In the opening round: …………………………………………………… The 14th-seeded Ladner Delta Pacers upset the 9th-seeded Burnaby St. Thomas More Knights 92-80 as 6-4 forward Navi Sekhon scored 37 points and grabbed 17 boards. Jamie Houtman added 17, Onkar Bahia 14 and Jesse Vaid 14. “We shot unbelievable,” Sekhon told the Vancouver Sun. “We probably didn’t miss very much in the third quarter. It got them completely out of their game.” As a youngster, Sekhon had begged his father to put up a hoop on the garage so he could hone his shooting touch. It was put up 12 feet off the ground but Sekhon developed a touch that led him to average 33 ppg on the season. The Pacers outscored the Knights 25-8 during a second-quarter run to take command. They led by as many as 29. Although the Knights ripped off a 22-8 run down the stretch, it was too little, too late. “Some of those shots we hit were just lovely,” Delta coach Duncan Anderson told the Vancouver Province. Anderson told the Sun “our fans made a slight mistake though in singing the ‘Goodbye song’ in the third quarter. I knew there was another quarter left and they have got lots of pride. I knew they weren’t going to just roll over and die and they certainly didn’t. They took a good run at us.” Pacers coach Joe Thierman told the Sun “I thought we were really out of sync for over 2 1/2 quarters. The flow of the game was in their tempo and unfortunately, we weren’t able to counteract that until the later stages of the game. I haven’t seen a team shoot that well for a long time, from anywhere and everywhere.” Eoin McCarthy led the Knights with 22 (also reported as 20). Dominic Zimmerman added 20 and Sean Velasco 12. The Knights also included Davor Rukavina. …………………………………………………… The 10th-seeded Steveston Packers capitalized on a 12-0 run that bookended the half to rout the 8th-seed Clearbrook MEI Eagles 70-63 as Novell Thomas scored 24, Matt Guilliani 15 and Setrak Merdinyan 15. “It was a very good team effort,” Packers coach Rod Jensen told the Province. “We really stepped it up a notch defensively in the third quarter.” Ben Neufeld led the Eagles with 18. Gary Borne added 14 and Andrew Penner 10. The Eagles also included Greg Falk, Lance Parker. …………………………………………………… The 11th-seeded Vancouver John Oliver Jokers dumped the 7th-seeded North Vancouver Sutherland Sabres 57-53 as Will Loftus scored 18 and nabbed 8 boards, while 6-3 center Sasha Chukich scored 14, grabbed 11 boards and made six steals. Tim Lambton added 10. The Jokers got their inside game on track in the fourth quarter. Chris Reimer paced the Sabres with 23. Todd Hinton added 10. The Sabres (coached by Al Rose) also included Dean Lashley, Jacob Merchant. …………………………………………………… The 3rd-seeded Maple Ridge Ramblers dumped the 18th-seed Esquimalt Dockers 74-61 after outscoring the Dockers 24-8 in the second quarter. The Dockers were in the draw for the first time since 1964. Marc Lemire paced the Ramblers with 18. Jody Hart added 12 and Rob James 10. Morgan Jackson paced the Dockers with 27 points and 12 boards. Greg Brooke added 10. The Dockers led 18-16 after one quarter. The Ramblers led 40-26 at the half. Dockers coach Bryn Barker told the Victoria Times-Colonist “we played with them for three quarters of the game and we just had one bad quarter. We played but we just had a lot of turnovers.” The Dockers also included Roger Harper, Ian Scott.
