| (1) | Thompson Rivers | 83 | ||||||
| (8) | Champlain-St. Lambert | 61 | Thompson Rivers | 70 | ||||
| (4) | Humber | 70 | Humber | 78 | Humber | 55 | ||
| (5) | Champlain-Lennoxville | 49 | ||||||
| —–HUMBER | ||||||||
| (2) | Grant MacEwan | 79 | ||||||
| (7) | St. Thomas | 77 | Grant MacEwan | 82 | Sheridan | 51 | ||
| (3) | Sheridan | 70 | Sheridan | 85 | ||||
| (6) | Langara | 65 |
In the quarterfinals, held in Toronto, Robbie Valpreda scored 26 and was chosen player of the game as the 2nd-seeded Grant MacEwan Griffins nipped the 7th-seeded St. Thomas Tommies 79-77. Mike Bonnar, who scored 24, including four from beyond the arc, was chosen player of the game for St. Thomas, which controlled the tempo in the first half with its quickness. National player of year Valpreda added 25 boards. He scored most of his points in the second half after shooting 3-14 in the first. “I was nervous as hell, to tell you the truth,” he said. “I tried to create things on my own and I shouldn’t have done that but I played better in the second half.” Bonnar missed a three at the buzzer that would have given the Tommies the win. “It was a great look for me. I was wide open but I just came up short. It happens.” Bonnar had converted a fast break layup to give his team a 66-62 lead with seven minutes to play when Valpreda took over. The 6-9 forward tipped in a missed free throw by teammate Tom Coyne and then got three aggressive boards over the next 1:30 to lite a fire in his teammates. They got six consecutive offensive rebounds to rally back. But the Griffins struggled from the foul line, allowing the Tommies to keep it close. “We missed seven layups and shot .500 from the line,” said Griffins coach Phil Allen. “We knew we were going to get fouled from the charity stripe. If we make those, it’s a different ball game.” With 1:25 to play, Tommie Barry Brennan cut the lead to 74-72 with a three-pointer. But Coyne answered with a three from the left wing. MacEwan outrebounded St. Thomas 30-14 in the second half and 51-33 for the game. Brandon Horton added 18 points for MacEwan, including four from beyond the arc.
David Martin scored 17 and was chosen player of the game as the 3rd-seeded Sheridan Bruins defeated the 6th-seeded Langara Falcons 70-65. Marc Tasic, who scored 15, was chosen player of the game for Langara. Justin Adams added 15.
Curt Dale was chosen player of the game as the top-seeded Thompson Rivers (then the Cariboo Sun Demons) thumped the 8th-seeded Champlain-St. Lambert Cavaliers 83-61 after leading 50-19 at the half. Andrew Roy paced the Wolfpack with 25. Negus McKenna was chosen player of the game for the Cavaliers. Bernard Cote paced St. Lambert with 16.
In the last quarterfinal, Chris Bennett was chosen player of the game as the 4th-seeded Humber Hawks pounded the 5th-seeded Champlain-Lennoxville Cougars 70-49. Cornell Brown led the Hawks with 12. Chris Bennett nabbed 11 boards. Remi Cambron, who scored 16, was chosen player of the game for Lennoxville.
In the bronze quarterfinals, the 7th-seeded St. Thomas Tommies dusted the 6th-seeded Langara Falcons 110-84. Mike Bonnar was chosen player of the game for the Tommies, while Rick Brar earned the laurels for the Falcons.
In the other bronze quarterfinal, the 8th-seeded Champlain-St. Lambert Cavaliers dumped the 5th-seeded Champlain-Lennoxville Cougars 73-65. Chad Caterson was chosen player of the game for the Cavaliers, while Pierre-Alain St. Laurent earned the laurels for the Cougars.
