In the Interzone finals, Brandon T.A. Neelin Spartans clipped the Dauphin Clippers 77-68 as Theo Farough scored 31 and Mark Jacobson 27. Quinn Thacker led the Clippers with 34. Tyler Cook added 18. …………………………………………………… The zone 3 champ Winnipeg St. James Jimmies dumped the zone 4 champs Sanford Sabres 103-83.
In the four-team wildcard playoff: …………………………………………………… In the semis, the Winnipeg Nelson McIntyre Maroons dusted the Dauphin Clippers 92-60. The Clippers (coached by Trevor Beals) included Quin Hercina, Quinn Thacker. …………………………………………………… In the other semi, the St. Norbert Celtics clipped the Winnipeg Gray Academy Raiders 70-60. …………………………………………………… In the final, the St. Norbert Celtics dispatched the Winnipeg Nelson McIntyre Maroons 77-67.
In the quarterfinals, the top-seeded Winnipeg St. James Jimmies thrashed the 8th-seeded Lorette Scorpions 81-41. The Scorpions included Matt Moore, Kevin Holden, Parker Gerrard, Allan Daoust, Jonathan Comeau, Billy Lofthus, Troy Glowachuk, Randy Starkman, Bryce Pichlyk, Shante Murdock, Luke Hogan and Brandon Tremblay.
The 5th-seeded Winnipeg Linden Christian Wings (coached by Nick Janzen and Anthony Rowan) upset the 4th-seeded Winnipeg Westgate Mennonite Wings 84-77. Levi Bergen of Westgate Mennonite later received the Player’s Choice Award. The Wings (coached by Karl Wiebe and David Bergen) also included Thomas Friesen, Drew Deamel, Cam Lawlor-Forsyth, Zach Rempel, Brendan Dyck, Paul Hildebrand, Tyler Kennedy, John Patterson, Ben Miller, Joshua Neustaedter Barg, Devin Friesen, Ray Kopeschny and Josh Zaharia.
The 2nd-seeded Winnipeg St. John’s-Ravenscourt Eagles clubbed the 7th-seeded Thompson R.D. Parker Trojans 81-54. “The boys were very nervous,” said Trojans coach Jonathan Wamboldt. “SJR was playing in their home gym and had the gym packed with spectators. It was very intimidating. We missed some easy buckets at the beginning and turned the ball over which dug us in a hole. We played a better second half but it was too late.” The Trojans (coached by Wamboldt, assisted by Stan Wong) included Kristian Dreolini, Landen Sorensen, Zach Sanders, Tevin Wong, Kyle Loewen, Matthew Gillis, Arnav Sud, Avery Darechuk, Jacky Colombe, Abhinav Sud, James MacLean, Alex Ryan and Francis Bafoee.
In the last quarterfinal, the 3rd-seeded St. Norbert Celtics edged the 6th-seeded Brandon T.A. Neelin Spartans 57-53. The Spartans (coached by Don Thomson, assisted by Matt Warren and Jeremy Wielenga) Isaac Stark, Osian Edwards, Jody Ruskin, Chance Miller, Kendrick Co, Tegan Nagorski, Tyler Minshull, Theo Farough, Mark Jacobson, Dylan Minshull, Brandon Williams and Josh Watkins.
In the semis, the top-seeded Winnipeg St. James Jimmies clipped the 5th-seeded Winnipeg Linden Christian Wings 79-60. Joey Ducharme was chosen player of the game for the Jimmies, while Mitch Klassen earned the laurels for the Wings.
In the other semi, the 2nd-seeded Winnipeg St. John’s-Ravenscourt Eagles nipped the 3rd-seeded St. Norbert Celtics 54-50.
In the bronze medal match, the 3rd-seeded St. Norbert Celtics dusted the 5th-seeded Winnipeg Linden Christian Wings 79-64. Liam Collier was chosen player of the game for the Celtics, while Evan Aukema earned the laurels for the Linden Christian. The Wings (coached by Nick Janzen and Anthony Rowan, assisted by Andrew Ens) also included Josh Baraquiel, Jason Wegner, Julian Rowan, Tyler Parks, Barru Balcha, Josh Dalzell, David Charach, Caleb Mueller, David Barbour, Mitch Klassen, Josh Davison and Aaron Peddle.
In the final, the top-seeded Winnipeg St. James Jimmies outlasted the 2nd-seeded Winnipeg St. John’s-Ravenscourt Eagles 88-83 in overtime to earn their first provincial crown since 1959. Raymond Tuazon was chosen player of the game for the Jimmies after scoring 32, while Dror Liebenthal earned the laurels for the Eagles after scoring 29. “We’re very proud that we’ve done something that’s really special for us and the school,” said Jimmies point guard Brenden Gali. Coach Ryan Kangas said at the start of the season, tournament MVP Joey Ducharme predicted a provincial title. “We do our player and team goals at the start of the year. A lot of the guys had goals of making provincials, or being ranked, or winning a tournament. One player, Joey, said his goal was to lose five or less games and win provincials. Everybody looked at him like he was crazy.” St. James trailed by as many as 16 points in the fourth quarter, but kept believing that a tenacious full-court pressure defence would wear down the bigger SJR team. The Jimmies chipped away at the lead until finally, with less than 15 seconds remaining, Grade 11 forward Raymond Tuazon, tied the game with a three-pointer. “At first I was a bit shocked it went in,” said Tuazon. “Our team, no matter what, always plays hard until the end. We never put our heads down.” SJR went on to miss two free throws and a pair of tip-in attempts, sending the game to overtime. Grade 11 guard Ronel Banilbo wasn’t all that surprised that Ducharme’s prediction came true. “Our chemistry together is so good. We know each other’s roles. … We’ve been playing together since middle school, and we’ve always been undersized so we’ve had to work more as a team.”
The bronze medalist St. Norbert Celtics: Liam Collier; Jeff Cloud; Fergus Branton; Jon Janke; Adam Benson; Aaron Radwanski; Mike Chahal; Mitch Woods; Brody Sitar; Kyle Giesbrecht; coach B.J. Chahal; coach Graham Collier; manager Tiffany Lagace
The silver medalist Winnipeg St. John’s-Ravenscourt Eagles: Eric Morrish; Albert Yeung; Justin Mang’era; Nir Liebentha; Eli Koulack; Anthony Chung; Kent Mundle; Dror Liebenthal; Connor Mitchell; Neelan Sriranjan; Daniel Fernandes; Mathieu Haiart; Aidan Baker; Dylan Floyde; Caleb Holden; coach Carren Johnson; coach Guy Magnusson
The gold medalist Winnipeg St. James Jimmies: Raymond Tuazon; Joey Ducharme; Ronel Banilbo; Brendan Gali; Erik Nottveit; Judd Eusebio; Rodney Brown; Tyler Carswell; Ian Stratton; Carlo Dungca; Riley Lewchuk; Edward Vallo; Kean Goodwin; Kevin Gelo; Ryan Smith; coach Ryan Kangas; assistant Dennis Dare; assistant Jeff Eusebio; assistant Adam Lister