The Centre Dufferin Royals will be the lone CWOSSA team advancing to this year's Heinbuch Gold Bracket; the Royals defeated Hamilton Westmount 73-62 this afternoon in their second round game.
Marco Zanette led the way for CDDHS with 17 while Spencer Dawson had a game-high 28 for the Wildcats.
Here are today's other scores:
First Round
Oakwood 64, Huron Hts. 38
HHHS: Juwan Miller & Paul Gubek 9
OCI: Brody Clarke 20
Cardinal Newman 54, St. Mary's (Kit) 41
CN: David McCulloch 18
SMHS: Jermaine Lyle 21
Collingwood 44, St. Mary's (Ham) 31
J. Clarke Richardson 54, St. Thomas More (Ham) 53
Second Round
North Park 34, Galt 32
NPC: Nick Minutillo 12
GCI: TJ Lall 11
WCI 70, Oakville Loyola 55
WCI: Jacob Ranton 23
Loy: Trenton Ford 14
Centre Dufferin 73, Westmount 62
Mother Teresa 57, Cameron Hts. 55
MT: Emeron Rogers 15
CHCI: Vedran Dmitrovic 25
Huron Hts. 54, St. Mary's (Ham) 46
HHSS: Darcy Jacobs 23
Oakwood 55, Collingwood 38
St. Mary's (K) vs. St. Thomas More
J. Clarke Richardson vs. Cardinal Newman
Tomorrow's Games
Consolation Bracket
Galt vs. TBD - 9:00am, SMHS
Loyola vs. St. Mary's (H), 10:30am, SMHS
Bronze Bracket
North Park vs. St. Mary's (K), 9:00am, HHSS
WCI vs. Huron Hts., 10:30am, HHSS
Silver Bracket
Cameron Hts. vs. TBD, 12:15pm, SMHS
Westmount vs. Collingwood, 1:45pm, SMHS
Gold Bracket
Mother Teresa vs. TBD, 12:15pm, HHSS
Centre Dufferin vs. Oakwood, 1:45pm, HHSS
Friday, November 30, 2012
Heinbuch: Day One Recap & "Programming Note"
First win for the school ever at the Heinbuch? Check.
The Centre Dufferin (Shelburne) Royals made another emphatic statement on Thursday evening at Huron Heights in Kitchener, holding off the preseason CWOSSA #1 ranked WCI Vikings in a 59-58 thriller to cap a great day of basketball during the first day of the Heinbuch.
In fact, no game was decided by more than 6 points, while three were decided by three points or less.
In the nightcap, the Vikings jumped to an early 8-0 lead and led 19-11 after the opening frame. However, when 6'6" forward Dani Elgadi went to the bench with foul trouble in the second quarter, the Royals went on a 16-4 run to close the second quarter, keyed by the outstanding play of 6'3" SF Marco Zanette.
Zanette poured in 17 first-half points while Doug Costanzo added 11 points and 8 rebounds as the Royals took a 35-30 lead at intermission.
It looked like WCI would take control in the third, as they started on a 7-0 run. However, CDDHS absorbed that punch and went on a 10-0 run of their own to extend the lead back up to 8.
The Royals would maintain that 5-8 point lead for much of the third quarter and early fourth. In fact, a Matt Pflance three-pointer from the left corner would give Centre Dufferin a 55-47 lead with under 4:00 to go.
Doug Costanzo would extend things to 59-49 on a nice lay-in inside, but that's where things started to get interesting.
After a WCI free-throw and a Jacob Ranton "and one" (59-53) with 1:36 left, CDDHS missed the front end of a 1-and-1 which WCI rebounded. On the offensive side, Dani Elgadi hit a three to cut things to 59-56 (1:13).
Another missed free throw for the Royals allowed Nick Johnny to have a great look to tie the game, but he would come up empty. Shortly thereafter, Jacob Ranton was fouled during a mad scramble for the ball but missed both free throws before coming up with a big bucket inside and just 12 seconds to go.
The Royals turned the ball over on the inbounds play, trying for a "homerun pass", giving the Vikes a chance to complete the comeback. However, a Jacob Ranton runner and an Adam Anagnostopoulos jumper both just rimmed out to set off a celebration for the Royals.