In the semis, Elvis Dennis, who scored 21, was chosen player of the game as the Sheridan Bruins defeated the Grant MacEwan Griffins 85-82 in double-overtime. Tom Coyne was chosen player of the game for Grant MacEwan. Greg Bourne opened the scoring for the Griffins in overtime with a pair of free throws and a fadeaway jumper as Grant MacEwan took a 71-69 lead. But the Bruins clawed back to take an 83-79 lead. Tom Coyne hit a three to cut the margin to one with 22 seconds to play. But the outcome was sealed. “We didn’t lose today, said Allan. We just got outscored.” Robbie Valpreda led Grant MacEwan with 30 points. He hit a trey to give the Griffins a 68-63 lead with 1:34 to play. Coach Phil Allen was proud of his Griffins performance. “There are no losers in that locker room, only winners. Those guys are champions. There is no doubt about that. They played their hearts out and gave us everything they could. They never let us down. We played great and they played great. It was back and forth the whole way.” Valpreda attempted a game-tying three-pointer with five seconds on clock that just missed. “It looked good when I shot it but it just drifted a little left,” said Valpreda, who also nabbed 18 boards for the Griffins. “The ball seemed to stay up there forever and I was like, please God, just let it go in.” Sheridan coach Jim Flack credited the Gryphons with trying a variety of zone defences to negate the Bruins superior quickness and athleticism. “They tried to take away our strength because they knew they couldn’t match up with us man to man. … Those guys just don’t go away and they’re one of the best coached teams I have ever seen. Phil Allen is just a tremendous coach.”
In the other semi, Cwentum McLeod was chosen player of the game as the Humber Hawks defeated Thompson Rivers 78-70. Dexter Miller led Humber with 18. Ryan Porter, who scored 21, was chosen player of the game for Cariboo.
In the bronze semis, the Grant MacEwan Griffins edged the Champlain-St. Lambert Cavaliers 63-59. Robbie Valpreda was chosen player of the game for the Griffins, while Chad Caterson earned the laurels for the Cavaliers.
In the other bronze semi, the Thompson Rivers Wolfpack dumped the 7th-seeded St. Thomas Tommies 98-75. Andrew Roy was chosen player of the game for the Wolfpack, while Barry Brennan earned the laurels for the Tommies. Ryan Porter paced the Wolfpack with 21.
In the bronze medal match, the Grant MacEwan Griffins defeated the Thompson Rivers Wolfpack (then the Cariboo Sun Demons) 92-87 as Tom Coyne hit a series of free throws in the final minute. “I just wanted to hit those shots,” said Coyne, who scored 16, nabbed 7 boards and was chosen player of the game. “I was pretty confident heading into them and I knew that I could step up and sink them.” Robbie Valpreda paced the Griffins with 29 points and 13 boards. “I don’t what to say other than this the No. 1 team in Canada,” said Valpreda. “Like Phil (coach Allen) said, I must have some pretty broad shoulders because it’s been on my back since game one and I was alright with that.” Allen told his troops “you guys took the heat and we challenge you because we want you all to be better than the norm. It’s been a great, great journey. We as coaches are just honoured that you have chosen us as your leaders and we are truly, truly blessed.” Tom Coyne was chosen player of the game for the Griffins, while Ryan Porter earned the laurels for the Wolfpack. Losing in the semis “stings a little. It still stings, but we recuperated well for the bronze,” Valpreda told the Varsity. “Not everyone wants to play a double-overtime and then come here for a 10 o’clock in the morning game. I’m proud of my teammates. This year has been incredible with the veteran and mental ability of all of us.” Curt Dale paced the Wolfpack with 19, including 5 treys. Ryan Porter added 18.
