In the opening round, held in Red Deer: …………………………………………………… The 8th-seeded Calgary Lester B. Pearson Patriots whipped the 9th-seeded Red Deer Lindsay Thurber Raiders 102-68. Patriots coach Bill Mitchell told the Calgary Herald it “a sloppy game. We both play a similar type of game. We both like to run the ball. It was like a track meet. It was a ferocious pace. Fortunately, we had better athletes who could shoot the ball better than them.” Ricky Gill led Pearson with 18. Jeremy Huybregts added 17, Emmanuel Chiek 13, David Dunn 1 and Josh Feist 11. Feist told the Red Deer Advocate that “it’s been an up and down season for us. We’ve had peaks and then we’ve gone into little slumps but we’re peaking now. We’re on the way up and feeling comfortable. … We expected it to be closer. But it was a good game. The first half was really intense. We’re not used to playing teams that run the court as fast as they do.” Huybregts scored 8 unanswered, including two treys as Pearson broke the game open in the first quarter. The Patriots led 47-26 at the half. Brian Heemstreet paced the Raiders with 16. Craig Johnson added 11 and Lawrence Eade 10. The Raiders (coached by Dwayne Lalor) also included Byron Morin, Kyle Reed, Ron Sanderson, Craig Johnston, Tyler McRobbie, Tim Hethering, Dan Pottage. Lalor said “we hung with them for a while in the first half and then our defence backed off. They started making some shots and we didn’t shoot very well. We had some opportunities and couldn’t find the glass. Once we got behind, we were in trouble. We got a little excited by trying to get it back too quick and then they spread it out on us. We played with more heart and enthusiasm in the second half but it’s tough when you’re behind by 21 at the break.” …………………………………………………… The 6th-seeded Calgary Dr. E.P. Scarlett Lancers dumped the 11th-seeded St. Albert Paul Kane Blues 111-81 as guard Nabil Bushnaq scored 32. “We played at Red Deer College on a college size floor,” Lancer coach Tom Bishop told the Herald. “That worked well for our type of running game. It was a good tune up.” The Blues included Alex Scherer, Ben Dille, Matt Chapelsky. …………………………………………………… The 5th-seeded Calgary William Aberhart Trojans crushed the 12th-seeded host Red Deer Notre Dame Cougars 98-42 as Adam Fleming scored 29, Chris Wright 22 and Garrett Johnson 12. Trojans coach Wayne Thomas told the Herald that “it was a preliminary game against a not very good team. It was a tough game to play. We were clearly the superior team. We tried to rest our starters but we’re down to nine guys because of injuries.” Andrew Askin paced the Cougars with 10. The Cougars (coached by Scott Doan) also included Tom Henley, J.T. Baillie, Nick Derksen, Aaron Lucas, Brent Hamel, Byron Anderson. Doan told the Red Deer Advocate that “they have one guy who is 6-8 (Adam Fleming) and another (Chris Wright) who is 6-7. And the 6-7 guy was hitting threes. Our guys tried to block hi out but there wasn’t much they could do.” …………………………………………………… The 7th-seeded Edmonton Archbishop O’Leary Spartans whipped the 11th-seeded Grande Prairie Tomahawks 89-58. The Tomahawks included Nathan Carrell, Chris Pellerin, Brendan Duggan.
In quarterfinals, the top-seeded Edmonton Ross Sheppard Thunderbirds defeated the 8th-seeded Calgary Lester B. Pearson Patriots 98-63 as Jermaine Bucknor scored 21, Phil Sudol 21 and Brandon Park 14. Jeremy Huybregts scored 17 for Pearson. Emmanuel Chiek added 14 and Ricky Gill 13. Sudol hit three from beyond the arc to break the game open. “I didn’t do anything special,” Sudol told the Edmonton Journal. “My job is to do whatever the team needs. We’ve got so much talent that if we all do what’s required, we’re sure to do all right.” Coach Dave Youngs said “It was a big help that Phil was sharp at the start. Most people don’t know how really good he is. Maybe some of us are a little too excited. The thought of a threepeat is with us almost all the time. It would be tremendous to win again. No team has ever won the province three times in a row before.” The Patriots also included Josh Feist.
The 4th-seeded Cardston Cougars defeated the 5th-seeded Calgary William Aberhart Trojans 79-53 as Justin Low scored 25, Nick Pitcher 14 and Brendan Yuill 14. Chris Wright led Aberhart with 21. Adam Fleming added 12. The Trojans (coached by Wayne Thomas) also included Colin Mundy, Jacob Plourde.
