In the quarterfinals, held in Lethbridge, the Edmonton M.E. Lazerte Voyageurs dumped the Calgary Bishop Carroll Cardinals 99-57 as Dexter Amour scored 32 and Chris Neureuter 20. Darren Driscoll paced the Cardinals with 17. Dan Smith added 14. The Cardinals also included Neil O’Flaherty.
The Red Deer Lindsay Thurber Raiders clipped the Lethbridge Sir Winston Churchill Bulldogs 67-61. The Raiders led 39-29 at the half and by 51-31 in the second half as they capitalized on sloppy ballhandling by the Bulldogs for runout layups. Mike Gottlieb paced the Raiders with 28. Stan Krawiec added 16 and Scott Smith 14 before leaving for China as part of a student exchange program. The Raiders led by 20 with 10 minutes to play but the Bulldogs rallied to within three with three minutes to play. Raiders coach Steve Latta said the win is “a real shot in the arm for northern basketball. … They fouled us every chance they could get in the last couple of minutes but instead of going to the line, we took the ball on the sidelines and were able to eat up the 20-second shot clock.” Kirk Friemuth led the Bulldogs with 18. Jason Valgardson added 16. The Bulldogs (coached by Tom Menard) also included Dave Kowal, Kurt Georges, Greg Melvin, Terry Mah, Jeff Poteschuk, Troy Freimuth, Darren Melrose, Mike deGroot and Ken Forbes.
The Fort McMurray Composite Miners stunned the defending champion Calgary Sir Winston Churchill Bulldogs 61-59 as Brad Dawson hit a 15-foot baseline jumper in the dying seconds. Chris Coburn paced the Miners with 15. Dawson added 12. Brian Ladd led the Bulldogs with 19. Bill Richards added 12. The Bulldogs (coached by Bill Mitchell) also included Gord Lundrigan, Scott Price.
In the last quarterfinal, the Cardston Cougars defeated the Edmonton Harry Ainlay Titans 76-72. The Cougars built a 36-29 lead at the half as their transition game got on track and appeared to be in command as they extended their margin to 50-35. But Brian Halsey and Paul Blatt rallied the Titans to 70-69 lead. Robby Leavitt countered with a layup with 1:20 to play. Russ Woodward added a free throw and the Cougars iced it at the line. Leavitt paced the Cougars with 24. Terry Behrens added 16 and Mark Farren 15. Brian Halsey led the Titans with 25. Paul Blatt added 13. “The whole town of Cardston came out to cheer us on,” noted Cougars coach Jan Atwood. “Before the game I said to the guys this team beat us by 28 points last time and I know we can play better. We have to put pride on the line and play with our hearts, minds and guts and we’ll win this game.” The Titans also included Peter Rowe, Lorne Blatt.
In the semis, the Cardston Cougars dumped the Red Deer Lindsay Thurber Raiders 74-56. Mike Gottlieb paced the Raiders with 18. Stan Krawiec added 12 and Jason Scrien 10.
In the other semi, the Edmonton M.E. Lazerte Voyageurs whipped the Fort McMurray Composite Miners 76-51.
In the bronze medal match, the Fort McMurray Composite Miners edged the Red Deer Lindsay Thurber Raiders 63-62 in overtime as Ray Hines scored 15. Stan Krawiec led the Raiders with 27. Mike Gottlieb added 12 and Reg Osborne 9. Raiders coach Steve Latta told the Red Deer Advocate that his troops missed Scott Smith (off to China) and “two starters (Stan Krawiec and Mike Gottlieb) played the entire game against Lazerte (in the semis) and it hurt them against Fort McMurray.” The Raiders (coached by Latta) also included Jason Scriven, Scott Smith, Buddy Pendle, Vice Goodeye, Quade Storme.
In the final, the Edmonton M.E. Lazerte Voyageurs thrashed the Cardston Cougars 70-57 as 6-7 forward Chris Neureuter scored 30. “I think it was just good ball movement, just good team play,” Neureuter told the Lethbridge Herald. “I was just flashing inside and I was open all the time.” Voyageur forward Rob Egland dominated the offensive boards while Dexter Amour hit 14 from the perimeter. Robby Leavitt led Cardston with 18. Mick Farren added 14 and Kevin Quinton 10. The Voyageurs led 45-25 at the half and by 61-34 early in the second half. “I think we were just a little outclassed in this game,” said Cougars’ coach Jan Atwood, “We couldn’t handle their big guys inside and we came out a little flat. But the boys showed a lot of class by never giving up. They all gave 100 per cent all year and you couldn’t ask any more from them. I know they had a couple of second-year Grade 12s which gave them that extra experience.” Voyageurs coach Thom Elniski said “it’s the first time Edmonton has won the provincials since 1971. I had two kids (on the team) that were born that year and a bunch that were two years old. The key factor was our ability to run the ball on one direction. We didn’t allow them to do what they do best (run). We let them do what they do second best — shoot jump shots.” Elniski later noted “I enjoy the chance to see kids develop and grow. I preach the journey is more important than the destination. I believe in the process rather than results. Versus Cardston in 1986, we won the provincial championship by 28. I remember that one of my players commented it was more fun getting there than winning.” Elniski told the Edmonton Journal that “we definitely knew this was our year. We have a senior team and they’re all playing good, disciplined ball. We’ve been very comfortable with the whole thing, the game and ourselves.”
The bronze medalist Fort McMurray Miners: Ray Hines; Brad Dawson; Chris Coburn; Jason Offereins; Brad Eggen; Mike McPherson; Darryl Smith; Corey King; Lou Bories; Troy Wanchulak; Andrew McKee; coach Bob McCracken
The silver medalist Cardston Cougars: Robby Leavitt; David Boivie; Kevin Quinton; Terry Behrens; Mark Farren; Russ Woodward; Allan Nish; Jeff Broadhead, Brent Ryder; Justin Kerr; Rustin Smith; Andy Molcak, Mark Faron; coach Jan Atwood
The gold medalist Edmonton M.E. Lazerte Voyageurs: Dexter Amour; Chris Neureuter; Sean James; Rob Egland; coach Thom Elniski