In the second round: …………………………………………………… The 10th-seeded Steveston Packers pounded the 6th-seeded North Vancouver Argyle Pipers 78-50. The Pipers collectively shaved their heads prior to the game in show of solidarity. But it was to no avail as Novell Thomas scored 32 on 12-20 from the floor. Setrak Merdinyan added 15, Matt Guliani 15, Jas Singh 12 and Steve Lee 11. Packers coach Rod Jenson told the Richmond Review that Thomas “is playing very well and I think he likes the Agrodome. He contributed in almost every play and he also plays tough defence. He’s one of the best guards ever.” The Packers led 25-21 after one quarter and 39-35 at the half. Rob Kaczynski paced the Pipers with 21. The Pipers also included Rob Horne, Sean Cameron, Jesse Hawkins. …………………………………………………… The 5th-ranked Richmond Colts dumped the 15th-seeded Courtenay G.P. Vanier Towhees 100-79 as grade 11 forward Andrew Mavis scored 34 on 13-21 from the floor. “I took a cold shower and then I was all right,” Mavis, who was up at 5 a.m. and arrived at the Agrodome by seven, told the Vancouver Province. The Colts led 44-39 at the half. Mavis told the Richmond Review that “it was fun to play in this gymn. … They left me open a bit because they had to respect Bobby (Singh’s) three-point ability.” Colts coach Bill Drisbow said “Andrew is also very modest. … They can all shoot. When we’re playing well, we’re tough to beat.” Chris Lake added 17, Bobby Singh 17 and Les Leonhardt 12. Chris MacDonald led the Towhees with 27. Dan MacMillan added 17 and Brian Stevens 14. …………………………………………………… The 2nd-seeded Port Coquitlam Terry Fox Ravens dismantled the Terrace Caledonia Kermodes 111-62 as Bret Anderson scored 44 (also reported as 43), including 31 in the first half. The Ravens front line of Anderson, 6-8 center Dave Morgan and forward Chris Szarka dominated the paint and hit .630 from the floor. Szarka added 18 points and Morgan 13. Anderson was determined to perform after a dismal outing in the Fraser Valley championships, in which the Ravens lost to the North Delta Huskies and he’s scored only nine. “I wasn’t happy with my performance at all in the Fraser Valleys,” Anderson told the Vancouver Sun. “All week, I’ve been thinking about just coming out and play a lot better. Maybe at the Valleys, I just wanted to win too much.” Co-coach Don Van Os said “Brett’s got a lot of pride and the problem sometimes is that he just puts too much burden on himself.” Fernando Milhomens paced the Kermodes with 21. Jon Shepherd added 11. The Kermodes (coached by Cam McKay) also included Dean Beeson, Jassie Osei-Tutu, Fraser McKay. …………………………………………………… Martin Ash scored the final seven points of the game from the free throw line as defending champ Victoria St. Michaels University Blue Devils defeated the Vancouver John Oliver Jokers 68-62. With 1:13 remaining and John Oliver leading 62-61, Blue Devils’ Martin Nash took the game into his own hands, creating turnovers, drawing fouls and going 7-8 from the line over the final 1:07. Nash finished with 37. Damian Grant added 10. Sasha Chukich paced the Jokers with 21. Tim Lambton added 10. The Jokers also included Will Loftus, Pat Ng, Len Lee. …………………………………………………… The 13th-seeded Kelowna Owls dumped the 14th-seeded Ladner Delta Pacers 72-55. The Owls outscored the Pacers 36-18 in the second half. Roy Kruiswyk paced the Owls with 17. Graeme Magowan added 17, Josh Tieske 14 and Kody Umpherville 12. Navi Sekhon led the Pacers with 30. The Pacers (coached by Duncan Anderson) also included Jamie Houtman, Onkar Bahia, Opi Sanghera, Jesse Vaid. …………………………………………………… The top-seeded North Delta Huskies toppled the unranked Nelson L.V. Rogers Bombers 96-61 behind 23 points and three first-half slam dunks by Sean Ramjagsingh. Graham Dutt added 17. Brad Berrikoff paced the Bombers with 26. The Bombers also included Chris Sylvester, Mike Dalgleish. …………………………………………………… The 3rd-seeded Maple Ridge Ramblers dumped the 16th-seeded Prince George Polars 75-57. The Ramblers ripped off a decisive 17-7 run in the third quarter. Marc Lemire led the Ramblers with 26. Rob James added 16 and Jody Hart 12. “We got off to a really good start,” Polars co-coach Dave Holmes told the Prince George Citizen. “We got away on them 16-7 but they slowly brought it back. We were tied 32-32 at halftime and we went into the fourth down by six but we couldn’t reel it in from there.” Holmes said the Polars were undone by giving up second-chance opportunities on the boards. Jesse Poelzer paced the Polars with 15. Trevor Romanow added 14 and Ryan Peelzer 10The Polars (co-coached by Holmes and Al MacDonald) also included Harv Sandhu. …………………………………………………… The Vancouver College Fighting Irish crushed the Rutland Voodoos 105-38 as Gerald Cole scored 20, Dan Norton 11, John Dumont 11 and Pat Inglis 11. Seven of the Irish scored 9 or more. Ben Landis led the Voodos with 12. The Voodoos also included Steve Ivanitz, Graeme Peters.
In the quarterfinals, the Port Coquitlam Terry Fox Ravens annihilated the Victoria St. Michaels University Blue Devils 104-47 after opening the contest with a 24-0 run. Bret Anderson paced the Ravens with 21. Chris Szarka added 16, Dave Morgan 12 and Vic Gregoire 11. Martin Nash led the Blue Devils with 24. The Blue Devils (coach Ian Hyde-Lay, co-coach Bill Greenwell, manager Erik Lund) also included Damian Grant, Ryan Green, Hywel Jones, Andrew Shostake, Stu Kerr, Aaron Clark, Andrew Berry, Andrew Clough, Dave Angus, Matt Franklin, Emmet Connolly, Cam Jantzen, Roger Huang and Andrew Bouchard.
