Final regular season standings:
North (8): Concordia (14-7); Keyano (13-8); Grant MacEwan (12-9); UofA-Augustana (11-10); NAIT (11-10); Lakeland (11-10); King’s (6-14); Grande Prairie (1-21)
South (7): Briercrest (19-1); Red Deer (15-5); Lethbridge (14-6); Medicine Hat (9-11); SAIT (8-12); Olds (6-14); St. Mary’s (5-15)
Playoff non-qualifiers:
Grande Prairie: Matthew Auger, Jordan Brown, Joshua Burnstad, Gerben Deinum, Bryce Dhillon, Eric Hansen, J.J. Harkiis, Stephen Haskell, Travis Hunt, Collin Johnson, Nicolaos Maniatis, Kondeh Mansaray, Austin Mueller, Josh Nicol, Jamison Plett, Tyler Przybylski, Matt Sellin, Jordan Teo, Troy Trump, Riley Wallace, coach Chris Nicol, assistant Chris Bishop, assistant Cecil Nichol, assistant Dan Skepple
King’s University College: Mackenzie Andrews Stobart, Hardip Basran, Craig Batterham, Cameron Bush, Justin Calvin, Dustin Drolet, Joel Holmes, Dusty Legrande, Alexander Lekas, Keith Marshall, Sage Morin, Hyrum Sutton, Blaine Van Bruggen, Ethan Wollmann, coach Jesse McLean, assistant Chad Pidhaichuk
Olds: Liban Abdi-Aziz, Ibrahim Aden, Matt Deng, Sam Kirkness, Cole Leavitt, Jon Lichtman, Guil Netto, Jason Nysten, Brayden Ostermann, Blake Penner, Gavin Pittman, Colton Short, Kyle Smith, Mitch Smith, Gajiok Solomon, Connor Williams, Trey Wilson, coach David Petroziello
SAIT: Darren Ascenuik, Alex Auer, Michael Bert, Jordan Brown, Patrick Cay, David Ferdinand, Fabian Gordon, Chris Hendry, Justin King, David Lodovica, Kat Magak, Justin Makasiar, Cordell Minnifee, Josh Moule, Edgar Ndayishimrye, Paul Ohlinger, Brett Pekar, Nhial Phillip, Scott Watmough, coach Michael Stevens, assistant Ted Harrison, assistant Keenan Milburn, assistant Dane Morris, assistant Nathan Ruff, assistant Dwight Stewart, assistant Brent Tyler
St. Mary’s University College Lightning: Brandon Baun, Josh Daniel, Amar Duhra, Oscar Golebiowski, Connor Jorgenson, Nikko Marasigan, Connor McCleary, Randal Mosca, Matt Patrician, Sean Persaud, Brett Roughead, Tyler Stenhouse, Scott Wedemire, coach Sean Foote, assistant Shane Pereira, assistant Peter Rogers
In the wild card round, the NAIT Ooks dusted the Lakeland Rustlers 94-83. The Rustlers led 20-17 after one quarter and 45-42 at the half. The Ooks led 71-61 after three quarters. Gumacho Ibrahim paced the Ooks with 36 points and 10 boards. Brock McMillan added 20, along with 13 boards, Mattieu Johnson 10, David Kohler 10, along with 12 boards, Johnathan Gasirabo 8, Patrick Mart 5, Shaquille Bedminster 5, while Sabastion Cava, Milos Janjic and Brayden Torresan were scoreless. The Ooks hit 36-82 (.439) from the floor, 10-31 (.323) from the arc and 12-19 (.632) from the line, while garnering 59 boards, including 21 on the offensive glass, 15 assists, 20 turnovers, 1 block, 8 steals and 22 fouls. Camail Brown paced the Rustlers with 25. Kadeem Willis added 16, along with 10 boards, Emmanuel Jones 12, Wesley Jones 10, Travis Blacker 10, Jake Hawboldt 4, Evan Halyk 3 and Jarred Wenzel 3, while Trent Bloch Hansen was scoreless. The Rustlers hit 27-73 (.370) from the floor, 4-19 (.211) from the arc and 25-35 (.714) from the line, while garnering 35 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 7 assists, 13 turnovers, 4 blocks, 13 steals and 19 fouls. The Rustlers (coached by Tom Groat, assisted by Eric Bloch Hansen) also included Kein Caines, Dwayne Coutinho, Habib Habib, Alex Meseman, Luke Muyres, Shayne Osayande and Jesse Rogalski. …………………………………………………… In the other wild card, the Alberta-Augustana Vikings nipped