Marco Zanette finished with 21 points, 4 rebounds, and 5 assists for the Royals, while Doug Costanzo added 15 points and 11 rebounds. Daniel Craig (9 points, 4 rebounds), Matt Pflance (9 points), and Carlo Zanette (5) rounded out the Royal scoring.
Jacob Ranton had a great effort for WCI, pouring in 23 points and 7 rebounds. Elgadi added 15 points and 13 rebounds, while Adam Anagnostopoulos had 9 points and 7 'boards. Other Vikes on the scoresheet included Nick Johnny (5), Zach Totzke (2) and Malcolm Piazza (2).
The Royals will play Hamilton Westmount today, winners (74-71) over Oakville Loyola. The Vikes will take on Loyola on the other side of the bracket.
Meanwhile, Jack Simmons poured in 30 points and TJ Lall netted 27 but it wasn't enough as Mother Teresa (Scarborough) beat Galt 71-65 in the early game on Thursday.
Vedran Dmitrovic had 22 to pace Cameron to a close 42-39 squeaker over Brantford North Park, who received 13 from Nick Minutillo.
Cameron and Mother Teresa will play today (4:30pm, St. Mary's), while Galt and NPC will battle in an all-CWOSSA "AAA" game at 3:00pm (St. Mary's).
I'll have more from the WCI - CDDHS game, including a full boxscore.
Programming Note
Busy day - so I won't get up the D10 scores or rankings today --- although with tournament play they're likely best saved until after the weekend.
As always, head over to my Twitter Page for updates from where I'm at during the day --- I plan on taking in both Heinbuch and Highlander Hoopla (Junior) games today!
Thursday, November 29, 2012
Junior: SJAM Highlander Hoopla Field Set
The nice thing about this tournament is that it caters exclusively to CWOSSA teams, giving teams an early indication of who the "teams to beat" might be. 8 of the 10 teams from my preseason junior CWOSSA "top 10" ranking will be participating.
In fact, success at this tournament usually means "good things" in the future. For example, last year's final featured Grand River (WCSSAA champions 2012) and St. Mary's, who were without Mike Blumel at the time (CWOSSA champions 2012).
A "late subtraction" from the draw means that SJAM will be fielding two teams in the tournament. Here's a look at this year's 16-team draw (first round) ---- first round winners will play first round losers in the "OFSAA formatted" draw.
Friday at SJAM
3:00pm - St. Mary's vs. SJAM #1
4:30pm - Cameron Hts. vs. Huron Hts.
6:00pm - SJAM #2 vs. Brantford CI
7:30pm - North Park vs. St. James
Friday at FHCI
3:00pm - Forest Hts. vs. Assumption
4:30pm - St. David vs. Grand River
6:00pm - St. John's vs. CWDHS
7:30pm - Resurrection Catholic vs. Bluevale
Weekend Tournaments
With a lot going on, and several tournaments ---- my posts will be a bit sporadic. Best to check my Twitter Page for updates from where I'm at, and I'll post further information on here whenever the opportunity arises!
Heinbuch: Twitter Feed
Here's a look at what some people are saying about the 29th annual Heinbuch Classic:
D8, D10 All-Stars Split in Kitchener
The junior D8 all-stars got the evening started with a 45-42 win over D10. St. Benedict's Afifa Salaad (9) and Resurrection's Celia McGlynn (8) led the way for D8, while Guelph CVI's Sydney Wilson had a game-high 11 points for the D10 all-stars.
The D10 seniors used a strong second half to pull away for a 65-45 win. Lourdes' Hannah Pearsall was the lone player in the game in double-figures, with a 10-point effort. Sydney Resch (JF Ross) added 8 while Andrea Priamo (Bishop Mac) netted 7.
St. Benedict's Hilary Ferguson had 9, while Rebekah Oosterhof (Woodland) and Rez's Emma Higgins had 8 each for the D8 all-stars.
D10 Thursday Picks: Royals, Celtics Meet in Big Early-Season Game
YTD: 4-0 (1.000) We didn't have to wait long to see two of the projected top D10 teams in action.
The JF Ross Royals (1-0) will host the Bishop Mac Celtics (1-0) in one of 4 D10 games on the schedule today. With no Guelph and area teams heading to this year's Heinbuch tournament, there are no conflicts for any senior teams today.
