In the opening round: …………………………………………………… The Regina Harvest City Reapers thumped the Stoughton Bulldogs 86-55 as their full court pressure proved the difference. Harvest City led 52-24 at the half. …………………………………………………… Saskatoon Christian crushed Radville 69-43 as Louis Thevenot scored 30. Brandt Fradette led Radville with 20. Saskatoon Christian’s size and offensive boardwork proved the difference. Christian led 37-15 at the half. …………………………………………………… The Rose Valley Roadrunners whipped the Norquay Nikes 90-69 as Jesse MacDonald scored 37. Rose Valley led 47-31 at the half. …………………………………………………… The Mortlach Mohawks dumped the Hafford Vikings 79-51 as Chase Lalonde scored 17 and Eric Crosbie 14, including a trio from beyond the arc. Mortlach led 39-23 at the half. …………………………………………………… The Middle Lake Three Lakes Avengers crushed the Borden Trailblazers 96-57. …………………………………………………… The Fillmore Falcons edged the Rockglen Raiders 75-70. …………………………………………………… The Lake Lenore Lancers stomped the Cut Knife Chief Poundmaker Chiefs 68-27 as Aaron Foy scored 17 and Cole Bauml 10. Shane Antoine paced Chief Poundmaker with 14. Lake Lenore led 38-10 at the half. …………………………………………………… The Hepburn Hawks defeated the Glaslyn Jets 71-64 as Andrew Reddekopp scored 26. Aaron Allen led Glaslyn with 16. Through the first half Hepburn maintained a lead: 1st quarter 16-14, at half 33-24. Third and fourth quarter brought foul trouble for Glaslyn who sat 4 players as each had 5 fouls. At the end of the third quarter the score sat 51-44 for Hepburn. In the last quarter the score remained within 5 and with slightly over 3:00 left, the game was tied at 60. From here Hepburn took control to win the game with many opportunities at the line shooting free throws.
In the quarterfinals, the host Regina Harvest City Reapers stomped Saskatoon Christian Cougars 88-64 as Habib Habib scored 31. Mike Janzen led Saskatoon Christian with 16. The game started out very intense with both teams applying pressure. Harvest City was missing their point guard due to soccer provincials and so Saskatoon did their best to pressure the ball. Foul trouble became an early problem for Harvest City as well. However, as the game progressed Harvest City began building a lead and lead 45-29 at halftime. The third quarter saw Harvest City really pull away and build a lead of 68-39 after 3 quarters. So how does a team reach Hoopla in 12 consecutive seasons? “Good coaching, I guess; that’s what I tell everybody,” Reapers head coach Joel Wells quipped “I don’t know. I kind of wonder the same thing sometimes. The biggest thing is once you get a tradition going, a basketball culture at your school, the young guys want to live up to the tradition set before them.”
The Mortlach Mohawks outlasted Rose Valley Roadrunners 106-91. Mortlach made a fast start as Eric Crosbie scored 10 points including two three pointers. After leading 26 -16 after the quarter the teams played a much tighter second quarter entering the half 51 -40. The teams continued to exchange points through the third quarter ending 81-71. In the final frame Rose Valley moved to within 6 points before Mortlach pulled away down the stretch.
The Middle Lake Three Lakes Avengers clipped the Fillmore Falcons 80-59.
In the last quarterfinal, the Lake Lenore Lancers dumped Hepburn 64-43 as Cole Bauml scored 16. Colten W. led Hepburn with 14.
In the semis, the Regina Harvest City Reapers stomped the Mortlach Mohawks 99-52 as Habib Habib scored 36. Ben Apperley led Mortlach with 17. “It’s the best feeling,” said Habib, who hit eight treys, told the Regina Leader-Post. “We have a lot of great guys on this team who deserve this. For some of them, it’s their last year, so we’re going to work hard for them.”
In the other semi, the Middle Lake Three Lakes Avengers defeated the Lake Lenore Lancers 57-47 as Kyle Krentz scored 21. David Hartl led Lake Lenore with 12. “It’s a real accomplishment to be part of three finals with Harvest City,” Aaron Cockerill, a four-year starter, told the Regina Leader-Post. “We’ve been (to provincials) 12 years in a row and haven’t won all the time. It’d be nice to win this one, me being in Grade 12.”
In the bronze medal match, the Mortlach Mohawks defeated the Lake Lenore Lancers 55-43 as Nick Polley scored 17. Cole Baum paced Lake Lenore with 19. Mortlach led 13-8 after one quarter. Lake Lenore led 22-19 at the half. Mortlach led 38-34 after three quarters.
In the final, the Regina Harvest City Reapers captured their third consecutive crown by dumping the Middle Lake Three Lakes Avengers 82-52 as Habib Habib scored 30. Simon Hauser paced Middle Lake with 13. It marked the first time that a school had won three consecutive 1A crowns. “At the start of the year, I told the guys, ‘We’ve been to provincials 11 years in a row. One thing we’ve never done as a school is win three in a row,” coach Joel Wells told the Regina Leader-Post. “I challenged the guys to win three in a row. It has kind of been motivation.” After losing in the 1998 and ’99 Hoopla finals, Harvest City won back-to-back provincial titles in 2000 and ’01. The Reapers then failed to reach the final in each of the subsequent four provincial championship tournaments. Wells said “every year, we’ve got character issues with guys, and it was no different this year. But for me, I saw real growth in some guys. I told the guys that if we win championships but lose at life, we’re idiots. I told them, ‘If I meet you when you’re 35, I want to see that you have a good family, that you’re good citizens and that you still love God. That’s more important to me than winning championships.’ I’m definitely proud of our accomplishments. As a coach, my goal is always to have a consistent program every year. I see some programs who make it here now and then and other programs show up year after year. I told the guys before the season that what I want us to strive to be is a good team, not just a good team for 1A. I’m just proud of the program we have going.” Fourth-year starter Aaron Cockerill said Wells was the difference. “We’ve got a great coach who inspires us and motivates us.” Habib hit six three-pointers. Wells had said after Harvest City’s semifinal victory over the Mortlach Mohawks on Friday that bragging rights were at stake at the school. He noted there’s an ongoing debate between the current players and graduates about whose team is better, but Cockerill said the win ends the argument. “I can just hold up three fingers and it’ll be done,” he said.
The bronze medalist Mortlach Mohawks: Nick Polley; Chase Lalonde; Eric Crosbie; Ben Apperley; Michael Meunier; Kevin Buck; Logan Polley; Max Swalm; Sean Wagar; Cole Bossence; coach Krukoff
The silver medalist Middle Lake Three Lakes Avengers: Kyle Krentz; Simon Hauser; coach Derek McDougall
The gold medalist Regina Harvest City Reapers: Habib Habib; Aaron Cockerill; Humed Habib; John Cockerill; coach Joel Wells