the Medicine Hat Rattlers 72-69. The Vikings led 23-21 after one quarter and 43-41 at the half. The Rattlers led 57-56 after three quarters. Lee Danderfer paced the Vikings with 20. David Shantz added 15, Tony Nguyen 13, Cole Aikens 9, Michael Swampy 6, Shayn Bruney 5, Simon Irving 2 and Logan Gray 2, while Landon Vaneck, Taylor Foreman, Jamin Lockert, Anton Paszek, Lary McEwen, Matthew Vriend and Adam Lehners were scoreless. The Vikings hit 28-76 (.368) from the floor, 7-21 from the arc and 9-10 from the line, while garnering 45 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, 15 assists, 6 steals, 14 turnovers and 17 fouls. Benny Bankazo paced the Rattlers with 29 points and 12 boards. Jordan Fray added 11 points and 11 boards. Anthony Merkel scored 10 points and 10 boards. Ryan Cunningham added 8, Eryk Babyn 6, Keir Mohanraj 2, Abdirahaman Said 2 and Charles Hoffman 1, while Tyler Whitrow, Zack Smith, Brady Pickett, William Beard-Camp, Calen Van Cadsand, Marcus Mortlock, Emmanuel Ajayi and Cole Taylor were scoreless. The Rattlers (coached by Craig Price, assisted by Luc Stevenson) hit 29-75 (.386) from the floor, 4-19 (.210) from the arc and 7-18 (.388) from the line, while garnering 50 boards, including 12 on the offensive glass, 7 assists, 5 steals, 18 turnovers, 1 block and 17 fouls.
In the quarterfinals, the top-seeded Briercrest Clippers dumped the 8th-seeded Alberta-Augustana Vikings 100-84. The Vikings led 24-20 after one quarter and 43-38 at the half. The Clippers led 73-56 after three quarters. Kendell Boese paced the Clippers with 24 on 9-17 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 6-6 from the line, 3 boards and 6 assists. Gradyn Childerhose added 21 on 9-20 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 14 boards. James Wohgeschaffen added 15 on 5-10 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 4-4 from the line and 6 boards. Matt Myers scored 15 on 5-9 from the floor, 4-6 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 6 boards. Caleb Klassen notched 11 on 4-12 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 4 boards and 3 assists. Lucas Mannes added 6 on 2-6 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 3 boards. Christian Sacoman scored 6 on 2-2 from the arc. Brandon Friesen added 2, while Jesse Clark, Josh Dalzell, Bryn Olmstead, Fred Fictorie, Josiah Cockrill, Jared Wicks, Tyler Scott and Marty Funk were scoreless. The Clippers hit 37-79 (.468) from the floor, 7-14 from the arc and 19-22 (.863) from the line, while garnering 44 boards, including 13 on the offensive glass, 12 assists, 10 steals, 14 turnovers and 11 fouls. Lee Danderfer paced the Vikings with 20 on 6-14 from the floor, 3-9 from the arc, 5-5 from the line and 6 boards. Shayn Bruney added 20 on 8-19 from the floor, 3-7 from the arc, 1-1 from the line 7 boards and 5 assists. David Shantz notched 17 on 7-11 from the floor, 3-3 from the line and 8 boards. Michael Swampy scored 9 on 4-12 from the floor and 1-5 from the arc. Taylor Foreman added 6, along with 2 boards, Cole Aikens 6, along with 4 boards, Logan Gray 2, Jamin Lockert 2 and Simon Irving 2, along with 2 boards and 2 assists, while Tony Nguyen, Landon Vaneck, Anton Paszek, Lary McEwen, Matthew Vriend and Adam Lehners were scoreless. The Vikings (coached by Dave Drabiuk) hit 34-78 (.435) from the floor, 7-23 (.304) from the arc and 9-9 from the line, while garnering 44 boards, including 14 on the offensive glass, 11 assists, 5 steals, 19 turnovers, 3 blocks and 13 fouls.