Should be a great game between those clubs, but I'll give a slight edge to the Celts even on the road. Bishop Mac by 6 is my pick there, but it will be interesting to see how it plays out.
As for the other games:
Orangeville (0-1) at Centre Wellington (0-1)
My Pick: CWDHS by 11
The Falcons should pick up their first win today in the friendly confines of their home gym, provided they don't take the Bears lightly.
Lourdes (0-1) at Guelph CVI (0-1)
My Pick: OLOL by 19
The Lourdes Crusaders should win this rivalry game by a comfortable margin, and will likely be better than several experts (myself included) initially projected.
Centennial (1-0) at St. James (1-0)
My Pick: CCVI by 10
Look for the Spartans and reigning D10 MVP Erik Sterne to get off to a 2-0 start, but they'll have to work for this one here today.
D8: Wednesday Results
Even though that was only seven (or so) years back, it certainly feels like a longer time ago especially after seeing yesterday's results.
The favourites to win this year's title, the St. Mary's Eagles, demolished the Rockway Flames 104-25 yesterday in senior action, putting up 50+ points in each half en route to the win.
Nathan Riley had 15 to lead the Eagles' balanced attack, while Michael Born had a solid effort for Rockway with 12.
Things weren't much prettier for Flame fans in the tail end of the senior-junior doubleheader as St. Mary's romped in an 80-26 game.
David Nguyen (21) and Devante Douse (13) led the Eagles while Connor Huxman had 7 and Liam Robinson 5 for Rockway.
Here's a look at the other results, and the standings for the D8 league:
Junior
St. David 50, St. Benedict 42
It sure is going to be a competitive year in D8 junior this year, as this game proves. The Celtics picked up a key win while the Saints battled hard despite missing a starter due to illness. Alec Scheffler put home a double-double (15 points, 10 rebounds) for the Celts while George Dumitru also added 15 points. Zubair Seyed led the Saints with 9.
Monsignor Doyle 52, Woodland 28
The tandem of Sohrob Sultani (28 points) and Jordan Deveney-Reid (13 points) were playing at a high level on Wednesday as the Mustangs improved to 2-0. Shane Clarke had 15 for Woodland, with Drew Corrick netting 7.
Junior D8 Standings
T1. Monsignor Doyle 2-0
T1. St. Mary's 2-0
3. Resurrection 1-0
4. St. David 1-1
5. St. Benedict 0-1
T6. Rockway 0-2
T6. Woodland 0-2
Senior
Monsignor Doyle 78, Woodland 24
The Mustangs were on fire on Wednesday and had 3 players finish with 12+ points --- Uzair Khan (28), Jamal Bell (13) and Ryan Teet (12). Steve Wang led the Cavs with a 6 point effort.
St. Benedict 46, St. David 35
The Saints won a "grind-em-out" game over at St. David CSS on Wednesday, jumping to a 9-point halftime edge and maintaining that lead for the entire second half. Tyler Moulton had 13 and Jesse Sawyer 6 in the win, while Jake Winter (11) and Matt Scanlon (5) led St. David.
D8 Senior Standings
T1. St. Mary's 2-0
T1. Monsignor Doyle 2-0
T3. Resurrection 1-0
T3. St. Benedict 1-0
T5. St. David 0-2
T5. Rockway 0-2
T5. Woodland 0-2
TheRecord: Heinbuch First Big Test for Vikings
Article By: Mark BrysonWATERLOO — Waterloo Collegiate’s success on the volleyball court has created a short-term problem for the Vikings senior boys basketball team.
The silver-medal finish at the all-Ontario championship on Saturday prevented two-sport standouts Jacob Ranton and Adam Anagnostopoulos from making the transition to basketball until Monday of this week. Normally, it wouldn’t be that big of a deal, but this is far from a normal year for a Vikings squad that is being touted as one of the teams to beat in Waterloo Region.
For the first time since 2005, the Vikings are one of the local entries in the Heinbuch Classic basketball tournament that opens Thursday and wraps up Saturday at St. Mary's High School and Huron Heights Secondary School. The St. Mary’s Eagles were also invited to make their third consecutive Heinbuch appearance, and will be joined by the Huron Heights Huskies, Galt Ghosts and Cameron Heights Golden Gaels in the 29th edition of the prestigious tournament.