The 7th-seeded Edmonton Archbishop O’Leary Spartans stunned the 2nd-seeded Magrath Zeniths (the only team to have defeated top seed Ross Sheppard all year and undefeated in the province all year) 82-79 as Josh McJannet scored 29, Alex Mahary 17 and Ivan Sarek 13. Jimmy Balderson led Magrath with 29. Allen Tollestrup added 19 and Darren Bevers 18. Magrath was playing without 6-2 Brooks Blackmer, who was in the southern States visiting universities in his pursuit of a golf scholarship. McJannet had suffered a dislocated fibula during the Edmonton city plays and hadn’t been expected to play. “I was in hospital until early the next morning and I was off the court for about 10 days. (The ball) was going in, so I kept shooting.” The Zeniths (coached by Phil Tollestrup) also included Brooks Blackmer, Matt Harris, Dylan ‘Booker’ Alston, Joe Schow, Dahlin Sabey and Shane Ely.
In the last quarterfinal, the 6th-seeded Calgary Dr. E.P. Scarlett Lancers upset the 3rd-seeded Taber W.R. Myers Rebels 88-74 as Nabil Bushnaq scored 27 and Steve Slopek 23. Henry Bekkering paced the Rebels with 23. Matt Anderson added 20 and Rob Steed 19. The Rebels also included Dustin Francis, Paul Garner, Cory Matthews, Devin Bennett and Mac Clements.
In the semis, the Edmonton Ross Sheppard Thunderbirds pounded the Cardston Cougars 82-63 to avenge a December loss as 17-year-old guard Spencer Dorward scored 22 and Jermaine Bucknor 14. Brendan Yuill led Cardston with 16. Devin Nelson added 13.
In the other semi, the 7th-seeded Edmonton Archbishop O’Leary Spartans stomped the Calgary Dr. E.P. Scarlett Lancers 71-60 as Alex Mahary scored 23 and Ivan Sarek 18. Steve Slopek led Scarlett with 18. Jamie Jamieson added 13.
In the bronze medal match, the Calgary Dr. E.P. Scarlett Lancers defeated the Cardston Cougars 86-72 as Nabil Bushnaq scored 32, Jon Walker 17 and Steve Slopek 14. Justin Low paced the Cougars with 19. Jon Wolsey and Nick Pitcher each added 10. The Cougars (coached by Ken McMurray) also included Devon Nelson, Darin Payne, Ross Marshall, Brendan Yuill, Terrance Bevans and Jeff Wallburger.
In the final, the Edmonton Ross Sheppard Thunderbirds captured their third straight provincial title with a 76-65 win over the 7th-seeded Edmonton Archbishop O’Leary Spartans. Tyler Steinbrenner scored 14 to lead the Thunderbirds, while Jermaine Bucknor and Spencer Dorward each added 13 and Phil Sudol 12. Alex Mahary led O’Leary with 25. Josh McJannet and defensive specialist Troy Headley each scored 10. Ross Sheppard finished (36-1) on the season. “It’s terrific, amazing, what else can you say,” coach Dave Youngs told the Edmonton Journal. “These guys are so outstanding it makes me feel like crying.” Youngs chose the occasion to salute the five-foot-nine Steinbrenner, who is usually overshadowed by his larger, stronger teammates. “I’ve got so much respect for Tyler,” the coach said, recognizing that Steinbrenner’s 14 points, most coming on long shots over the O’Leary defence, had paced the Sheppard victory. Bucknor and junior guard Spencer Dorward had 13 points, while Sudol added 12. “Tyler absolutely surprised me with the improvement he has shown (on the court and off) in the last two year. This year, he was a key for us from the beginning.” Steinbrenner’s court leadership helped Ross Shep ice victory almost immediately. By the end of the first half, O’Leary trailed 39- 17 and the margin remained almost as large until the dying moments, long after the victory was assured. Youngs praised O’Leary coach Frank Filice and his team for making things difficult. “They took us out of our game entirely,” the winning coach explained. “They deserve a lot of credit.” Filice felt the same way. “I’m as proud of these guys right now, after this loss, as I was when we won the two games that put us into the final. Sheppard got off to such a quick start. When we talked at halftime, we agreed to try to earn some respect.” McJannet hit only 2-10 from the arc. The Thunderbirds led 39-17 at the half and romped.
The bronze medalist Calgary Dr. E.P. Scarlett Lancers: Nabil Bushnaq; Jon Walker; Steven Slopeck; coach Tom Bishop
The silver medalist Edmonton Archbishop O’Leary Spartans: Ivan Saric; Alex Mahary; Josh McJannet; Troy Headley; coach Frank Filice
The gold medalist Edmonton Ross Sheppard Thunderbirds: Jermaine Bucknor, Spencer Dorward; Tyler Steinbrenner, Phil Sudol, Lee Graham, Paul Pawlowski, Kip Matheson, Randy Bahnuik, Graham Dickau, Brendan Groat, Dan Swanston, Shawn Kyle; Brandon Park; coach Dave Youngs; assistant Bruce MacLeod; assistant Powell Jones