines Standard that “we’ve proved one thing here anyway. We’ve shown we can win the close games. Our defence was great. We tried to stop the Cougars from running because whenever we forced them to play controlled, organized basketball, we were playing to our greatest strength. Van Laar was just out of this world. This had to be his best game of the season.” Ed Zubas led the Cougars with 12. Jim Steep added 10, Perry Kazuliak 8 and Mike Folnovic 7. The Cougars led 33-31 at the half. Cougar Terry Cooke missed a jumper to tie it with 30 seconds to play.
In the North regional: …………………………………………………… In the semis, the Sault Bawating Braves edged Sudbury Secondary 62-58 as Dave Zanatta scored 22, Dave Burden 20, Dan St. Amand 8 and Pat Torquatto 7. The Braves got two free throws from Dave Burden with 16 seconds to play, and a bucket from Pat Torquatto to pulled out the win. Sudbury led 16-14 after one quarter. Bawating led 34-24 at the half and 47-39 after three quarters. Braves coach Murray Hall told the Sault Star that “we stopped their fastbreaks and controlled the boards. … This is the first time we played an entire game of zone defence and it worked really good.” Ned Nanjic paced Sudbury with 23. Karl Subban added 11, Jari Sundholm 8, B.J. Hamilton 6 and Simo Sormaz 6. Sudbury coach Rod McHugh said “we’d never faced a zone defence all year and it showed.” …………………………………………………… In the other semi, Sudbury Lockerby clipped Thunder Bay Westgate 69-61 as Eli Pasquale scored 22, Bob Tassone 14, Brian Fleury 10, Frank Falcioni 6 and Eddy Picco 6. Lockerby led 18-12, 33-28 and 40-39 at the quarters. Greg McLean paced Westgate with 17. Barry Quarreu added 12 and Oscar Bortuzzo 11. …………………………………………………… In the final, the Sault Ste. Marie Bawating Braves clubbed Sudbury Lockerby 81-65 as Dave Zanatta scored 24, Pat Torquatto 24 and Dave Burden 12. Bawating led 21-12, 46-35 and 66-51 at the quarters. Braves coach Murray Hall was “we played excellent, disciplined ball.” Brian Fleury led Lockerby with 18. Eli Pasquale added 16, Ian Fraser 14 and Bob Tassone 12.
In the East regional: …………………………………………………… In the semis, the Ottawa St. Pius X-Men thrashed Cornwall 49-35 after leading 21-18 at the half. Greg Yeldon paced the X-Men with 18. “They are a good hustling team. They had us running all over the place,” X-Men coach Mike Baine told the Ottawa Journal. “They had more trouble against our defence than we had against theirs. We played smart to hang on to the lead and kept adding to it. …………………………………………………… In the other semi, the Ottawa Lisgar Lords whipped Whitby Henry Street 55-34 as Matthew Hadwen scored 17. Shawn Taylor led Whitby with 10. “We had a lot of trouble running our offence,” Lords coach Larry Hale told the Ottawa Journal. “We were fumbling the ball and passing to guys who were well covered. The whole team played poorly except for Matthew Hadwen. The rest of the guys were very tight.” …………………………………………………… In the final, the Ottawa Lisgar Lords clubbed the Ottawa St. Pius X-Men 71-54 as Tom Cholock scored 29. The Lords led 35-27 at the half. “Our theory was that Pius was no good in outside shooting,” Lords coach Larry Hale told the Ottawa Journal. “So we tried to force them into outside shooting.” Greg Yeldon led the X-Men with 23. Willie Hinz added 10. The X-Men (coached by (Mike Baine) also included Phil Franko, Danny Beumish.
