Final regular season standings (8): Dawson (13-1); Vanier (12-2); John Abbott (11-3); Outaouais (6-8); Champlain-St-Lambert (6-8); Montmorency (6-8); Maisonneuve (x-x); Champlain-Lennoxville (x-x)
Playoff non-qualifiers:
Champlain-Lennoxville Cougars: Deon John, Craig Costello, Jeremy Smith, Val Amigo, coach Don Caldwell
Champlain-St. Lambert Cavaliers: Adrian Benjamin, Rubens Leveille, Shaheed Samuels, Steve Fitz
Maisonneuve Vikings:
Montmorency Nomads:
In the semis, the John Abbott Islanders upset the Vanier Cheetahs 101-99 in overtime as Curtis Robinson scored 23 and Jeff Norville 19. Peter Walcott led Vanier with 28. Gerald Mascary and Sam Worrell each added 18.
In the other semi, the Dawson Blues dumped the Outaouais Griffins 106-80 as Benoit Deschamps scored 24. Serge Gagnon led Outaouais with 25.
In the bronze medal match, the Vanier Cheetahs defeated the Outaouais Griffins 93-78 as Jomo Williams scored 26, Alister Green 17, Peter Walcott 14 and Sam Worrell 14. The Cheetahs trailed 41-37 at the half and by as many as 15 midway through the second half before awakening from their extended slumber. Serge Gagnon paced the Griffins with 34. Coach Henry Wong said he had delivered a tongue lashing at halftime to urge the Cheetahs to not lose “to a team we’ve never lost to.”
In the final, the Dawson Blues capped their (13-1) regular season title by defeating the John Abbott Islanders 105-94 to earn a trip to the nationals. John Abbott took a 45-42 lead at the half but couldn’t match the long-distance firepower of Benoit Deschamps, Dwayne Richens and Rick Variso in the second half. The Blues hit 9 treys on the night. Deschamps finished with 25 points, including four from beyond the arc. Richens scored 24, including a pair from beyond the arc, while Varisco scored 21, including a pair from beyond the arc. Although the Islanders took a 68-67 lead with 11 minutes to play, Richens pounded home a dunk, a three-pointer and a field goal to ignite a 19-2 Dawson run that gave the Blues an 86-70 lead. Abbott narrowed the gap to five before the Blues put the outcome out of reach. Coach Olga Hrycak was in fine form about winning a berth at the nationals in Kamloops. “I don’t know too much about the nationals. But supposedly there are some big trees out there. And that’s okay because trees can’t run and shoot,” she told the Montreal Gazette. “We knew Abbott would be playing on emotion against us. They played us so tough in the first half and in the room at halftime we wondered if they could last.” They might have, had not Richens scored 16 in the second frame as he earned tournament MVP honours. John Abbott coach Steve Seabrooke said “it was phenomenal. They couldn’t miss. They must have shot over .600 down the stretch. I don’t think we ran out of gas, though when they went up by 16, it deflated us a little. They just made their shots and all their free throws (8-9) in the second half.” It marked the fourth consecutive season that John Abbott lost in the provincial final. Hrycak said Richens came up with “his biggest game of the year.” Curtis Robinson paced the Islanders with 16.
The bronze medalist Vanier Cheetahs: Jomo Williams; Alister Green; Peter Walcott; Sam Worrell; Gerald Mascary; Gregory Bazille; Steven Thomas; Pele Varricio; John Baggio; coach Henry Wong
The silver medalist John Abbott Islanders: Curtis Robinson; Dwayne Dear; Jeff Norville; Ryan Thorne; Chris Emergui; Russ Johnson; Dave Webster; Juan Martinez; Brian Daley; Dan Furlong; coach Steve Seabrooke
The champion Dawson Blues: Benoit Deschamps; Ricky Varisco; Dwayne Richens; Sammy Mendolia; Otis Lewis; Jeff Birch; Jomo Mofford; coach Olga Hrycak