The Richmond Colts edged the Steveston Packers 72-69 as 6-3, 290-pound centre Bobby Singh sunk the winning layup with 40 seconds remaining on the clock. Singh’s layup gave the Colts a 70-66 lead and they hung on for the win as Chris Lake hit two free throws with 4.8 seconds to play. A Packers bomb at the buzzer miss the mark. Colts coach Bill Drisbow told the Richmond Review that “it was graduation night for our grade 11s. They had to make some tough foul shots and some big hoops when we needed it. We shot very well and it made a big difference in the game.” Packers coach Rod Jensen said “it came down to free throws. We didn’t get into the gym as much as they did.” The Packers led 18-17 after one quarter. The Packers (coached by Rod Jensen) included Novell Thomas, Setrak Merdinyan, Matt Guilliani, Jas Singh, Steve Lee, Mike McDonell.
The top-seeded North Delta Huskies defeated the 13th-seeded Kelowna Owls 54-50. The Huskies built a 29-11 lead early in the second quarter but their offence stalled as the Owls held the Huskies scoreless until the final 40.1 seconds of the 10-minute period while responding with a 19-0 run. Huskies’ Peter Vall, plagued with early foul problems, came on late to hit two critical hoops down the stretch to finish with a game 20. “We’re a very good team when we’re down 10 or 12 (points),” Huskies coach Tyler Kushnir told the Vancouver Province. “But when we’re up 20 early, we tend to think we’ve got it in the bag. We don’t have that great killer instinct sometime.” Clark Haynes added 17 for the Huskies and 6-10 post Sean Ramjagsingh 8. Kushnir told the Vancouver Sun that his squad’s inconsistency was inexplicable. “It’s beyond what I can do now. If we can’t get up to play Richmond or Steveston (in tonight’s semi-final), then we don’t deserve to go any further.” Graeme Magowan paced the Owls with 14. Roy Kruiswyk added 12. The Owls also included Josh Tieske, Kody Umpherville.
In the last quarterfinal, the 4th-seeded Vancouver College Fighting Irish defeated the 3rd-seed Maple Ridge Ramblers 68-60. Gerald Cole, who’d broken his wrist in November, engineered an 11-point second half comeback, hitting 8-14 from the field, including five treys to finish with a game-high 22. The Ramblers built a 56-45 lead early in the third quarter – inside from forward Marc Lemire and outside from guard Jason Drinkle. Both scored 18. Lemire nabbed 14 boards. But the Irish shut down the Ramblers’ inside game in the fourth quarter. “On defence we’re always talking about four stages,” Irish coach Bob Corbett told the Vancouver Province. “Talk it, touch it, decide it, deny it. Denying is the important one and we did it.” Maple Ridge did not score a basket over the final 2:56. Corbett told the Vancouver Sun that he inspired his players by telling them “we’ve stepped up to the door two years in a row, knocked on it and we haven’t got anywhere. This year, we’re just going to kick the son of a bitch in.” John Dumont, who scored all 6 on his points in the final quarter, while blocking two shots, told the Sun that “I think our experience is going to be a big key.” Corbett said that since Cole returned from his injury, “our whole team’s maturity and poise has tripled and I think that made a big difference.” Cole’s five treys included one that knotted the score at 30 with 3.5 minutes to play, and the trey that brought the Irish even at 60-60 with 3.5 minutes to go. “They were on the verge of going down,” lamented Maple Ridge coach Ken Dockendorf. “Another hoop, maybe a key block. … We just got beat by a better team.” The Ramblers also included Jody Hart, Jeremy Hart, Rob James, Chad Newman, J.B. Rundquist.
In the semis, the top ranked North Delta Huskies defeated the Richmond Colts 65-62 as 6-0 Peter Vall hit a running three-pointer with 1:21 to go to put North Delta ahead 64-62. “When the time comes, he’s the one who has to be there,” Huskies coach Tyler Kushnir told the Vancouver Sun. “His shooting, his entire play has just carried us right through the playoffs. He’s been the man, there’s no doubt.” Vall scored 14 in the second half alone and finished with 20 points, 3 assists and 4 steals. “I’m a streak shooter and when I feel it, I want to shoot the ball,” Vall told the Sun. The Huskies led by 8 early but the rallied to knot the score at 42 in the third quarter. Vall scored the next 6 and then Clark Haynes notched a trey early in the fourth quarter to re-take an 8-point lead. Chris Lake rallied the Colts who took a 62-60 lead on a Bobby Singh putback. Haynes hit a foul shot and then Vall the winning trey. “We’re a team that sort of plays on the edge, maybe a little too much on the edge,” said Vall. “But this was the kind of game we needed. Those first two games we didn’t really play up to anything. This game will really set the tone for the final.” Haynes added 14 for the Huskies and Jeff White 13, along with 12 boards.
