In the play-in game, the Esquimalt Dockers clipped the Mission Roadrunners 61-51 as Barry Burch scored 21, Al Lorimer 16, Bruce Shaw 13, Henry Pakos 6, Bob Adair 4 and Brian McIntyre 1, while Jim Wilson, Wayne Blaine, Mike Gregor, Mark Cranlin and Doug Pearce wee scoreless. Dude Neale led the Roadrunners with 23. Bill Clarke added 15, Joe Sigfusson 8 and Bill Kieler 5, while Fred Harris, Alec Nelson, Barry Bodell, Fred Egglestone, Mike Rockwell, Paul Sanduluck and Gary Neilsen were scoreless.
In the opening round: …………………………………………………… The Prince Rupert Rainmakers clocked the Kamloops Red Devils 66-51 as Skip Cronk scored 18, Haldane 17, Rooney 15, Ken Shields 10 and B Spect 6, while DeCicco, Pitre, Humperville, Lloyd, W Specht and Greer were scoreless. Dave Murphy led the Red Devils with 14. Bob Hearn added 12, Dave Jordan 11, John Oldham 6, Reinhard Blumenscheit 4 and Dave Webster 4, while Paul Webber, DeBeck, Peter Davies, Randy Murphy, John Scott and Marshall were scoreless. The Red Devils (coached by M Martino) also included Garry Mertle. …………………………………………………… The Victoria High Totems spanked the Prince George Polars 56-33 as Bernard Staben scored 14, Ron Stubbins 13, Don Frampton 7, Doug Gregory 6, Don Soberg 4, Gary Trevor 4, Alvin Glover 4, Dave Benn 2 and Gerard Vaughan 2. The Totems led 40-15 at the half. Harold Johnson scored 10 to lead the Polars (coached by D Pitney). Bruce Knight added 10, Kelly Webb 9 and Bruce Lofting 4, while Grant Phillips, Gook, McNeill, Chatwell, Hrechka and Pearson were scoreless. …………………………………………………… The North Surrey Spartans clocked Salmo Secondary 75-47 as Brian (Ross?) Molberg scored 27, Terry Weins 17, Jeff Logan 12, Jim Bozzard 8, Ken House 6, Evans 2, Higham 2 and Granbols 1, while Friesen, Howe, Kriek, Crawshaw and Fung were scoreless. B Dorey scored 15 to lead Salmo (coached by D Hunter). Papar added 8, Delkoff 8, D Dorey 5, Zeehan 4, MacNeill 2, Osachoff 2 and Stard 1, while Coulombe, Chernoff, Momsen and Tetz were scoreless. …………………………………………………… The Esquimalt Dockers edged the Vancouver Prince of Wales Walesmen 34-33 after leading 5-4, 14-13 and 25-18 at the quarters. Burch led the Dockers with 11. Alan Lorimer added 9, McIntyre 6, Bruce Shaw 5 and Bob Adair 3, while Wilson, Blake, Gregory, Henry Pakos, Granlin and Pearce were scoreless. David Kirk led the Walesmen with 12. Jack Turpin added 9, Peter Lane 6, John Scott 2, Bob Jackson 2 and Randy Doherty 2, while John Ball, Ron Fratkin, Jim McCormick, Larry Lemon and Duncan Mercer were scoreless. The Walesmen also included D Larsen. …………………………………………………… Courtenay Secondary (now Courtenay G.P. Vanier Towhees) edged the Vancouver Killarney Cougars 55-51 as Taaffe scored 16, Woodrow 13, Brown 8, Booker 8, Ernie Schilling 5, Bowen 3 and Vallor 2, while Bate, Honsesett and Jossul were scoreless. The score was knotted at 51 wen Ernie Schilling and Taaffe scored buckets in the final minute to pull out the win for the Towhees. Randy Berg scored 21 to lead the Cougars (coached by G May). Murray West added 11, Cleve Wakefield 10, Ray Elrick 4, Doug Smith 3 and Doug Dougan 2, while Bill Stevenson, Duff, Bob Steeves, Galley, Muir and Henderson were scoreless. …………………………………………………… The Abbotsford Panthers stomped the Burnaby Central Wildcats 56-35 as Vic Rahn scored 22, Sam Vandermeulen 13, Inman 13, F Dyck 3, Mike Shannon 3 and Grist 2, while Crombie, Mitchell, Dyck, Baker, Meston and Plowright were scoreless. Quinn scored 15 to lead the Wildcats (coached by Ken Winslade). Grenda added 11, Hyduk 5, Smith 2 and Given 2, while Chapman, Sung, Woodward, Sanders, Marcus, Peterson and Lang were scoreless. …………………………………………………… The top-seeded Clearbrook Mennonite Educational Institute Eagles clipped the Victoria Oak Bay Bays 50-40 as George Heidebrecht scored 21, Howard Loewen 14, Jim Falk 9, Don Wallace 3, Neumann 2 and Harold Derksen 1, while Jerry Falk, Toews, Giesbrecht, Warkentin, Dahl and Balzer were scoreless. The Totems led 22-21 at the half. The Eagles led 41-37 after three quarters. Brian MacKenzie led the Bays with 12. Tom Child added 9, Dan Murgatroyd 7, Rick Humber 7 and Bruce Wallace 5, while Rick Fraser, Bob Burrows, Brian Craig, Jim Green and Doug MacFarlane were scoreless. The Bays (coached by Gary Taylor) also included Mike McAvoy, who did not play because of a fractured arm, and Barry Turner. …………………………………………………… The Vancouver Magee Lions dispatched the North Vancouver Delbrook Hilltoppers 62-51 as Roy Borthwick scored 17, Paul Korsmo 16, Kendall 15, Neil Murray 7, Ken Ramsey 5 and Maclean 2, while Black, Etherington, Hylton, Lillie, Lockhart, Sangster and Steele were scoreless. Dave Rice scored 22 to lead the Hilltoppers (coached by Wally Russell). Bill Sinclair added 10, Bill Thorpe 6, Gibson 6, Chambers 4 and Whitehead 3, while Holloway, Glen Carter, Kline, Balak, Blair and Kempf were scoreless.