The 5th-seeded Keyano Huskies clipped the 4th-seeded Concordia Thunder 86-71 after leading 16-14, 44-31 and 66-54 at the quarters. Yona Berhe paced the Huskies with 29 on 8-14 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 11-11 from the line, 4 boards and 4 assists. J.J. Mozwa added 26 on 9-14 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 6-7 from the line and 3 boards. Louis Barham added 18 on 8-16 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 7 boards. Lance Wesolowski added 5, along with 6 boards and 3 assists, Kevin Dia 5, along with 4 boards, and Serge Khayipangi 3, while Connor Dolson, James Jebalski, Nathan Obrigewitsch, Salim Adem, Saleem Farhat, Sentium Olawuyi, Mike Zurakowski, Carl Bantaya and John Craig were scoreless. The Huskies hit 29-57 (.508) from the floor, 7-16 (.437) from the arc and 21-24 (.875) from the line, while garnering 35 boards, including 4 on the offensive glass, 10 assists, 6 steals, 21 turnovers, 2 blocks and 18 fouls. Dallas Wright paced the Thunder with 25 on 11-21 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 5 boards. Milos Prijovic added 19 on 5-18 from the floor, 1-6 from the arc, 8-10 from the line, 10 boards and 5 assists. Ethan Dixon notched 13 on 6-10 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 3 boards. Nathaniel Wojcicki added 6 on 3-7 from the floor and 2 boards. Jon Celeste added 6 on 2-5 from the arc, 2 boards and 2 assists. Rob Haack added 2, along with 4 boards, while Anton Dixon, Ben Grimsrud, Chris Stolz, Gregory Gonnett, Andrew Youn, Mitch Buffie, Teddy Krein, Jamaal Bucknor, Kaylor Betts, Chuang Chuang, Josh Drever, Aaron Kruse and Steffan Favis were scoreless. Dixon nabbed 2 boards. The Thunder (coached by Reagan Wood, assisted by Rick Henderson) hit 27-71 (.380) from the floor, 5-21 (.238) from the arc and 12-14 (.857) from the line, while garnering 39 boards, including 14 on the offensive glass, 3 steals, 15 turnovers, 1 block and 22 fouls.
The 3rd-seeded Lethbridge Kodiaks dispatched the 6th-seeded Grant MacEwan Griffins 87-82. The Kodiaks led 25-9 after one quarter and 38-33 at the half. The Griffins led 62-57 after three quarters. Rob Olsen paced the Kodiaks with 35 on 14-24 from the floor, 6-8 from the arc, 1-3 from the line and 6 boards. Chris Clayton added 19 on 8-13 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 3-5 from the line and 4 boards. Jimmy Ralph added 9 on 4-9 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 0-1 from the line, 4 boards and 2 steals. Dario Pasquotti added 7 on 3-5 from the floor, 1-1 from the line and 7 boards. Khrum Sultan scored 7 on 2-6 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc and 3-3 from the line. Jared Baker added 5, along with 3 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals, and Travis Butt 5, while Craig McMurray, Lynden Nummi, Austin Prince, Tysen Pushor and Quinn Workman were scoreless. The Kodiaks hit 34-75 (.453) from the floor, 7-17 (.412) from the arc and 12-19 (.632) from the line, while garnering 42 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 9 assists, 16 turnovers, 1 block, 6 steals and 15 fouls. Alain Mony’ele paced the Griffins with 28 on 11-22 from the floor, 4-9 from the arc, 2-3 from the line, 3 boards and 2 steals. Tyson Denhamer added 13 on 5-9 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc and 3 boards. Adam Boyd scored 11 on 5-9 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc and 5 boards. Seaid Deria notched 7 on 2-9 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 3-3 from the line and 6 boards. Giovanni Shettler scored 7 on 2-5 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 9 boards. Thomas Jereniuk added 4, along with 3 boards, while Lyndon Bolanac and Derek Kroetsch were scoreless. The Griffins hit 31-77 (.403) from the floor, 8-25 (.320) from the arc and 12-16 (.750) from the line, while garnering 50 boards, including 13 on the offensive glass, 7 assists, 13 turnovers, 2 blocks, 5 steals and 15 fouls. The Griffins (coached by Eric Magdanz, assisted by Andrew Parker, Joe McLeod and Scotty Mergaert) also included Hassan Aden, Janis Assers, Jordan Baulkham, Nigel Dennis, Keith Gerdes, Landry Kabongo, Pat Poczobut, Navin Ramharak, Sunny Sooch, Denzel Williamson-James and Tyler Wise.
