by Gary Ahuja/Special to Black Press Media
It is down to the final four in the four tiers, including a local team.
Following the quarter-final action for all four tiers at the on Thursday, March 7, at Langley Events Centre, the semi-final round is set with three of the four No. 1 seeds still alive in their respective hunt for a championship.
Tickets are available for purchase and every game of all four championships is also available to stream through pay-per-view at TFSETV.ca. Daily schedules, scores and news can also be found at www.bchighschoolbasketballchampionships.com.
4A Tournament
A pair of Victoria teams are hoping to make it an all-Vancouver Island championship final as both the No. 1 Oak Bay Bays and No. 2 Spectrum Thunder advance to the semi-final round at the BC School Sports 4A Boys Basketball Provincial Championships following the quarter-final round on Thursday (March 7) at Langley Events Centre.
The Bays face the No. 4 Tamanawis Wildcats of Surrey in one semi-final while the Thunder battle the No. 3 West Vancouver Highlanders in the other. The games get underway on Friday (March 8) in Arena Bowl at LEC beginning at 7:00pm.
#2 Spectrum Thunder 86 #7 Burnaby South Rebels 66
The Spectrum Thunder closed the first half with nine straight points and never trailed again, knocking off the Burnaby South Rebels 86-66. The trio of J Elijah Helman (22 points), Justin Hinrichsen (21 points) and Tyler Felt (19 points) combined for 62 of their team’s points in the victory. Lordrikk Gutierrez had 25 for the Rebels.
#3 West Vancouver Highlanders 70 #6 Semiahmoo Thunderbirds 64
For the second straight game, the West Vancouver Highlanders found themselves in a fourth-quarter scrap, and once again, the third-seed came through, defeating the defending champion Semiahmoo Thunderbirds 70-64. The Highlanders were down a point early in the final period, but back-to-back 3-pointers put them ahead for good. West Vancouver sank eight triples for the game, with Calvin Kuzyk draining five of those as part of his 36-point game. Jack Clayton (29 points) and Jack Snead (19) were the top scorers for Semiahmoo.
#4 Tamanawis Wildcats 65 #5 Vancouver College Fighting Irish 54
Trailing 39-35 in the third quarter, the Tamanawis Wildcats scored 20 of the next 24 points, defeating the Vancouver College Fighting Irish 65-54. Arjun Hehar finished with 20 points while Sartaj Bhangu added 17 for the Wildcats. Vince Velasquez had 18 and Isaiah Bias had 14 for Vancouver College.
#1 Oak Bay Bays 89 #8 Yale Lions 56
Twenty-two points from Heath Olson and 20 courtesy of Thomas Beames led the No. 1 seed Oak Bay Bays to a 89-56 win over the Yale Lions. Nylan Roberts’ 24 points led the Lions.
3A Tournament
It will be the top three seeds plus No. 5 in the semi-final round at the BC School Sports 3A Boys Basketball Provincial Championships at Langley Events Centre.
The fifth-seeded M.E.I. Eagles (Abbotsford) crashed the top four with a dramatic overtime win. The Eagles now face the two-time defending champion St. Patrick Celtics (Vancouver). The other semi-final features the No. 2 Dover Bay Dolphins (Nanaimo) and the No. 3 Lord Byng Grey Ghosts (Vancouver). The games are set for 3:30pm and 5:15pm and both are in the LEC Arena Bowl.
#2 Dover Bay Dolphins 89 #7 St. Thomas More Collegiate Knights 65
A 22-9 run to open the game set the tone early as the Dover Bay Dolphins advanced to the final four with the 89-65 win over the St. Thomas More Collegiate Knights. Tarman Sandhu scored 16 in the first quarte alone for Dover Bay, finishing with 29 points. That included six 3-pointers. Zeru Abera’s 25 points were tops on the Knights.
#3 Lord Byng Grey Ghosts 78 #11 Mark R. Isfeld Ice 53
The Lord Byng Grey Ghosts denied the Mark R. Isfeld a second straight bid for an upset. Facing the No. 11 seed – the lone non-top 8 team among any of the four tiers to win on Wednesday – Lord Byng found itself down 15-11 after 10 minutes. But a second quarter which saw them outscore their opponent 21-9 firmly put the No. 3 seed in charge as they finished off a 78-53 win. Dylan King (23 points) and Marco Radic (17) combined for 40 points for Byng. Daxin Moldenhauer finished with 22 for the Ice.
#5 M.E.I. Eagles 67 #4 North Delta Huskies 66 (OT)
The M.E.I. Eagles twice rallied in the dying seconds, first forcing overtime with 0.5 seconds to play, and then hitting a 3-pointer, stealing the inbounds pass and scoring what turned out to be the winning points with less than six seconds to play, stunning the North Delta Huskies 67-66. Grade 10 forward Mercer Thiessen led the Eagles with 18 points while both Isaiah Lee and Nathan Laspa each scored a dozen. Joseph Baku had 20 for the Huskies while Arjan Atwal chipping in 17.