In the quarterfinals, the Prince Rupert Rainmakers edged the Vancouver Magee Lions 62-61 on a penetration drive bucket by Skip Cronk with 12 seconds to play. Skip Cronk paced the Rainmakers with 24. Wayne Haldane added 17, B Specht 10, Rooney 9 and Humpherville 2, while De Cicco, Pitre, Shields, Lloyd, W Specht and Greer were scoreless. Neil Murray scored 19 to lead the Lions (coached by Jack Suderman). Paul Korsmo added 14, Roy Borthwick 9, Ken Ramsay 9, Pete Kendall 8 and John MacLean 2, while Bill Black, Bill Etherington, Hylton, Lillie, Lockhart and Sangster were scoreless. Magee lost a point when Jack Suderman sent in Ken Ramsey wearing a number 19 jersey. The rules precluded wearing any number with the last digit over five. Prince Rupert hit the technical foul.
The Abbotsford Panthers edged the Victoria High Totems 46-41 in overtime as Vic Rahn scored 22, Sam Vandermeulen 10, Inman 8, F Dyck 3 and Grist 2, while Crombie, Mitchell, D Dyck, Mike Shannon, Baker, Meston and Plowright were scoreless. The Totems Don Frampton forced overtime by hitting one of two free throws with eight seconds to play. He missed the second. Victoria’s Ron Stubbings dislocated a finger at the start of overtime, while Barney Spaven fouled out, dooming Victoria’s hopes. Bernard Spaven scored 12 to pace the Totems. Doug Gregory added 11, Don Frampton 9, Ron Stubbins 7 and Dan Soberg 2, while Dave Benn, Trevor Lezete, Gerard Vaughn and Alvin Glover were scoreless. The Totems (coached by George Andrews) also included Greg Trevor and Frank Lezeic.
The Esquimalt Dockers dispatched the North Surrey Spartans 61-54 as Barry Burch scored 19, Bob Adair 11, Alan Lorimer 10, Henry Pakos 10, Shaw 6 and McIntyre 5, while Wilson, Blake, Gregory, Granlin and Pearce were scoreless. Jeff Logan scored 16 to pace the Spartans (coached by A Molnar). Terry Wiens added 13, Jim Higham (Hoggard?) 11, Jim Bozzard 9 and Ken House 5, while Glen Friesen, Danny Howe, Barry Kriek, Ken Evans, Garry Granbols, Gary Crawshaw, Brian (Ross?) Molberg and Dennis Fung were scoreless.
In the last quarterfinal, the Clearbrook Mennonite Educational Institute Eagles thrashed the Courtenay Secondary Towhees 55-38 after leading 26-16 at the half. George Heidebrecht paced the Eagles with 24. Jim Falk added 20, Wallace 5, Giesbrecht 2, Neumann 3, Howard Loewen 2 and Derksen 1, while Jerry Falk, Toews, Warkentin, Dahl and Balzer were scoreless. Fred Booker scored 14 to pace the Towhees. Mike Taaffe added 9, Rick Woodrow 6, Ted Brown 5 and Ernie Schilling 4, while Mike Bate, Dan Bowen, Bruce Vallor, Jones, Jim Honeysett and Corky Jossul were scoreless. The Towhees (coached by Gerry Montgomery, manager P Marinus) also included Dale Bate.