In the last quarterfinal, the 2nd-seeded Red Deer Kings dispatched the 7th-seeded NAIT Ooks 80-67 after leading 21-15, 43-28 and 64-43 at the quarters. Robert Pierce paced the Kings with 24 on 10-22 from the floor, 4-4 from the line and 11 boards. Mari Peoples-Wong added 11 on 2-13 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 6-8 from the line and 4 boards. Lloyd Strickland added 10 on 4-9 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 1-4 from the line and 4 assists. Demaine Nelson scored 10 on 4-6 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 7 boards and 2 assists. Brian Prenoslo added 8 on 3-10 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 5 boards. Ashaunti Hogan added 8 on 2-12 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 6 boards and 3 assists. Jacob Cusumano scored 7 on 3-6 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 6 boards. Daniel Bass added 2, while Matt Johnson, Peter Kwasny, Joel Carroll, Troy MacPherson, Michael Moore, David Poole, Samuel Lolik and Justin Gratzfeld were scoreless. Johnson nabbed 4 boards. The Kings hit 29-82 (.353) from the floor, 4-10 from the arc and 18-24 (.750) from the line, while garnering 56 boards, including 22 on the offensive glass, 11 assists, 11 steals, 14 turnovers and 21 fouls. Gumacho Ibrahim paced the Ooks with 18 on 7-24 from the floor, 2-9 from the arc, 2-4 from the line, 5 boards and 2 assists. Mattieu Johnson added 16 on 7-18 from the floor, 2-7 from the arc and 0-4 from the line. David Kohler scored 14 on 6-6 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 8 boards. Brock McMillan notched 9 on 3-5 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 2-4 from the line, 3 boards and 2 assists. Johnathan Gasirabo scored 7 on 3-4 from the floor, 1-5 from the line and 7 boards. Shaquille Bedminster added 2, along with 4 boards, and Brayden Torresan 1, while Patrick Mart, Sabastion Cava, Milos Janjic and Ryan Hickman were scoreless. The Ooks hit 27-66 (.409) from the floor, 5-20 from the arc and 8-23 (.347) from the line, while garnering 43 boards, including 13 on the offensive glass, 6 assists, 2 steals, 21 turnovers, 8 blocks and 15 fouls. The Ooks (coached by Ben Julius, assisted by Andy MacIver and Bryce Henderson) also included Olivier Shima.
