The Teams: Cameron Heights Golden Gaels (11-1 Regular Season) and the SJAM Highlanders (9-3 Regular Season).
Where and When: Cameron Heights CI, approximate tip-time of 8:45pm.
The Fan Vote: 68% say Cameron Heights will win (as of 10:30am)
Regular Season Meeting: SJAM 60 (Edem Ame 26), Cameron Heights 53 (Amjed Osman 16)
How they Got Here: Cameron Heights defeated #8 WODSS 63-43 in QF; defeated #5 GRCI 65-54 in SF. SJAM defeated #6 KCI 38-35 in QF; defeated #2 FHCI 61-56 (OT) in SF.
SJAM - Projected Starters
#10 - Ben Reyhani, G, 6'0" (Grade 12)
#14 - Edem Ame, F, 6'0" (Grade 12)
#15 - Jordan James, G, 5'7" (Grade 12 - R)
#23 - Theshawn Barry, G, 6'1" (Grade 11)
#33 - Quinn Turner, F, 6'5" (Grade 10)
Sixth Man: Connor Bradley, 6'1" - Grade 11
Cameron Heights - Projected Starters
#3 - Amjed Osman, G, 5'8" (Grade 12)
#5 - Stefan Cucuak, F, 6'3" (Grade 12)
#10 - Vedran Dmitrovic, G, 6'0" (Grade 11)
#14 - Adnan Shah, G, 6'1" (Grade 12)
#23 - Nebojsa Djeric, F, 6'2" (Grade 12 - R)
Sixth Man: Nem Simic, 6'0" - Grade 11
Game Background
It's been a while since the Cameron Heights Golden Gaels have made an appearance in the WCSSAA finals.
For the SJAM Highlanders, it's starting to become a February tradition.
The 'Landers will be making their fourth consecutive WCSSAA finals appearance, and are seeking their second title during that span (won over KCI in 2009).
Cameron Heights, on the other hand, hasn't participated in the senior WCSSAA championship final for some time. Their closest call came in 2005, when (while up by 3 points in the semifinals), a Cameron Heights foul on (future D-1 player) Gavin Horne from WCI allowed Horne to knock in 3 free throws to tie that semifinal with 0.6 seconds left on the clock. WCI would go on to win in overtime, and go on to win the WCSSAA and CWOSSA titles as well.
The Gaels haven't been on the winner's side of a WCSSAA finals since 1986, which is well before any of the current CHCI roster was even born. They'll be seeking not only to put an end to that 25-year drought, but also to get a bit of redemption for their only regular season loss this year.
Game Preview
From a personal perspective, I really like this matchup. Both teams are similar (about 6-7 deep, similar heights in the starting lineup, and have the offensive weapons to score in bunches). It should hopefully turn into a pretty good final down at Cameron Heights this evening.
We'll start with Cameron Heights, who are (arguably) playing some of the best basketball in CWOSSA in recent weeks. The key to their success is balance --- almost any of their starters (Osman, Cucak, Dmitrovic, Shah or Djeric) can lead them in scoring on any given night. Needless to say, this is a huge luxury and can make things quite difficult for a defensive gameplan. They can all step out and hit the three, but all can finish inside as well.
In terms of penetration from the guards, Amjed Osman is one of the best in WCSSAA in terms of breaking down his defender off the dribble. He's actually a triple-double threat most nights, with his ability to find his teammates inside and his tenacity on the defensive glass. If SJAM doesn't at least make him "uncomfortable" while bringing the ball up the floor (or in their offensive sets), I think it's going to be a long night for the Highlanders.
Another story to watch (should the Highlanders go man-to-man) will be the matchup of (most likely) Stefan Cucak versus Quinn Turner. This could be an edge for the Gaels, as Cucak likes to play on the perimeter so this matchup could draw Turner away from the comfort of being near the basket --- which is also key from Cameron's perspective as Turner is a solid rebounder on the interior. Personally, I think we may see some more zone defense than usual from Coach Maloney's double blue, but we'll see how it all plays out.
Cameron will have to do a better job on Ben Reyhani and Edem Ame (compared to their regular season outing) --- as those two went off for 80% (48) of SJAM's 60 points. Ame played at a very high level on Saturday night, with 27 points and 13 rebounds --- included in that point total were some very difficult makes. It's difficult to completely shut down both Reyhani and Ame, but they can at least get out on Reyhani and limit his three-point opportunities (keeping in mind that he loves to pull up even 4 or 5 feet off the line sometimes).
The X-Factors
- What team can steal the most minutes, and, specifically production, from their bench? Both teams have a couple of quality players (Nem Simic - CHCI and Connor Bradley - SJAM) that could light things up if they're on. SJAM's bench is a bit deeper as they can bring in 6'5" big man Muhammad Khalid and junior call-up Sayyad Bacchus as well. Edge goes to SJAM if this is a tight affair with a lot of fouls.
- The homecourt --- obvious advantage for Cameron Heights. Their court, their rims, and I anticipate that the majority of fans in attendance will be pulling for the Green & Yellow.
- Theshawn Barry (SJAM) and Vedran Dmitrovic (CHCI). I think whichever one of these grade 11 starters can step up and provide their team with a spark may go a long way into helping to propel their team to victory. Dmitrovic is well known for his shooting while Barry is more of a slasher. Both can also make contributions on the defensive end; Barry in particular has had a couple of big blocks in recent memory.
The Prediction: As I did last year for Bluevale, it's time to bring the "monkey on the back" out again for another appearance; as I mentioned above it's been a long 25 years since the Gaels have tasted victory on the WCSSAA level (it should be noted - they do have a 1994 CWOSSA championship to their credit). The Gaels have lived up to their #1 seeding in the playoffs to this point, and it is my expectation that they will dispose of their monkey with a victory in tonight's contest.Mark's Pick: Cameron Heights 55, SJAM 47
No comments:
Post a Comment