In the West regional …………………………………………………… In the quarterfinals, the Brantford St. John’s Green Eagles shaded the Windsor W.D. Lowe Trojans 57-56 as Bob Fitzgerald scored 18, Greg Blaha 14, Pat Campbell 13 and Dan Polischuk 12, while MacKinnon was scoreless. Donnie Brkovich led the Trojans with 22. Richard Wells added 12, Dan Borelli 8 and Piazza 6. The Trojans (coached by Gerry Brumpton) also included Paul Banks, John Demarco, Franzoi, McFadden, Montaleone and Bob Sloan. …………………………………………………… The Waterloo Collegiate Institute Vikings edged the Tilsonburg Glendale Griffins 51-47 as Tim Harrold scored 21 and Roger Triebert 17. Viking Mike Beilac notched a bucket with 13 seconds to go and Tim Harrold a bucket at the buzzer to pull out the win. …………………………………………………… The Guelph John F. Ross Royals clipped London G.A. Wheable 61-48. …………………………………………………… In the last quarterfinal, the Chatham John McGregor Panthers dumped the London Catholic Central Crusaders 51-41 as Mark Kuni scored 15, Bruce Grand 12, Mike Kuni 9, Mark Meko 8 and Ross 7, while Bob Rybansky and Myers were scoreless. Frijia led the Crusaders with 18. Davies added 9, Smith 6, Notreandrea 4, Gleeson 2 and Killeen 2. …………………………………………………… In the semis, the Guelph John F. Ross Royals nipped the Chatham John McGregor Panthers 53-52 in overtime. The Panthers (coached by Larry Lahey) included Bruce Grand, Mike Kuni. …………………………………………………… In the other semi, the Brantford St. John’s Green Eagles dispatched the Waterloo Collegiate Vikings 69-59. The Vikings (coach John Zdrahal) included Rich Nemesvari, Roger Tribert, Mike Bierak, Paul Berger, Jay Brugee, Tim Harrold, John Brugee, Doug Green, Keith Marsink, Peter Wagner, Bruce Gordon and Corey Lee. …………………………………………………… In the final, the Brantford St. John’s Green Eagles stomped the Guelph John F. Ross Royals 57-37.
In the provincial quarterfinals, held in Toronto at York University, Dan Polischuk scored 24, Bob Fitzgerald 21 and Greg Bulandi 15 as the Brantford St. John’s Green Eagles defeated the Hamilton Collegiate Cougars 66-53. The Green Eagles avenged a 28-point loss to the Cougars early in the season. The Green Eagles led 18-12, 30-23 and 44-35 at the quarters, while opening the second half with a 13-0 run. Green Eagles coach Frank Petrella told the Kitchener-Waterloo Record that “we were tight in the first half. We weren’t following rebounds but we managed to slow things down. … When we played them the last night, they threw the press at us and we weren’t ready for it. We were waiting for it this time. … They wanted to run the ball, not us. We slowed things down because the big guy (Green Eagle post Bob Fitzgerald) had three fouls (early in the game).” Terry Cooke led the Cougars with 25 (also reported as 12). Perry Kazuliak added 11 (also reported as 13) and Pete Stoyakovich 11. Cougars coach Mike Flynn told the Hamilton Spectator that “they sure showed us a lot more hustle today than they did the first time we met. They’re a real sharp outfit. Their passing and cutting were excellent. … They were quicker than us and at least as good on the boards.” Flynn told the Kitchener-Waterloo Record that “they were quicker and they are a very disciplined team.” The Cougars (coached by Mike Flynn, assisted by Sheldon Balberman) also included Ed Zubas, Jim Steep, Art Thomas, Sam Vukelich, Jack Mackenzie, John Hall, Steve Hish, Mike Folnovic, Rob Urie and Jim Hrach.
The Sault Ste. Marie Bawating Braves dumped the Etobicoke Kipling Wildcats 66-59 as guard Dave Zanatta scored 34 and Dave Burden 17. The Braves led 19-16, 33-28 and 49-44 at the quarters. Zanatta told the Sault Star that “I guess I played fairly well. Kipling have a good team but the difference in my opinion was that our guys played as a team.” Burden said “Zanatta had a big game. When he had trouble penetrating, he’d compensate with effective outside shooting or drop passes.” Braves coach Murray Hall said “the first half (Zanatta) was forcing himself too hard on defence. He settled down in the second half … We’d have dominated even more than we did had it not been for a drastic first half.” Mark Hopkins led Kipling with 16. Enzo Spagnuolo added 14. Wildcats coach Gene Momer (Moher?) said “we had several things go wrong. A major problem was that we couldn’t contain Zanatta. He killed us with layups on man-to-man coverage. So we switched to a box-plus-one defence and he murders us with long shots.” The Wildcats (coached by Gene Moher) also included Mark Lopaczyk, Don Morrison, Matt Hollister, Gord Tredger, Frank Spagnuolo, Ian Richardson, Mike Hollister.