“It is an honour to be invited to the Heinbuch and as one of the organizers of the tournament I have always held it in such high esteem and it’s also an honour to be viewed as one of the top four or five teams in the area,” said Vikings coach Craig Nickel.
The Vikings, who have yet to play an exhibition game, will get their first taste of action at the Heinbuch on Thursday night when they take on Shelburne’s Centre Dufferin Royals at Huron Heights. The Royals are coached by Patrick Kings, who enjoyed an illustrious career at Forest Heights as a player and is said to be excited about the prospects of bringing his lads to Kitchener.
“I do believe by the end of the year we have the chance to be as good as anybody, but we’re a little banged up right now. We didn’t get our volleyball guys back until this week and Jacob Ranton is still rehabbing from his ACL injury so he’s not anywhere near where he should be,” said Nickel.
“Centre Dufferin just won a tournament in Guelph and is battle-tested and we’re not nearly as prepared as we would like to be.”
That didn’t prevent the cwossabasketball.com website from predicting WCI would win its first two games and has the best chance of becoming the first Waterloo Region to ever win the tournament.
“The old kiss of death,” laughed Nickel.
All kidding aside, the Vikings look to have to the makings of a team that is capable of reaching the OFSAA boys quad-A basketball championship in March. All five starters are back from the team that reached the Waterloo County league’s semifinal round and only one key player – sixth man Alex Heap – was lost to graduation. The starting five of Ranton (forward), Anagnostopoulos (point guard), Malcolm Piazza (centre), Zach Totzke (guard) and Dani Elgadi (forward) are as good as it gets, while John McGowan (guard) and Nick Johnny (guard) will also see floor time and are expected to contribute.
Nickel is hopeful the Vikings can get a few competitive games in at the Heinbuch before starting their WCSSAA regular season on Tuesday against Huron Heights.
Toronto’s Oakwood Barons scored a 59-49 win over the Blessed Mother Teresa Titans of Scarborough in the 2011 Heinbuch final and both those teams are back this year and considered to be among the teams to watch. Oakville’s St. Ignatius of Loyola Hawks is also considered to be a serious contender along with Hamilton’s Cardinal Newman Cardinals.
The prestigious tournament is named in honour of Court Heinbuch, a former Cameron Heights Golden Gaels head coach who died of a heart attack on Feb. 12, 1985. Bluevale’s Roy Dahl and Preston’s Bill Hadley joined forces to get the tournament rolling, starting as an eight-team event from 1984 to 1987 before expanding to its current format in 1988.
Toronto Runnymeade has won the tournament six times, while Oakwood has won it three times. Hamilton Cathedral, Ajax Pickering and Scarborough Mother Teresa have won it twice.
The 29th annual Heinbuch Classic
The 16-team tournament will be played Thursday, Friday and Saturday at Huron Heights Secondary School and St. Mary’s High School.
Participating teams: Cameron Heights Golden Gaels, Hamilton Cardinal Newman Cardinals, Collingwood Fighting Owls, Shelburne Centre Dufferin Royals, Cambridge Galt Ghosts, Huron Heights Huskies, Ajax J. Clarke Richardson Storm, Scarborough Blessed Mother Teresa Titans, Brantford North Park Trojans, Toronto Oakwood Barons, Oakville St. Ignatius of Loyola Hawks, Kitchener St. Mary’s Eagles, Hamilton St. Mary’s Crusaders, Hamilton St. Thomas More Knights, Waterloo Vikings, Hamilton Westmount Wildcats.
Thursdays’ games (at Huron Heights): Galt vs. Mother Teresa, 3 p.m.; Cameron Heights vs. North Park, 4:30 p.m.; Loyola vs. Westmount, 6:15 p.m.; Waterloo vs. Centre Dufferin, 7:45 p.m.
Friday’s games (at St. Mary’s): St. Mary's vs. Cardinal Newman, noon; J. Clarke Richardson vs. St. Thomas More, 1:30 p.m. (At Huron Heights): Huron Heights vs. Oakwood, noon; St. Mary's (Hamilton) vs. Collingwood, 1:30 p.m.
