Final regular season standings: John Abbott (14-4); Vanier; Outaouais; Dawson (10-8); 5. x 6. Champlain-St. Lambert (6-12); also Maisonneuve;
Playoff non-qualifiers:
Champlain-Lennoxville Cougars: Charlton Cheal, Dayan Gauntlett, Eric Desrosiers
Champlain-St. Lambert Cavaliers: Danny Eveleigh, Chris Johnson, Steve Aubert, Todd McDougall, Terry Gilmore, Stenneth Thompson, Martin Cambria, Tony Vasilakos, coach Joe Eveleigh
Maisonneuve Vikings: Sebastien Gauthier, Donald Premont, Wilbert St. Juste,
In the semis, the Vanier Cheetahs defeated the Outaouais Griffons 94-92 in overtime after rallying from a 17-point first half deficit to knot the score at 77 with five seconds to play on a trey by Emerson Thomas. The Griffons led the Cheetahs 38-37 at the half and extended their margin to 67-50 with seven minutes to play as Brian Major maintained a torrid scoring pace. He finished with 41 points. Vanier coach Keith Coffin told the Montreal Gazette that “we spotted them a 17-point lead and then decided to play. It was real cardiac time.” Coffin said assistant Henry Wong convinced him to go to a halfcourt press. It certainly yielded dividends. “We figured we could cause a few steals and get things going.” More than a few as the Griffons panicked. The Cheetahs cut the lead to 71-66 with four minutes to play and then Robert Ferguson hit four free throws, Mark Girgis added a layup and Ferguson hit a 25-footer to cut the margin to three with 25 seconds on blocks. The Griffons flubbed an in-bounds pass, setting the stage for Thomas’ trey. “It was not only the first one he hit tonight,” said Coffin, “but the first one he’s taken all year.” The Cheetahs built a 92-83 win in overtime and held on for the win. Girgis led Vanier with 29. Ferguson added 24. Teddy Veltz added 17 for Outaouais, while Pierre Renaud tossed in 10.
In the other semi, the John Abbott Islanders whipped the Dawson Blues 104-71. The Islanders were never threatened, building a 45-29 lead at the half as point guard Alex Aviles threaded a raft of passes to the front line for easy layups. “My shots weren’t going in at the start of the game so I decided to dish it off,” Aviles told the Montreal Gazette. “Our game plan was to rebound well, especially on the offensive boards, cut down our turnovers and play tight defence. And we did it all.” Islanders coach Steve Seabrooke said “we just got a very good team effort. And everyone scored. Alex showed third-year composure and so did guard Brian Duguay, who sometimes has a habit of throwing the ball away and Sean McDonnaugh. We showed maturity as a team today and we showed desire. They can taste it.”
In the bronze medal match, the Dawson Blues defeated the Outaouais Griffins 110-94. The Griffins (then known as the Frontaliers) included Carl Bolduc, Patrick Gravel, Pierre Renaud, Daniel Major.
In the final, the Vanier Cheetahs defeated the John Abbott Islanders 73-71 as Robert Ferguson scored 25, including the winning bucket with three seconds to play. “I feel like a thief,” said 30-year-old coach Keith Coffin, who’d announced plans to retire after the season, told the Montreal Gazette. “We stole two games.” The Cheetahs trailed by 15 in the first half and by 71-70 with 10 seconds to play, yet pulled out the win on a Ferguson three-point play. “I couldn’t be prouder of my guys,” said Coffin. John Abbott had the ball, after Cabral Douglas missed a pair of free throws that would have iced it for the Islanders, but lost possession with 10 seconds to play. Vanier committed five fouls in the final minute to stop the clock and on the fifth attempt, Sean McDonough in-bounded the ball to Alex Aviles in the forecourt but the refs ruled that it bounced off Aviles and went out of bounds. Vanier inbounded it to Ferguson, who drove to the hoop and let off an off-balance left-handed shot, which went in. Fouled on the play, he added an insurance free throw. Coffin called Ferguson a “class act” and said the win was nothing less than “divine intervention … Mike Roy, one of our assistant coaches said afterward: ‘we played 80 minutes of basketball in two days, had the lead in both games for a total of 10 seconds and won both games.’ It’s scary, believe me. I really feel for John Abbott. It was a war out there. Some people I spoke to afterwards told me it was one of the best CEGEP games they’ve ever seen.” John Abbott coach Steve Seabrooke was left contemplating what-ifs. “Like what about all the missed plays we made; whether we should have taken some of the free throws in the final seconds instead of taking the ball out of bounds; whether to run this play or that play; whether to go to the backcourt with that last inbounds play instead of the forecourt. … They used at least six different defences again us and it prevented us from getting any sort of offensive rhythm going.” Abbott ripped off a 19-2 run in the first half to take the lead even though starting centre Dave Bialski was benched after picked up two quick fouls. Vanier rallied to trim the lead to 36-30 at the half and knotted the score at 54 on the shooting of Ferguson and Emerson Thomas, who scored 19. Kevin Forman added 14. Curtis Robinson led John Abbott with 15, including 13 in the second half. Alex Aviles, Scott Ride and Cabral Douglas each added 11.
After the season, Vanier selected assistant Henry Wong to replace retiring coach Keith Coffin. “This is what I’ve been aiming at for years,” Wong, 36, who has been an assistant to Coffin for the past four years, told the Montreal Gazette. “I wanted to coach at a good level and I couldn’t have made a better choice than Vanier.” Wong, the comptroller for the Sun Youth Organization, is a product of St. Urbain St. and Montreal High School. He haunted the University Settlement but admitted: “I wasn’t a very good player. Those who can’t play, coach. … We’ll use the same system: a disciplined offence, a lot of pressure on defence and a lot of running.”
The bronze medalist Dawson Blues: Ian Ployart; Dwayne Richens; Benoit Deschamps; Rodney Hampden; Conroy Barnes; Pascal Fleury; coach Olga Hrycak
The silver medalist John Abbott Islanders: Cabral Douglas; Sean McDonnaugh; Alex Aviles; Scott Ride; David Bialski; Curtis Robinson; Glen Faucher; Brian Duguay; Mat LaPilusa; Martin LaPilusa; John Lapp; Jeff Norville; coach Steve Seabrooke; athletic director Glenn Ruiter
The gold medalist Vanier Cheetahs: Robert Ferguson; Mark Girgis; Emerson Thomas; Robert Garner; Pele Verrechio; Johan Deleon; Ivan DiDomenico; Carl Comeau; Keith Forman; Dave Rosenberg; Richard Garner; coach Keith Coffin; assistant Henry Wong; assistant Mike Roy; athletic director Alex Sedorenko