In the semis, the 5th-seeded Keyano Huskies stunned the top-seeded Briercrest Clippers 108-85. The Clippers led 29-19 after one quarter. The score was knotted at 45 at the half. The Huskies led 78-60 after three quarters. Yona Berhe paced the Huskies with 25 on 8-19 from the floor, 3-7 from the arc, 6-9 from the line, 3 boards and 8 assists. Louis Barham added 22 on 8-16 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 5-10 from the line, 9 boards and 2 assists. Lance Wesolowski scored 20 on 6-12 from the floor, 3-4 from the arc, 5-6 from the line, 10 boards and 3 assists. J.J. Mozwa added 17 on 6-15 from the floor, 3-8 from the arc, 2-5 from the line, 6 boards and 5 assists. Kevin Dia added 15 on 5-8 from the floor, 5-7 from the arc, 4 boards and 2 assists. Connor Dolson added 5 and Serge Khayipangi 4, along with 2 boards, while Nathan Obrigewitsch, Saleem Farhat, Salim Aden, James Jebalski, Sentium Olawuyi, Mike Zurakowski, Carl Bantaya and John Craig were scoreless. The Huskies hit 35-74 (.473) from the floor, 16-29 (.551) from the arc and 22-34 (.647) from the line, while garnering 47 boards, including 14 on the offensive glass, 21 assists, 10 steals, 13 turnovers and 25 fouls. Kendell Boese paced the Clippers with 22 on 9-18 from the floor, 0-5 from the arc, 4-6 from the line and 2 boards. Gradyn Childerhose added 18 on 6-15 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 6-9 from the line and 12 boards. Lucas Mannes added 11 on 3-10 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 4-6 from the line. Caleb Klassen added 10 on 4-10 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 8 boards. James Wohlgeschaffen added 9 on 3-6 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 8 boards. Matt Myers added 8 on 3-10 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 4 boards and 6 assists. Christian Sacoman added 7 on 3-6 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc and 2 boards, while Josiah Cockrill, Brandon Friesen, Josh Dalzell, Bryn Olmstead, Fred Fictorie, Jared Wicks, Tyler Scott and Marty Funk were scoreless. The Clippers hit 31-75 (.413) from the floor, 4-22 (.181) from the arc and 19-27 (.703) from the line, while garnering 47 boards, including 19 on the offensive glass, 7 assists, 5 steals, 20 turnovers, 2 blocks and 25 fouls.
In the other semi, the 2nd-seeded Red Deer Kings clocked the 3rd-seeded Lethbridge Kodiaks 105-80 after leading 28-17, 57-37 and 77-65 at the quarters. Mari Peoples-Wong paced the Kings with 20 on 8-11 from the floor, 2-2 from the arc, 2-4 from the line, 5 boards and 3 assists. Ashaunti Hogan added 20 on 7-15 from the floor, 4-8 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 4 assists. Lloyd Strickland scored 15 on 4-10 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 5-6 from the line, 2 boards and 4 assists. Jacob Cusumano added 14 on 6-8 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 4 boards and 5 assists. Robert Pierce added 13 on 6-7 from the floor and 1-2 from the line. Brian Prenoslo added 10 on 4-5 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 1-1 from the line and 5 boards. Demaine Nelson scored 10 on 5-7 from the floor and 7 boards. Matt Johnson added 2, while Peter Kwasny, Daniel Bass, Joel Carroll, Troy MacPherson, Michael Moore, David Poole, Samuel Lolik and Justin Gratzfeld were scoreless. The Kings hit 41-65 (.630) from the floor, 11-20 (.550) from the arc and 11-15 (.733) from the line, while garnering 34 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 20 assists, 9 steals, 24 turnovers, 1 block and 18 fouls. Dario Pasquotti paced the Kodiaks with 20 on 6-8 from the floor, 3-3 from the arc, 5-6 from the line and 4 boards. Jared Baker added 19 on 6-14 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc, 5-6 from the line, 4 boards and 2 assists. Rob Olsen notched 15 on 7-12 from the floor and 1-2 from the arc. Craig McMurray scored 13 on 5-9 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 4 boards. Jimmy Ralph added 5, along with 2 boards, Lynden Nummi 3, Khrum Sultan 2, Chris Clayton 2 and Travis Butt 1, while Austin Prince, Tysen Pushor, Quinn Workman, Ethan Decock, Phil Mvondo, Will Hickey, Chase Tommie, Brady Adamson, Taylor Jetten and Ryan Koshney were scoreless. The Kodiaks hit 28-61 (.459) from the floor, 7-16 (.437) from the arc and 17-22 (.772) from the line, while garnering 26 boards, including 7 on the offensive glass, 7 assists, 11 steals, 22 turnovers, 2 blocks and 18 fouls.