Play continues at both schools on Friday, with Saturday’s four divisional finals beginning at 3:30 p.m. at Huron Heights. The gold division championship will be played at 8:15 p.m. There is no admission charge to any games.
Retrieved From: http://www.therecord.com/sports/highschool/article/844884--heinbuch-first-big-test-for-vikings
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
HEINBUCH PREVIEW: Zanettes, CDDHS Seek To Complete Turnaround
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| Marco Zanette |
To understand how big a turnaround Centre Dufferin DHS has experienced in their basketball program over recent years, you only have to go back about 5 seasons.
During an early preseason junior tournament hosted by Our Lady of Lourdes, the 2007-08 version of the Royals were defeated soundly by (to be fair) bigger schools from Guelph and Kitchener.
By "soundly", I'm talking 50-60 point margins.
Enter twins Carlo and Marco Zanette, as well as a strong supporting cast of talent.
The 2008-09 season saw marked improvement at the junior level, with the Royals going 7-1 in league play.
The next year (2009-10), they were untouchable and were arguably the best team in any level of CWOSSA. For comparison purposes, they comfortably defeated eventual AAAA champ Kitchener Resurrection Catholic by 15 and 20 points in two exhibition meetings.
At AAA CWOSSA, the Royals took the first championship in school history, beating all three of their opponents by double-digits over that weekend.
The transition to the senior level, though, was a bit bumpy at first.
The Royals didn't qualify for CWOSSA "AAA" in grade 11 (having to play a talented Ryan Higgins and Guelph St. James in their qualifier). Last year, they were the #1 seed at "AAA" senior but were upset by Galt Collegiate in a CWOSSA semifinal.
This year, they've been rewarded with their first-ever Heinbuch appearance in school history. They played last weekend at the CWDHS Invitational, winning the championship 67-54 over their new "AA" rival Bishop Mac (the Royals are now AA this year).
Of course, not everything has been perfect for members of the CDDHS squad.
The Zanette's mother, Marilyn, passed away in August of this year after a courageous battle with breast cancer. You may have noticed Marco wearing his trademark pink shoes last season in honour of his mother's battle.
"I purchased the pink shoes at the start of last season," said Marco. "Before my mother was diagnosed with the second cancer that she couldn't beat she had overcome breast cancer 4 years prior. The second diagnosis was a hard blow to myself, my family, and most of all my mother."
"Yet," he noted, "she never ceased being the loving, kind and caring person she had always been. The cancer stopped her from doing a lot of things, but she would never allow it to stop her from being a mother. Her bravery and strength in the face of adversity made me proud to be her son. In buying the pink shoes I wanted to honour my mom's optimism and love to those in her life. She would show compassion to anyone who needed it, not just the people important to her."
"If someone sees the bright pink shoes and their day is a little better for it, I know my mom would be happy that I made them happy," he added.
So, Marco Zanette and his pink shoes will be back on the court tomorrow evening (7:45pm at Huron Heights in Kitchener) against the CWOSSA #1 ranked WCI Vikings. This year's version of the Royals is a veteran-laden crew with five returning starters from last year's team, including Marco (6'4"), twin brother Carlo (6'3"), Matt Pflance (5'10"), Doug Costanzo (6'3"), and Daniel Craig (6'0").
"Our team has an excellent coaching staff in our Head Coach Patrick Kings and Assistant Coach Stanley Karabela, and we have a great group of guys that are committed to excellence," said Marco.
This team is a pleasure to watch --- when you do so, take good note of their fundamentals. I remember a junior coach comparing them to a "men's league team" a couple years ago, which was meant as an extreme compliment based upon the way they boxed out, used their body to seal and post-up, and basically "out physicaled" their opponents.
As a result of being on the periphery of CWOSSA, the Zanettes have been under-recruited to this point, but I think college and university coaches need to take a serious look at them this season.
"I'm looking to play basketball at the next level, for sure," said Marco. "I'm hoping to play on the team wherever I decide to attend university. I've heard from a couple schools so far," he said.
When I asked him about playing on the periphery of CWOSSA, and if he felt they were "respected" by other teams in CWOSSA, Marco said that it really doesn't enter into the equation.