In the final, Dexter Miller was chosen player of the game as the Humber Hawks nipped the Sheridan Bruins. Hugh Bent was chosen player of the game for Sheridan. Hawk guard Cornell Brown hit a pair of free throws with 3.2 seconds to play to determine the outcome. It was the second all-Ontario final in four years. Sheridan seemed in control early in the first half building a 24-15 lead. But hometown Humber got on track to rip off a 14-5 run to tie the game at 29 at the break. The close second half featured four ties and six lead changes with Sheridan leading 42-41 with five minutes to play. But Humber scored eight unanswered points over the next two minutes. Sheridan rallied with a 7-2 run to bring it to 51-49 with under a minute left. Humber hit a bucket but Sheridan scored with seven seconds to play to make it 53-51. Brown was fouled and hit both free throws. Sheridan dominated the boards by a 43-30 count including 23-6 margin on offensive end of the floor. But the Bruins only shot .303 to seal their fate. Cornell Brown, who was chosen tournament MVP, led Humber with 12. Marcel Lawrence added 11 and Dexter Miller 10. Hugh Bent paced Sheridan with 21. “This brand of basketball is so undervalued and under-appreciated, but I think tonight it was on display and we came through,” Humber coach Mike Katz told the Varsity. The win was Humber’s fifth national title under Katz’ tutelage. Prior to a surge of offence in the last two minutes of the game, Sheridan went through a six-minute scoreless stretch, during the first three minutes of which the Hawks were also scoreless. “I’m not that surprised because that’s the way these teams play,” said Katz. “Playoff basketball. Sometimes you have to win a game in the 60’s, today it was in the 50s. Defensively today, both teams were so solid it’s hard to get 60 points.” Bent said “all throughout the tournament, guys on the team have taken the opportunity to step up. I guess today was just my turn. It doesn’t matter what game it is, it’s always frustrating to lose.” Cornell Brown said “the whole scene was perfect; the stage was set. Sheridan was a brutal rivalry for Humber College and to have them on your home court after they beat you (in the Ontario final) and to come back here and beat them feels good.” Dexter Miller added that “this is a fairy tale ending. It’s like it was scripted. It couldn’t have ended better.” Hawk captain Marcel Lawrence told The Coven that he had written “never again” on the soles of shoes after Humber lost to Sheridan in double-overtime in the OCAA gold medal match two weeks earlier. “I waited four years for this. I waited four years to get my name on that banner. I waited four years to get a national championship to this school, and now we got it.” Katz said winning the title on home floor was “just tremendous. This team gutted it out all season, and for them to finish the season like this at home is just great. We were 31-6 this season for crying out loud, but these guys didn’t care. All they cared about was winning the national championship. … That’s it.” Tournament MVP Cornell ‘Junior’ Brown said “I can’t even believe I went out like this. It didn’t even really hit me yet, but as a whole, it was just a great accomplishment for our team.” Guard Dexter Miller said “I couldn’t think of a better way to finish my career. I’m going out on top.” Marcel Lawrence said the final score was immaterial. “I don’t care if it’s 55 or 2-1 as long as it’s Humber with the 2, and the other team with the 1.” Katz said “with these two teams, we knew it would be a tough battle. They’re an excellent defensive club. I didn’t say much at the end. I turned around and said to my assistants that we were in a good position. Now that these kids knew what to do, so let’s see if they can. They did it.” Sheridan coach Jim Flack said “you don’t lose a gold medal. You win a silver. From where we came to where we are now is a tremendous tribute to these kids. … I just feel terrible that I couldn’t figure out … some way to get it done for them. I told my guys to keep their heads up, but it’s hard even to do it myself. There’s no shame in what we did this year.”
The all-tourney team featured: MVP Cornell Brown (Humber); Chad Caterson (St-Lambert); Remi Cambron (Champlain–Lennoxville); Tom Coyne (Grant MacEwan); Ryan Porter (Cariboo); and Justin Adams (Langara)
The 2nd team featured: Dexter Miller (Humber); Elvis Dennis (Sheridan); Hugh Bent (Sheridan); Mike Bonnar (St. Thomas); Robbie Valpreda (Grant MacEwan)
The bronze medalist Grant MacEwan Griffins: Robbie Valpreda; Tom Coyne; Theo Parks; John Hull; Brandon Horton; Greg Bourne, Graeme Reid, J.J. Russell, Rob Killen, Asgraf Sherif, Graeme Reid, Jarom Scott, Sean Barford, Jared Kilkenny, Sean Wragg, Shaughnessy Gialet; Nathan DeKlerk; Ashraf Sherif; coach Phil Allen
The silver medalist Sheridan Bruins: Elvis Dennis; Hugh Bent; Dean Baleshar; Vance King; David Martin; Brian Laundry; Denton Daley; Glen Boothe; Kevin Passley; Kevin Dennis; Ricardo Edwards; Andrew Muir; coach Jim Flack; assistant Leroy Cassanova; assistant Nick Davis; therapist Glen Quigley; manager Wayne Allison
The gold medalist Humber Hawks: Junior Brown; Chris Bennett; Dexter Miller; Cornell Brown; Emil Vojnic; Kingsley Hudson; Fitzroy Woolery; Jeremy Walters; Rupert Thomas; David Phillips; Marcel Lawrence; Cwentum McLeod; Mark Sparks; Mark McLaughlin; Ben Sanders; Dejvis Begaj; coach Mike Katz; assistant David DeAveiro; assistant Nantali Indongo; therapist John Sage; manager Cordell Crooks