In the bronze medal match, the top-seeded Briercrest Clippers nipped the 3rd-seeded Lethbridge Kodiaks 97-95 after leading 20-14, 45-37 and 77-65 at the quarters. Matt Myers paced the Clippers with 22 on 8-11 from the floor, 6-7 from the arc, 6 boards and 7 assists. Gradyn Childerhose added 18 on 7-11 from the floor, 4-6 from the line and 6 boards. Kendell Boese notched 12 on 5-13 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 1-1 from the line, 5 boards and 6 assists. James Wohlgeschaffen added 11 on 5-7 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc and 7 boards. Caleb Klassen added 9 on 3-7 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 8 boards and 6 assists. Josiah Cockrill scored 7 on 3-3 from the floor and 1-1 from the arc. Christian Sacoman added 7 on 2-4 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 2 assists. Brandon Friesen added 6 on 2-5 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 5 boards. Josh Dalzell added 3 and Lucas Mannes 2, while Jesse Clark, Fred Fictorie, Bryn Olmstead, Jared Wicks, Tyler Scott and Marty Funk were scoreless. The Clippers hit 37-70 (.528) from the floor, 13-23 (.565) from the arc and 10-13 (.769) from the line, while garnering 52 boards, including 8 on the offensive glass, 23 assists, 11 steals, 34 turnovers, 6 blocks and 14 fouls. Jared Baker paced the Kodiaks with 23 on 9-21 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 3 boards and 3 assists. Rob Olsen added 21 on 9-17 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 6 boards and 3 assists. Craig McMurray added 9 on 3-5 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 3 boards. Lynden Nummi added 8 on 3-9 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 1-1 from the line and 5 assists. Austin Prince added 8 on 3-5 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc and 1-4 from the line. Quinn Workman added 8 on 4-5 from the floor and 5 boards. Khrum Sultan added 6 on 2-3 from the arc and 2 boards. Dario Pasquotti added 5, along with 2 assists, Tysen Pushor 3, along with 3 boards and 2 assists, Chris Clayton 2 and Travis Butt 2, while Jimmy Ralph, Ethan Decock, Phil Mvondo, Will Hickey, Chase Tommie, Brady Adamson, Taylor Jetten and Ryan Koshney were scoreless. The Kodiaks (coached by Ryan Heggie) hit 38-89 (.427) from the floor, 9-25 (.360) from the arc and 10-14 (.714) from the line, while garnering 34 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 17 assists, 17 steals, 20 turnovers, 3 blocks and 17 fouls.
In the final, the 2nd-seeded Red Deer Kings edged the 5th-seeded Keyano Huskies 88-85. Former Huskie Demaine Nelson, who hit the winning bucket for the Kings, called it “a great feeling … no greater feeling then to get the winning basket to seal the deal for your team.” Kings’ coach Clayton Pottinger said Huskies coach mike Connolly “had those guys playing their best basketball at the right time of the year. My hats off to them as that was an intense basketball game tonight. It boiled down to us executing things down the stretch and we had a little more left in our legs down the stretch taking nothing away from them as they were working their butts off.” Connolly said that “mentally, we didn’t play with an edge to start the game and weren’t as focused and we did not execute. We were not sharp or not focused. I didn’t think we played as well as we did in the last two games and we made some silly turnovers. I am proud of the guys of what they did but you don’t play to be second you play to be first and win the game.” Huskie Louis Barham said “no one plays for second place. We don’t play to lose. This will hurt for a while but we have another day and we will play for nationals. Today was a game of runs and they had more runs at the end of the game than we did.” Robert Pierce was chosen player of the game for the Kings, while Yonas Berhe earned the laurels for Keyano. The Huskies led 24-23 after one quarter and 46-37 at the half. The Kings led 66-64 after three quarters. The Kings hit 34-79 (.430) from the floor, 3-15 (.200) from the arc and 17-19 (.894) from the line, while garnering 44 boards, including 13 on the offensive glass, 14 assists, 12 steals, 26 turnovers, 2 blocks and 19 fouls. Robert Pierce paced the Kings with 24 on 9-20 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 