In the other semi, the Port Coquitlam Terry Fox Ravens sent the Vancouver College Fighting Irish down to their third straight provincial semi-final loss with an easy 89-69 victory as Bret Anderson scored 27 and Dave Morgan 21. Vancouver College was paced by Steve Doherty 17, John Dumont 16 and Pat Inglis 16.
In the bronze medal match, the Vancouver College Fighting Irish pounded the Richmond Colts 93-79 as Gerald Cole scored 21, Pat Inglis 21 and John Dumont 18. Bobby Singh paced the Colts with 21. Andrew Mavis added 17. The Colts (coached by Bill Drisbow) also included Ben Mayan, Chris Lake, Les Leonhardt.
The Port Coquitlam Terry Fox Ravens and North Delta Huskies made it an all Fraser Valley final with the Ravens and MVP Bret Anderson winning their first crown with a 77-72 overtime victory. The final was also a rematch of the Fraser Valley championship, which North Delta had won by eight. Port Coquitlam coach Don Van Os attempted to inspire his team by appealing to the spirit of the school’s namesake, Terry Fox, whose journey across Canada had inspired the nation. After the loss to North Delta in the Fraser Valley playoffs, Van Os told the Vancouver Sun that “something was missing. We needed something motivational.” He put Terry Fox quotes on the blackboard and had his team watch a Terry Fox documentary. “The whole spirit of Terry Fox is just so crucial to the school. It means so much,” Van Os noted. “We kept saying Terry ran 26 miles a day and we looked at each day of the tournament as our own marathon. And then (Friday) night, I said ‘you know guys, as Terry got into the run and as the crowds grew, he started running more than 26. He started running 28 and 30 miles.’ Maybe it’s a bit corny at times, but Terry is so important to our school. We’re representing that whole spirit of Terry Fox.” The two teams had split their four games during the season and the final was a close affair until North Delta took a seven-point lead three minutes into the fourth quarter. Terry Fox fought back and tied the game at 67 when Grade 11 center Dave Morgan hit a shot from the low post with three seconds to go to tie the game and send it into overtime. In the extra period, North Delta took a 69-67 lead on Seam Ramjagsingh’s slam dunk. A minute later, Morgan hit two free throws and then tourney MVP Brett Anderson drove for a field goal. After North Delta’s Craig Pettie missed a free throw, the Ravens’ Vic Grigore hit a trey with 34 seconds to go. A key Anderson steal in the final minute and a layup ensured the victory. “It’s just such a great feeling,” said Grigore. “Using Terry Fox as a model really helped us to set a determination for ourselves. We watched that film and it really kind of motivates you watching a guy like that. He set goals for himself and we did too.” Davis Sanchez said missed free throws down the stretch proved the Huskies undoing. Anderson finished with 28, Morgan 14 and Vic Grigore 11. Sean Ramjagsingh paced the Huskies with 23. Jeff White added 18, Davis Sanchez 10 and Peter Vall 10. “This is an unbelievable feeling,” said Anderson. “What a game. It seemed like they had a four-point lead for so long and we couldn’t overcome it. Then Dave hit the big hoop to send it into OT and it just gave us an emotional lift.” Forward Chris Szarka added that “I think (Terry) would probably be really proud of us, how we represented him. We did absolutely the best we could.” Huskies coach Tyler Kushnir told the Surrey Leader that “it was just two great teams battling it out. These two teams would go 10-10 if they had to play each other 20 times.” Davis Sanchez said “they played tough. They have a gutsy bunch of guys. We had them by the throat but couldn’t finish them. They kept coming back.”
The bronze medalist Vancouver College Fighting Irish: Steve Doherty; John Dumont; Patrick Inglis; Gerald Cole; Brian Cariono; Tony Morgan; Gary Lam; Danny Norton; Nathanial Watson-Donald; Tyler Federal; Kevin Waterhouse; Sim Sahi; Matthew Kettlewell; coach Bob Corbett; assistant Vito Pasquale; assistan John Levering; assistant Malcolm Reid; manager Tom Poirier; manager Kyan Cheng
The silver medalist North Delta Huskies: Peter Vall; Sean Ramjagsingh; Craig Pettie; Jeff White; Davis Sanchez; Peter Vall; Clark Haynes; Graham Dutt; coach Tyler Kushnir
The gold medalist Port Coquitlam Terry Fox Ravens: Bret Anderson; Dave Morgan; Chris Szarka; Vic Grigore; Steve Penner; John Murphy; Jason McIvor; Orson Choi; Rob Finlay; Spencer Finlay; Aaron Iverson; Darren McIntosh; Jesse Menzies; Tim Murphy; Bill Nadalin; Chris Szarka; co-coach Rich Chambers; co-coach Don Van Os; assistant Mike Hind