"We go out and compete every single time we hit the floor," he said, "respect us or not, we're going to do everything we can to give you one heck of a game."
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Heinbuch Preview: CWOSSA Teams
There's 7 CWOSSA teams in the 16-team Heinbuch field this year, looking to capture CWOSSA's first title since 1999 (Brantford Assumption).
Huron Heights, WCI, St. Mary's, Cameron Heights and Galt are looking to become the first-ever WCSSAA or D8 school to raise the banner --- but it won't be easy.
I chatted with Barry Hayes at HoopStarsCanada.com, and he is projecting an Oakwood - Cardinal Newman final, if Newman PG David McCulloch is back at full strength.
This isn't the greatest news for the two hosts, St. Mary's and Huron Heights, who draw those two teams in the first round. That being said, some crazy things have happened during those afternoon games in front of the home crowds (remember SMHS' near massive upset over Henry Carr a couple years' back?), so it'll be interesting to see if that energy can lead one of them to a first-round upset.
Here's my projections (first two games) for our 7 CWOSSA clubs:
Cameron Heights Golden Gaels (Kitchener / WCSSAA)
Projection: Win, Loss (Silver Division)
The Gaels have a lot of game experience already to this point in the season, and I see them as strong favourites against North Park in their opener. Expect a competitive game against Mother Teresa in their second game, though I do project a silver division appearance for the Gaels.
Centre Dufferin Royals (Shelburne / D4)
Projection: Loss, Win (Bronze Division)
After a competitive loss to WCI in their opener, I'll tag the Royals to get "on the board" in this tournament against Oakville Loyola in their second game (assuming Westmount beats them in the first round).
Galt Collegiate Ghosts (Cambridge / WCSSAA)
Projection: Loss, Win (Bronze Division)
Like Huron Heights and St. Mary's, the Ghosts also draw a talented Mother Teresa (Scarborough) team in their opener. I think the athleticism of the Titans will be too much in their opener, but I like them to take out Brantford North Park in the second round to advance to the bronze division.
Huron Heights Huskies (Kitchener / WCSSAA)
Projection: Loss, Win (Bronze Division)
Juwan Miller and the Huskies will have home-court advantage but I don't think it'll be enough to get past tournament favourites Oakwood in the first round. The Barons are a "top 4-6" team in the province depending on the source. Look for the Huskies to grab a competitive win in their second game on Friday evening.
North Park Trojans (Brantford / BCSSAA)
Projection: Loss, Loss (Consolation Division)
The Trojans came third at the Brant County tip-off this weekend, dropping a game to Assumption in the semifinals. I think it'll take some time for this roster to gel, but they can still be dangerous if they get hot from behind the arc.
St. Mary's Eagles (Kitchener / D8)
Projection: Loss, Loss (Consolation Division)
I think the Eagles are better than some of the other CWOSSA teams in this tournament, but they do have a very tough draw starting with Cardinal Newman. A second round game against either JC Richardson or St. Thomas More won't be much easier, but I wouldn't be surprised to see at least one win in their first two on their home court.
Waterloo Vikings (Waterloo / WCSSAA)
Projection: Win, Win (Gold Division)
CWOSSA bias on my part, of course, but I have to go with one team of advancing through the second round, right? The only caveat is that the Vikes' senior volleyball squad just finished up last weekend with a silver medal at OFSAA --- so they haven't had as much game experience as some of the other squads. That being said, they return all 5 starters from last year so they should be fairly comfortable with each other already.
D8: Commentary and Wednesday Picks
Sure, St. Mary's and Resurrection are still expected to be at the top of the standings, but both will be fielding very different rosters than we've seen in senior circles over the past couple of years.
The Eagles, for starters, are expected to run away from the D8 league thanks in part to returnee (G/F) Telloy Simon, and a stacked incoming junior crop (last year's AAAA CWOSSA champions) including SG Nathan Riley, SF Jamari Stephenson, F Bronson Bothelo, and PG Jermaine Lyle. All four were starters on last year's junior championship squad and should transition quite effectively to the senior level.
Transfer Tyrick Thompson (Alex's younger brother) will further bolster the lineup, which could have been even better had Adam Voll and Mike Blumel (transfers to SJK) stuck around.