The St. Catherine’s Governor Simcoe Redcoats dumped the Ottawa Lisgar Lords 66-55 as Kerry Lichty and Doug Fast each scored 18. Fast nabbed 11 boards. Harry Van Laar notched 11 along with 13 boards. Simcoe led 21-12 after one quarter and 38-30 at the half. Lisgar rallied to within 38-37 on an and-one by Tom Cholock but Greg Moffatt stemmed the bleeding with a bucket and Van Laar scored six as Simcoe regained a 54-43 lead after three quarters. Redcoats coach Ken Walsh told the St. Catherines Standard that “Lisgar is in the tournament every year. They’re confidenct, disciplined and experienced that that’s what kept us from blowoing them out of the gym. Our players were tight at first but then they relaxed after the game warmed up. We had to be aggressive on offence. We pressured them to force turnovers and stunted on defence. We keyed on Cholock to keep them from scoring too many points. Fast and Van Laar played very well, with Fast making things happen on defence and Van Laar controlling the boards. When we started missing from outside in the third quarter, we went to Lichty and Van Laar inside.” The Redcoats hit 24-53 from the floor. Lords coach Larry Hale told the Ottawa Journal that “yes, we were nervous again. We were too anxious, over-reaching and running into foul trouble. We lost some key personnel late in the game.” Three starters, Peter Hadwen, Tom Cholock and Matthew Hadwen, fouled out in the fourth quarter. Tom Cholock led Lisgar with 22. Matthew Hadwen added 18. The Lords hit 25-60 from the floor. The Lords (coached by Larry Hale, assisted by Lorne Bowles and managed by Tom Dunn) also included Peter Hadwen, Anthony Hadwen, Don Johnson, Simon Hooper, Pat Blakslee, Lorne Morrow, Jaime Pitfield, Pat Hess, Steve Lister and Ed Krzyzankowski.
In the last quarterfinal, the Toronto St. Michael’s Blue Raiders defeated the Guelph John F. Ross Royals 68-53 as Leo Rautins scored 24 and Mike Heller 16. The teams were tied at 14 after a quarter but St. Michael’s took command of the offensive boards and exploded to a 40-22 lead at the half. Lyn Milne led Guelph with 25. Rautins told Canadian Press that he was disappointed with his performance. “I didn’t shoot well – terrible. It was just one of those games. I was not nervous. I just didn’t concentrate on my shooting. I was floating it too much.” Blue Raiders coach Dan Prendergast told the Kitchener-Waterloo Record that “they have med worried in the first quarter with their outside shooting. Rautins hit 12-27 from the floor. Lynne Milne paced the Royals with 25. Rick Mclewraith added 12 and Mike Heller 10. The Royals (coach Don Ranson) also included John Jones, Perry Tucclarone. Ranson said “they won on rebounds. We outshot them in the first half but they won the big stuff.”
In the semis, the St. Catharines Governor Simcoe Redcoats defeated the highly-touted Toronto St. Michael’s Blue Raiders 63-57. St. Michael’s was led by wunderkind Leo Rautins, who went to play American ball at the universities of Minnesota and Syracuse and subsequently, in the NBA, before being selected coach of the Canadian senior men’s national team. “We will try to take away Leo’s passing lanes. If we can stop him from hurting us there, we should be okay,” said Simcoe coach Ken Walsh heading into the match. That’s exactly what the Redcoats did, with John Oliver, Greg Moffatt and Eric Hilton hounding Rautins constantly. With Harry Van Lear and Doug Fast hitting from outside and Kerry Lichty getting a dunk on a fastbreak, the Redcoats exploded to a 14-point lead. But Rautins rallied St. Michael’s back to a 51-50 lead in the third quarter. The Redcoats began surrounding him on defence and then pulled it out with a Mark Korchok bucket in the final minutes. Doug Fast and Kerry Lichty each scored 22 for Simcoe. Rautins led St. Michael’s with 28. Mike Heller added 16. The Blue Raiders also included Danny Odiroco. Walsh said being the underdog was an advantage. “We lost twice to them this year, the last time by six points. But in that game, we felt that time had run out on us. If we had had a longer game, we would have won it.” Lichty told the St. Catharines Standard that “we had to get up against St. Mike’s or they would have put us into the ground.” St. Michael’s coach Dan Prendergast called it a case of reversed roles. “We beat them twice during the year by controlling the boards and out-rebounding them. This time they turned it around on us. Their guards, especially Mark Korchok, applied a lot of pressure on our guards.” Simcoe led 21-12 after one quarter and 31-28 at the half. St. Michael’s led 50-48 after three quarters.
