| POOL A | QUE | NS | ALTA | SASK | PEI | NWT | Record | ||
| Quebec | —– | 87-76 | 107-79 | 117-84 | 140-65 | 164-26 | (5-0) | ||
| Nova Scotia | 76-87 | —– | 80-74 | 78-45 | 86-39 | 108-32 | (4-1) | ||
| Alberta | 79-107 | 74-80 | —– | 67-51 | 72-68 | 127-31 | (3-2) | ||
| Saskatchewan | 84-117 | 45-78 | 51-67 | —– | 69-66 | 97-31 | (2-3) | ||
| PEI | 65-140 | 39-86 | 68-72 | 66-69 | —– | 97-30 | (1-4) | ||
| N.W.T. | 26-164 | 32-108 | 31-127 | 31-97 | 30-97 | —– | (0-5) | ||
| POOL B | BC | NB | MAN | ONT | NFLD | YUK | Record | ||
| British Columbia | —– | 81-69 | 62-48 | 62-48 | 89-65 | 112-38 | (5-0) | ||
| New Brunswick | 69-81 | —– | 59-56 | 84-69 | 89-49 | 120-50 | (4-1) | ||
| Manitoba | 48-62 | 56-59 | —– | 91-66 | 70-39 | 114-30 | (3-2) | ||
| Ontario | 48-62 | 69-84 | 66-91 | —– | 80-58 | 96-47 | (2-3) | ||
| Newfoundland | 65-89 | 49-89 | 39-70 | 58-80 | —– | 98-48 | (1-4) | ||
| Yukon | 38-112 | 50-120 | 30-114 | 47-96 | 48-98 | —– | (0-5) | ||
| Semi | Quebec 83 New Brunswick 78 | |
| Semi | British Columbia 60 Nova Scotia 52 | |
| 11th | Northwest Territories 77 Yukon 54 | |
| 9th | P.E.I. 70 Newfoundland 55 | |
| 7th | Saskatchewan 76 Ontario 73 | |
| 5th | Manitoba 71 Alberta 55 | |
| Bronze | New Brunswick 78 Nova Scotia 75 | |
| Final | Quebec 71 British Columbia 58 | |
In pool A play: …………………………………………………… Quebec whipped PEI 140-65 as Varouj Gurunlian scored 33. Gordon MacKay led PEI with 13. Coach Robert Comeau noted that “you can cheat your athletes by having them hold down the score. We always attack the ball, no matter who the opponent is.” Yukon player Rick Paskal countered that “what the Quebec coach says is so much fallout from a bull. You ought to leave a bit of dignity for the team you’re beating.” …………………………………………………… Quebec defeated Nova Scotia 87-76 as John Hunter scored 22. Quebec didn’t use their controversial full-court press but pulled away in the second half by dominating the boards. Nova Scotia coach Frank Baldwin had criticized Quebec earlier in the games for using full-court pressure to humiliate weak foes. “They were better than we were,” said Baldwin. “I can’t make excuses. We tried to be more deliberate, slow things down but we couldn’t do it consistently.” …………………………………………………… Alberta thrashed Saskatchewan 67-51. Alberta started slowly but soon took a 10-8 lead and extended the margin to 33-26 and as many as 25 in the second half. Joe McLaughlin led Alberta with 15, while 6-9 centre Jim Anderson of Olds ripped down 19 boards and point guards Dave Faulks and Brian Smith dictated the tempo. At one point in the second half, Smith caused four consecutive turnovers and converted all of them for runouts. He finished with 10 points, as did Joe Shemanski. “I was happy with our defence,” Alberta coach Jack Kenyon told the Lethbridge Herald. “When you hold a club to 51 points it means you’ve done the job defensively.” Dick Weir led Saskatchewan with 12. Saskatchewan coach Gary Korven told the Regina Leader-post that “we shot poorly. We didn’t get a basket in the second half until it was all over. The kids just weren’t shooting up to their potential. Our guys are used to stopping, turning and looking for someone to pass to. But their aggressive pressure defence put two of their guys on top of our ball carrier as soon as he reached halfcourt. In that situation, you have to pass right away and we haven’t played together long enough to know each other’s moves. I knew that defence was going to hurt us because nobody uses it in Regina.” …………………………………………………… Nova Scotia thrashed PEI 86-39 by dominating the boards and forcing the Islanders to a perimeter game. Alastair MacDonald led Nova Scotia with 20. James Collins added 16. Gordon MacKay led PEI with 11. …………………………………………………… Quebec annihilated the Northwest Territories 175-26 as Varouj Gurunlian scored 34 and Steve Dowd 22. Wilbert Firth led NWT with 14. …………………………………………………… Alberta edged PEI 72-68. Alberta trailed by five early but the knotted the score at 21 and then took a 45-32 lead at the half. PEI rallied within four in the final minute. Jim Anderson paced Alberta with 19. Jamie Ballem led PEI with 16. “Everybody was taking P.E.I. for granted,” said Alberta coach Jack Kenyon. “We came off a tough game against Nova Scotia Thursday and we just suffered a physical and mental letdown. We did come back well in the first half through and Anderson looked the best he has for us in the opening half.” …………………………………………………… Quebec crushed Saskatchewan 117-84 as Gordon Brabant scored 20. Glen Novak led Saskatchewan with 19. Saskatchewan coach Gary Korven told the Regina Leader-Post that “I was