Resurrection, meanwhile, was slated to return 6'8" F Cory Kenning and 6'0" PG Adam Schneider, however, both Kenning and Schneider have moved to Florida for the season.
As such, the entire Phoenix starting 5 will be "new look" and even their coach too (Matt Kras returns at that capacity).
6'5"+ F Jacob Gilbert (4th Year) will be the Phoenix's top returnee, although he did suffer a hairline fracture in his wrist against Woodland and will be out for an undetermined period of time.
Thomas Hunter (PG / 3rd Year), Tyler Bartley (SF / 5th Year), Onique Findlay (F / 4th Year) and football lineman Andrew Pickett (C / 3rd Year) round out Rez's starting five.
St. Benedict is again projected as a "top 4 team", though they lost a tremendous amount of talent (Santo Dak, Kueth Geng & Josh Edwards) to graduation. Those three players are actually all playing OCAA basketball together now at Canadore College.
G/F Tyler Moulton, a starter on last year's squad, is the top returnee.
The fourth and final playoff position appears to be up for grabs.
Monsignor Doyle got off to a great start on Monday by picking up a key home win over Rockway. Returning starter (G) Tyler Saris is expected to carry the bulk of the scoring offense while junior grad Jamal Bell had an impressive performance in his opening D8 senior game, going for double figures.
As for the Flames, I think they'll be improved over a year ago after being infused with a couple new faces, including Michael Born --- a D8 all-star from last junior season.
The St. David Celtics are about a year away from really climbing up the D8 ladder but should still manage to be competitive for a playoff spot (and possible CWOSSA berth) this season. Returning starters Jake Winter and Matt Scanlon will carry the load, while a couple of key junior prospects should bolster the lineup.
Woodland makes a return to the D8 senior league this season, and will try to snag the "A" CWOSSA berth away from the Rockway Flames. Ryan Dickeson led the way against Rez in their opener, while Nathan Timmerman will be relied upon despite being a grade 11 rookie.
Wednesday Picks (YTD 3-0)
SBCSS over SDCSS
MDCSS over WCHS
SMHS over RMC
Junior
The junior D8 league could arguably be one of the deepest in CWOSSA this season --- and it is certainly up for grabs based upon early returns.
The St. David Celtics, with 11 returnees (including guards James McBride and George Dumitru) entered as the preseason favourites although they did suffer a 44-42 loss to the St. Mary's Eagles in their opener after Adham Eleeda notched a buzzer beater to cap his 20 point effort.
The Eagles were projected to be slightly down (at least compared to the dominating team from last year) but looks like they'll again be right in the mix for a D8 title and CWOSSA berth. Henoak Abara is another newcomer who should help the Eagles out.
The St. Benedict Saints and Resurrection Phoenix are laden with grade 9 talent, so it will be interesting to see how those teams develop over the coming season.
The Phoenix start four grade 9 freshmen in their starting five, while the Saints will play their first league game today but I expect something similar from them.
All in all, it should be a very competitive D8 season. I wouldn't be surprised to see 3, possibly even 4 of these teams ranked at some point during the year.
D10 Junior: Falcons Lose Game, Uhrig For Season
The Falcons, who have represented D10 at CWOSSA "AAAA" the past two seasons, were dumped 63-41 by Centennial in D10 action on Tuesday night.
More importantly though, they lost key player (6'5" F) Ty Uhrig to a very serious knee injury while he went up for a dunk during the game. According to information I've heard, Uhrig has a patellar tendon rupture and will be out for the season. Certainly unfortunate so my thoughts are with Ty as he works his way back from the injury.
As for the game itself, top scoring honours went to Centennial's Jasmer Brar with a 20-point effort. Mark Shinouda added 13 for CCVI, while Nick McKellar had 10 and Lucas Power 8 for CW.
Orangeville nearly picked up its first D10 league win in two years (November 30, 2010 being the last) but fell at home 47-44 to St. James.
Alex Markeigan had 20 for the Lions, with Nick Marquis adding 9. The Bears received 16 from Eric Kornack and 7 from Jesse Van Reis.
JF Ross, one of the junior favourites again this year, came through on the road with a 63-54 win over Our Lady of Lourdes. Craig Valeriote had a game-high 24 for the Crusaders, but it wasn't enough on Tuesday.