In the other semi, the Brantford St. John’s Green Eagles defeated the Sault Ste. Marie Bawating Braves 66-61 on the shooting of centre Bob Fitzgerald, who scored 21, and guard Greg Blaha. Dave Zanatta led Bawating with 26 despite being in foul trouble for most of the second half. Pat Torquatto added 14. Braves coach Murray Hall told the Sault Star that “I can’t understand the loss. We were leading by 14 at one time in the second quarter. The team came up cold and starting into foul trouble after only three minutes.” Zanaata picked up two fouls in the first quarter and a third at the start of the second. He collected his fourth foul just 2:18 in the second half and fouled out with 32 seconds to play. Zanatta said “fouls killed us. We should have blown them out in the third quarter but had some questionable fouls called on us and the momentum shifted. They weren’t as talented as Kipling but they had basketball smarts.” Braves guard Enzo Coccimiglio said “our defence stunk in the second half … St. John’s controlled the pace of the game. Bawating led 20-16 after one quarter and 38-34 at the half. The score was knotted at 46 after three quarters. Torquatto and Dan St. Amand notched buckets to give Bawating a four-point lead in the final frame but Fitzgerald countered with two consecutive buckets for the Green Eagles. With 1:25 to play, Zanatta stole the ball from Dave Polishuk but missed a runout layup. Hall claimed Zanatta was fouled on the play but the referees swallowed their whistles. Zanatta and Tim Tulloch then fouled out for the Braves. Green Eagles coach Frank Petrella said “we had Zanatta in just the position we wanted. He started fouling early and that’s what we needed. I would have conceded Zanatta 38 points provided my boys scored 29. … What beat Bawating was our defence.”
In the final, the St. Catharines Governor Simcoe Redcoats whipped the Brantford St. John’s Green Eagles 77-60 as Doug Fast scored 21, Kerry Lichty 13, Harry Van Lear 12 and Frank Peters 11. Governor Simcoe was ahead 50-26 at the half. The Redcoats dominated the first half, exploding to a 32-14 lead while shooting .650 from the floor. The Redcoats led 32-14, 50-26 and 68-38 at the quarters. Greg Blaha led St. John’s with 20. Bob Fitzgerald added 12 and Dave Polischuk 10. Coach Ken Walsh was elated. “Early in the season we weren’t ranked very high but then we really didn’t beat anybody either. But getting Harry back (in early January) and Peters healthy sure turned it around. Our whole team played very well. … Doug Fast really came on for us in the last couple of months and his performance here sure showed it.” Walsh told the St. Catherines Standard that “this is the best basketball team I’ve ever had. … We have everything on this team. We have depth, shooters and rebounders. We’ve also played many different styles of basketball to get here. A team has to be able to play all styles of ball to get to the top.” He added that “the first half against St. John’s was flawless basketball. Our big guys intimidated them and kept them outside while we were always inside. We ran our offensive very well and our defence was excellent while big men did the rebounding. The kids were really up for it. Doug Fast was outstanding. He controlled everything and made things happen. Greg Peters was good inside and also very well against St. Mike’s. It was important that our bench play well and they did. Eagles came running back at us in the second half and narrowed the gap but our guards were penetrating and we came back to build the score up again. Everyone played just great.” Green Eagles coach Frank Petrella told the Brantford Expositor that “our advancing to the all-Ontario championships is proof that a small school like St. John’s can compete with the larger collegiates in Ontario. I’m very proud of them, they had a great season. Tonight Governor Simcoe opened very strongly, they shot very well at the beginning and we couldn’t catchup. … Their height was certainly an advantage. They were more physical than we were on the boards.”
The co-bronze medalist Toronto St. Michael’s Blue Raiders: Leo Rautins; John Grilli; Mike Heller; Leneo Sdao; Danny Odorico; Greg Hook; Vic Simkus; Oscar Traynor; Rob Leonardelli; Peter Balaban; Tony Pulice; Gino Saccone; Dave Neale; coach Dan Prendergast
The co-bronze medalist Sault Ste. Marie Bawating Braves: Dave Zanatta; Dave Burden; Pat Torquatto; Peter Jureviouskis; Dan Oliana; Dan St. Amand; Enzo Coccimiglio; Tim Tulloch; coach Murray Hall
The silver medalist Brantford St. John’s Green Eagles: Dan Polischuk; Bob Fitzgerald; Gregg Blaha; Pat Campbell; Rick MacKinnon; Rob Bulanda; coach Frank Petrella
The gold medalist St. Catharines Governor Simcoe Redcoats: Greg Moffatt; Harry Van Laar; Mark Korchok; Doug Fast; Kerry Lichty; Frank Peters; Eric Hilton; Ken Block; John Oliver; Craig Anderson; Ken Quait; Mike Walsh; John Walsh; Greg Peters; Terry Zacharias; coach Ken Walsh; assistant George Oliver; manager Gord Shand; manager Dave Lennard