In the semis, the Prince Rupert Rainmakers upset the defending champion Clearbrook Mennonite Educational Institute Eagles 66-64 in an overtime game that many long-time observers called the most exciting in tournament history. The Rainmakers’ Dennis Rooney won a jump ball at midcourt with 24 seconds to play in overtime and stalled for the win. Skip Cronk had hit the winner 21 seconds earlier. Wayne Haldane had tied the game at 60 after being fouled by George Heidebrecht (his 5th). Jim Falk missed a free throw with a second to play that would have won the game for the Eagles. The Eagles Howie Loewen drew a technical in the first half for failing to raise his arm after a foul. Wayne Haldane hit the free throw. Brian Specht led the Rainmakers with 24. Skip Cronk added 15, Dennis Rooney 11, Shields 9 and Wayne Haldane 7, while DeCisco, Pitre, Humpherville, Lloyd, W Specht and Greer were scoreless. George Heidebrecht led the Eagles with 34. Jim Falk added 21, Howie Loewen 6, Neumann 2 and Derksen 1, while Wallace, Jerry Falk and Toews were scoreless.
In the other semi, the Abbotsford Panthers dusted the Esquimalt Dockers 51-35 after leading 11-5, 23-11 and 38-21 at the quarters. Sam Vandermeulen led the Panthers with 14. Vic Rahn added 12, Mike Inman 11, Grist 6, Shannon 2 and Baker 2, while Crombie, Mitchell, D Dyck, F Dyck, Meston and Plowright were scoreless. Alan Lorimer paced the Dockers with 13. Pearce added 6, McIntyre 5, Bob Adair 2 and Henry Pakos 1, while Wilson, Blake, Gregory, Bruce Shaw, Burch and Granlin were scoreless.
In the bronze medal match, the Clearbrook Mennonite Educational Institute Eagles defeated the Esquimalt Dockers 73-35. The Dockers entered the tournament with a 12-13 record by winning a play-in game against Mission, the fourth-place finisher in the Fraser Valley playoffs. The Dockers (coached by Ed Fougner) included Jim Wilson, Wayne Black, Mike Gregory, Bruce Shaw, Henry Pakos, Barry Butch, Brian McIntyre, Al Lorimer, Mike Grandin, Bob Adair, Doug Pearce, Lorne Monkman and Dick Rennie.
In the final, the unheralded Prince Rupert Rainmakers capped their Cinderella run by edging the Abbotsford Panthers 43-41 on a 15-foot jumper by Dennis Rooney with 30 seconds to play. The Rainmakers were led by Skip Cronk and Brian Specht and coached by Norm Vickery who went on to win seven national university women’s titles (two with U.B.C. and five with Laurentian). Another notable on the team was a skinny forward by the name of Ken Shields, who would later go on to coach the legendary U. of Victoria men’s dynasty and the Canadian national team. “It was the biggest thrill of my life – bar none,” Shields later told the Victoria Times-Colonist. “Nothing else I have done compares to it.” Representing a school of just 300 students, the Rainmakers beat four schools four times their size in the tournament. “When I saw the movie Hoosiers, it was like déjà vu,” Shields said. “It was very, very familiar to our situation that year. We were totally unheralded and from a relatively tiny school. I remember, at the opening tape before our first game, the Kamloops center looked down our lineup and then turned to one of his forwards and said: Maybe we should have started the second string. We won that one by 15.” The final, played at U.B.C.’s War Memorial Gymnasium, was packed as word of the Cinderella story got out. “The gym was sold out at 7 p.m. There were people sitting on the floor, all the way up to the sidelines. The noise and the energy in that building was unbelievable,” Shields said. “We could feel the building literally shaking with people stamping their feet. … Apparently, people in Prince Rupert went outside and honked horns and shot off guns after we won.” Vickery was a hard-nosed sort who ordered his squad to drop their girlfriends during the season. The girlfriends, in turn, retaliated with a petition demanding that he be fired. The squad fought the coach, fought each other and fought other teams. “There’s no question that experience had a huge impact on me,” Shields says. “It laid the foundation for a belief that it doesn’t matter who you are or where you’re from. If you do the right things, prepare properly, are relentless and tough, you can compete with anybody.” George Heidebrecht paced the Panthers with 26. Sam Vandermeulen added 12. In excess of 6,000 fans crammed the U.B.C. gym. The Rainmakers led 8-6 after one quarter. The Panthers led 22-20 at the half. Prince Rupert led 35-32 after three quarters and took a 41-33 lead on buckets by Wayne Haldane and Dennis Rooney.
The bronze medalist Clearbrook Mennonite Educational Institute Eagles: George Heidebrecht; Jim Falk; Howard Loewen; Harold Derksen; Don Wallace; Jerry Falk; Harold Toews; Dennis Neumann; Wes Giesbrecht; Bill Warkentin; Alvin Dahl; Ed Balzer; George Giesbrecht; coach Jake Braun
The silver medalist Abbotsford Panthers: Vic Rahn; Sam Vandermeulen; Mike Shannon; Tom Crombie; Terry Mitchell; Mike Inman; Dennis Dyck; Frank Dyck; Larry Grist; Ermery Baker; Gordon Beston; Plowright; Mike Rahn;
The gold medalist Prince Rupert Rainmakers: Skip Cronk; Brian Specht; Wayne Haldane; Ken Shields; David Pitre; Richard Lloyd; Dennis Rooney; Dave Petrie; Ken Humpherville; coach Norm Vickery