really happy with the way the boys played today. Quebec’s a real running team. If you’re not on them by the time they’re at the head of the key, it’s practically two points. But even when our boys were down, they kept running and hustling.” …………………………………………………… Nova Scotia whipped Northwest Territories 108-32 as Alastair MacDonald scored 18. …………………………………………………… Manitoba clocked Yukon 114-30 as Cameron McGinnis and Doug Puttaert each scored 16. …………………………………………………… Manitoba clubbed Ontario 91-66 as Cameron McGinnis scored 24, Dan Hyrnick 23, Brian Rumsey 14 and Terry Burns 12. …………………………………………………… Quebec clipped Alberta 107-79 as Varouj Gurunlian and John Hunter each scored 20. Jim Anderson paced Alberta with 16 points and 13 boards. …………………………………………………… Alberta stuffed the Northwest Territories 127-31 as Jim Anderson and Brian Church each scored 26. …………………………………………………… Nova Scotia defeated Alberta 80-74. Alberta trailed by nine in the second half but rallied to knot the score at 64 with five minutes to play. But Nova Scotia capitalized on Alberta turnovers down the stretch. Kevin Kelly led Nova Scotia with 22. Donald Robertson added 16. Stu Bauck led Alberta with 16. Joe Shemanski added 14 and Jim Anderson 12, along with 14 boards. …………………………………………………… Ontario dropped Newfoundland 80-58 as David Kirychuck scored 16. Pete Short and Leo Buckle each scored 12 to lead Newfoundland. ………………………………………………… Saskatchewan dumped Northwest Territories 97-31 as Ron McKay, Glen Novak and Dick Weir each scored 18. Skip Campbell added 12. ………………………………………………… Saskatchewan edged Prince Edward Island 69-66 as Glen Novak scored 16 and Rob Hilderman 11. ………………………………………………… Nova Scotia stomped Saskatchewan 78-45. Glen Novak paced Saskatchewan with 12. ………………………………………………… Ontario clocked the Yukon 96-47. Leroy Morrell led Yukon with 19. Barry Leigh added 14. ………………………………………………… Nova Scotia whipped Yukon 96-18. Rae McQuestion led Yukon with 6.
In pool B play: …………………………………………………… New Brunswick crushed Yukon 120-50 as Blair MacDonald scored 30. LeRoy Morrell led the Yukon with 20. Facing several taller players, Yukon’s David Brady later noted “the cold weather stunts our growth.” The tallest Yukon player was 6-3. The Yukon team was basically F.H. Collins High, along with Rick Paskal, a 20-year-old truck driver. The team was coached by Benny Sheardown, who noted “we call it ‘pinch bottom high’, out of respect for a former principal who liked girls.” …………………………………………………… Manitoba thrashed Newfoundland 70-39 as Can McGinnis scored 14, Brian Rumsey 14, Terry Burns 13 and Dan Hyrnick 13. John Taylor nabbed 11 boards and Rumsey 10 as Manitoba outrebounded Newfoundland 49-22. …………………………………………………… Ontario thrashed the Yukon 96-47 as Martin Gyshers scored 24 and David Kirychuk 14. LeRoy Morrell led the Yukon with 19. …………………………………………………… British Columbia upended Manitoba 62-48 as Dave Kirzinger scored 15. Brian Rumsey led Manitoba with 20. …………………………………………………… British Columbia clipped Newfoundland 89-65 as Mike Ferguson scored 16. …………………………………………………… New Brunswick dusted Ontario 84-69 as Arnold Kelley scored 20. …………………………………………………… British Columbia clocked the Yukon Territory 112-38 as Dean Barkley scored 24.
Over the course of the Games, Yukon chef de mission Helen Fitch created an enormous brouhaha by asserting that teams from larger provinces “seem determined to deliberately humiliate weaker teams from the territories.” Fitch added that Quebec basketball teams, in particular, “want to humiliate and embarrass every team they meet no matter how weak. … We didn’t come to these Games with any naive attitudes about the other teams or our own competency. We knew we would be up against some vastly superior teams, simply because of the variety of athletes they had to choose from. Our people in the Yukon and the ones in the Northwest Territories are very aware of what is going on in sports generally and they knew what they were up against. But I don’t like to see any earn try to wipe out another one. I don’t like to see a team use a full-court press in basketball when they are winning by more than 100 points against a much weaker team. No team should be humiliated at these games because of the deliberate actions of a stronger club. Those are bully tactics and they have no place in these games.” Nova Scotia basketball coach Frank Baldwin concurred, saying he watched a game in which he felt Quebec wanted to embarrass PEI. Quebec coach Robert Comeau said his club was too strong to contain itself against weaker teams. The Quebec men’s and women’s teams both employed full-court presses throughout their games.