#1 St. Patrick Celtics 68 #8 A.R. MacNeill Ravens 54
Grade 10 guard Riley Santa Juana scored 28 points as the St. Patrick Celtics moved to the final four with their 68-54 win over the A.R. MacNeill Ravens. Chad Gammad had 27 points to lead the Ravens.
2A Tournament
The eighth-seed Langley Christian pulled off the biggest upset of the tournament so far, booking their spot in the semi-final round at the BC School Sports 2A Boys Basketball Provincial Championships after upsetting the No. 1 ranked team.
The Lightning now match up against the No. 4 seed Brentwood College (Mill Bay) while the No. 2 Pacific Academy Breakers (Surrey) play the No. 3 Collingwood Cavaliers (West Vancouver) in the other. The semi-final games are set for Friday (March 8) on Centre Court at Langley Events Centre beginning at 7:00pm.
#2 Pacific Academy Breakers 83 #7 Lambrick Park Lions 71
Forty-one points from Jaden Mesfin led the Pacific Academy Breakers to an 83-71 win over the Lambrick Park Lions. The Breakers were down three after a quarter but held the Lions to eight points over the next 10 minutes and led by double digits for nearly the entire second half. Mesfin scored 15 in the fourth quarter alone while Blake Pye had 25 points for Lambrick Park.
#3 Collingwood Cavaliers 108 #6 John Barsby Bulldogs 75
A high-scoring first quarter saw the teams combine for 59 points (30-29) and the Collingwood Cavaliers kept on scoring, hitting triple digits in a 108-75 win over the John Barsby Bulldogs. Four Cavaliers reached double figures with Logan Albiani’s 22 leading the way and Finnegan Murphy adding 18. The Bulldogs’ Jonny Durkan led all scorers with 29 while Cohen Cadieux added 23.
#4 Brentwood College 83 #5 Westsyde Whundas 57
A 19-6 run to open the game set the tone as Brentwood College advanced to the final four with the 83-57 win over the Westsyde Whundas. Julian Bishop led Brentwood College with 20 points while Milan Pasquale and Taylor Edwards chipped in 18 and 16 points, respectively. Cason Scott’s 24 points were tops for the Whundas.
#8 Langley Christian Lightning 63 #1 King George Dragons 56
The biggest upset of the tournament saw the eighth-seed Langley Christian Lightning upset the No. 1 ranked – and defending champion – King George Dragons 63-56. Langley Christian trailed just twice (and by a single point each team) in pulling off the upset. Willem Van Huizen had 12 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter while Tyler Olson had 15. Darko Karac was the top scorer for the Dragons with 16 points.
1A Tournament
It will be No. 1 against No. 4 in one semi-final and No. 2 versus No. 6 in the other at the BC School Sports 1A Boys Basketball Provincial Championships at Langley Events Centre.
The two semi-final games will be played on Centre Court, beginning at 3:30pm.
#2 Maple Ridge Christian Hornets 87 #7 Similkameen Sparks 68
A six-point game late in the third quarter, the Maple Ridge Christian Hornets pulled away in the fourth for the 87-68 win over the Similkameen Sparks. Four Hornets reached double figures, led by Carson Barber’s 24 points with Connor Riley adding 19 and Eli Arrington and Makar Golotin each chipping in 15. Rain Marsden finished with 21 while Ethan Potash added 20 for the Sparks.
#6 Gidgalang Kuuyas Naay Breakers 79 #3 St. John’s School Eagles 72
The sixth-seed Gidgalang Kuuyas Naay Breakers pulled off the upset, taking down the third-seed St. John’s School Eagles 79-72. Viv Anderson-Francois had 32 points for the Eagles, but the trio of Levi Burton (24 points), Greg Puterill (18) and Loay Almahmiid (16) combined for 58 for the Breakers.
#4 St. Ann’s Academy Crusaders 77 No. 5 King David Lions 67
The St. Ann’s Academy Crusaders eliminated the defending champion King David Lions 77-67. The Crusaders were clutch from the free throw line, hitting 13 of their 15 shots from the line in the fourth quarter. Nash Pearce led the Crusaders with 25 points while Jacob Eichenberger scored 14 and Ryder Corsi and Mauro Lama each had 13. Paul Zychlinski led the Lions with 27 and Arel Steen had 17.
#1 Unity Christian Flames 94 #8 Golden Eagles 42
A 21-5 run to start the game had the Unity Christian Flames off and running to a convincing 94-42 win over the Golden Eagles. Jay Smiens’ 17 points were tops for the Flames while Henry Stonehouse led the Eagles with eight.
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