5-6 from the line, 9 boards and 2 assists. Lloyd Strickland added 22 on 6-18 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc, 8-8 from the line, 7 boards and 4 assists. Demaine Nelson notched 20 on 10-14 from the floor and 9 boards. Mari Peoples-Wong added 10 on 4-8 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-3 from the line, 7 boards and 3 assists. Jacob Cusumano added 4, along with 2 boards and 5 assists, Ashaunti Hogan 4, along with 2 boards, and Brian Prenoslo 4, while Matt Johnson, Daniel Bass, Peter Kwasny, Joel Caroll, Troy MacPherson, Michael Moore, David Poole, Samuel Lolik and Justin Gratzfeld were scoreless. Yona Berhe paced the Huskies with 21 on 6-20 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc, 7-7 from the line, 4 boards and 4 assists. Lance Wesolowski added 19 on 7-10 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 4-6 from the line, 10 boards and 2 assists. Louis Barham notched 17 on 6-13 from the floor, 3-4 from the arc, 2-3 from the line and 6 boards. J.J. Mozwa added 11 on 3-15 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 4-6 from the line, 5 boards and 5 assists. Kevin Dia added 11 on 4-6 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 4 boards. Nathan Obrigewitsch added 3 and Connor Dolson 3, while Serge Khayipangi, Salim Aden, James Jebalski, Saleem Farhat, Sentium Olawuyi, Mike Zurakowski, Carl Bantaya and John Craig were scoreless. The Huskies hit 28-69 (.405) from the floor, 11-23 (.478) from the arc and 18-25 (.720) from the line, while garnering 43 boards, including 14 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 11 steals, 24 turnovers, 1 block and 15 fouls.
Days after taking Keyano to the nationals, coach Mike Connolly resigned as coach of the Huskies and athletic services manager at Keyano to become head coach at N.A.I.T. “I cherish my time at Keyano,” said Connolly. “It allowed me to grow as a coach, as an administrator and a person. With my duties as the athletic services manager, I was able to grab some more skill sets for the future and I think it was fun to build something from the start when we built this basketball program. In three years, we’re competing for a national championship. It was a great experience. Fort McMurray treated me well, Keyano treated me well.” Connolly came to Keyano in 2009 after coaching with the University of Lethbridge Pronghorns and the Medicine Hat Rattlers. He’s a two-time coach of the year at the college level. Connolly was at the helm for all three Huskies basketball season in the ACAC. “All good things must come to an end and it’s just the perfect situation in my personal life to kind of move on with a new challenge,” said Connolly. The Huskies had their best finish this season with an ACAC silver medal and an 8th place finish at nationals. “Coach Connolly has done a magnificent job,” said Wade Kolmel, Keyano director of sport and wellness. “His recruitment success, coupled with his ability to work with students, really sets the bar high in terms of finding a replacement. But thanks to Mike’s great work, and the support we have received from fans and sponsors for our basketball program, interest in this coaching opportunity is very high. We achieved our goal of being a top team in our conference.”
The bronze medalist Briercrest Clippers: Gradyn Childerhose; Matt Myers; Kendell Boese; James Wohlgeschaffen; Caleb Klassen; Josiah Cockrill; Christian Sacoman; Brandon Friesen; Josh Dalzell; Lucas Mannes; Jesse Clark; Fred Fictorie; Bryn Olmstead; Jared Wicks; Tyler Scott; Marty Funk; Justin Steenhof; coach Rod Adrian
The silver medalist Keyano Huskies: Serge Khayipangi; Salim Aden; Carl Bantaya; Connor Dolson; Lance Wesolowsky; Yonas Berhe; James Jedralski; Nathan Obrigewitsch; Gerard Mozwa; Kevin Dia; Louis Barham; Saleem Farhat; coach Mike Connolly; assistant Jonathan Lambert; manager Cesar Reyes; athletic director Wade Kolmel
The gold medalist Red Deer Kings: Ashaunti Hogan; Matt Johnson; Lloyd Strickland; Peter Kwasny; Jacob Cusumano; Joel Carroll; Brian Prenoslo; Mari Peoples-Wong; Robert Pierce; Daniel Bass; Demaine Nelson; Troy Macpherson; Dillin Richards; Michael Moore; coach Clayton Pottinger; assistant Ken Smith; assistant Clint Unsworth; therapist Karelton Moench; athletic director Keith Hansen