In the semis, Quebec defeated New Brunswick 83-78 as Blair Shier scored 24.
In the other semi, British Columbia dumped Nova Scotia 60-52 as Mike Ferguson and Dave Kirzinger each scored 16.
In the 11th place playoff, the Northwest Territories crushed the Yukon Territory 77-54. NWT (coached by James Coulthard) included Firth, Wilbert Firth, Graves, Hansen, Jackoosie, Lizee, Marten, Munday, Uygur and Vallillee. Yukon (coached by Benny Sheardown, manager Austin) included David Bredy (Brady?), Bob Burrell, Ron Kulyan, Barry Leigh, Kerry Lyle, LeRoy Morrell, Rick Paskal, Brian Schaelar and Jim Tait.
In the 9th place playoff, PEI dusted Newfoundland 70-55. PEI included Beck, Ellsworth, Jamie Ballem, MacAdam, Macdonald, Gordon Mackay, Maclaughlin, Minor, Moore and Postma. Newfoundland (coached by Edward Brown) included Frank Butler, Pete Short, Brenton, Leo Buckle, Pennell and Wadden.
In the 7th place playoff, Saskatchewan nipped Ontario 76-73 as Glen Novak scored 20, Ron McKay 13 and Rod Hilderman 10. Ontario led 35-33 at the half. Saskatchewan coach Gary Korven told the Regina Leader-Post that the turning point was a shift to a zone after eight minutes of play. “We caught up to them steadily until we were three points up late in the game. But they weren’t in the bonus situation so when we fouled them 30 seconds left, all they could do was take the ball out on the side. But if they fouled us, we could shoot.” Saskatchewan (coached by Gary Korven) also included Adam, Campbell, Gray, Kelly, Sommerfield, Tiefenbach and Dick Weir. Ontario included Bruce Astle, Dave Burns, Jim Comuzzi, Frank D’Angelo, Tom Golden, Martin Gyshers, George Hardisty, Arnold Kelley, David Kirychuk and Brett McEwan.
In the fifth-place playoff, Manitoba clipped Alberta 71-55. Manitoba (coached by Randy Kusano, trainer Randy Papero) included John Alderdice, Terry Burns, Wally Derksen, Dan Hrynick, Ernie Koop, Cameron McGinnis, Randy Prokopanko, Doug Puttaert, Brian Rumsey and John Taylor. Alberta (the Mount Royal Cougars, coached by Jack Kenyon, managed by Ken Melvin) included Stew Bauck, Bubba Church, Clark Dennill, Dave Faulks, Joe McLaughlin, Joe Shemanski, Doug Smith, Darryl Turko, Mike Urban, Kelly O’Brady and Joe Anderson.
In the bronze medal match, New Brunswick edged Nova Scotia 78-75. Nova Scotia included Baldwin, James Collins, Donaldson, Driscoll, Hughes, Johnson, Kevin Kelly, Alastair Macdonald, Mackenzie, Donald Robertson, Ryan and Upshaw.
In the final, Quebec clipped British Columbia 71-58 with a stellar defensive performance. “I was worried about our defence,” said Quebec coach Robert Comeau. “We had to establish our running game and we had to keep them from getting inside. We knew the key would be defence and went out to keep pressure on them outside. Fortunately, everything went well.” John Hunter paced Quebec with 15. Varouj Gurunlian added 10. Steve Ferguson led BC with 12. Quebec included Dave Thornhill, born in Barbados, and Pat Adrien, born in Haiti, Mark Vickers, from Chicago, and Varouj Gurunlian, born in Egypt of Armenian ancestry. Gurunlian migrated to Canada in 1968 as his parents were trying to ensure that he wasn’t drafted into the Egyptian armed forces. “As an Egyptian citizen,” I’d have been subject to call-up for two or three years in the Egyptian army. They were after everybody when Israel beat them badly in the 1967 war,” said Gurunlian. “But I better not knock those Egyptian guys. They might kill me.”
The bronze medalist New Brunswick squad: Arnold Kelley; Gary Young; Keith Steeves; Dave Seman; Steve Ruiter; Bruce McCormack; Don MacNeil; Robert Fagan; Ken Amos; Blair MacDonald; Luigi Florean; manager Hector Roach; coach Rich Cotter
The silver medalist British Columbia squad: Dean Barkley; W. Berains; P. Boland; D. Chapman; L. Dakin; Mike Ferguson; Steve Ferguson; J. Gordon; Dave Kirzinger; P. Shaughnessy.
The gold medalists from Quebec: Gord Brabant; Dave Thornhill; P. Benoit; Varouj Gurunlian; L. Pullen; Blair Shier; P. Adrien; Mark Vickers; N. Connors; John Hunter; Steve Dowd; E. Huha; R. Spears; coach Wayne Hussey; coach Bob Comeau