Harry Cornett (16), Jake Grat (15) and Daniel Street (15) keyed a balanced Royal attack.
The other game saw Bishop Mac cruise past Guelph CVI 67-28. Six players in all were in double figures, including two from GCVI (Bersche & Duong - 11 each). Bishop Mac's Jake Chaput (15), Evan Hosker (13), Jack Morris (10) and Greg MacEachern (10) were their top performers.
D10 Senior: Tuesday Results
In a great match-up on the first day, JF Ross slipped past Lourdes in a 57-53 game. Both teams graduated a lot of talent, but still have some key pieces around this year and should both be competitive squads.
Mike Friesen (18), Kristian Vande Kemp (16) and Mo Hussein (12) were all in double figures for the Royals, while Max Raab had a game-high 19 for Lourdes with Andrew Chapman contributing 11.
One of the preseason favourites, the Bishop Mac Celtics, started their season in fine fashion with an impressive offensive performance. The Celtics put up 86 points en route to an 86-48 win over the GCVI Gaels.
Four Celtics were in double-figures, including Jesse Kendall (23), Mitchell Wood (16), Mike Ganson (13) and Owen Brombal (12). David Wesley-James had 11 and Mac Riley 10 for the Gaels.
Centennial's Erik Sterne, the reigning D10 MVP, poured in 27 points as his Spartans outlasted the CWDHS Falcons 67-52 thanks to a big second half. The game was tied 30-30 at halftime before a Centennial second-half surge helped to seal it.
Tarang Sharma added 16 for CCVI, while Ian Newman had 14 and Josh McEachern 13 for the Falcons.
In the other game on Tuesday, St. James won by a 63-43 count over Orangeville DSS. Zach McClenaghan had 19 and Mitch Marquis 8 for the Lions, while Kyle Holmes had a game-high 20 for the Bears.
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Senior: Knights, Gaels to "Co-Host" Tournament This Weekend
.....sort of.In actuality, it's two "8 team" draws since current restrictions prevent local public schools from hosting games during the day.
Nonetheless, there's still some good competition slated to hit the courts at both Bluevale and Cameron Heights. Here's a look at Friday's schedule, with CWOSSA teams in bold:
Cameron Draw - First Round
4:00pm - SJAM (Waterloo) vs. Bishop Mac (Guelph)
5:30pm - AB Lucas (London) vs. Fletcher's Meadow (Brampton)
7:00pm - Cameron Heights "B" vs. Westminster (London)
8:30pm - Saltfleet (Stoney Creek) vs. Centennial (Guelph)
Bluevale Draw - First Round
4:00pm - JF Ross (Guelph) vs. Kitchener CI
5:30pm - Bluevale vs. Brebeuf (Hamilton)
7:00pm - Grand River vs. Bishop Reding (Milton)
8:30pm - Lester B. Pearson (Burl.) vs. Catholic Central (London)
...play continues at both spots on Saturday, with the championship finals at 7:30pm.
D10: Season Gets Underway Today
My preview will follow later this week, in advance of what should be a great game on Thursday between Bishop Mac and JF Ross.
Today's senior games are all at 4:00pm, with the exception of St. James at Orangeville (a 3:45 start). They include GCVI at Bishop Mac, Centre Wellington at Centennial, and JF Ross at Lourdes.
I'll go with the Lions, Celtics, Spartans and Royals to start up my D10 picks.
D8: Monday Results
The game was tight throughout; St. David held a 21-18 lead at halftime.
Eleeda finished with 20 points in that game, while Henoak Abara added 7. James McBride (17) and George Dumitru (15) were the top Celtic scorers.
In other action, Monsignor Doyle picked up a 51-39 win over Rockway, with Sohrob Sultani (13) and Jordan Deveney-Reid (10) putting home double-digit efforts. Liam Robinson and Isaac Regier had 8 each for the Flames.
The other junior game saw Resurrection get at least 4 points from 10 different players en route to a 63-27 win over Woodland. Nick Snider (9) and Sean Begy (8) were Rez's top scorers while Shane Clark had 9 and Drew Carrick 8 for the Cavs.
Senior
Play also got underway in the 7-team D8 senior league yesterday for all teams except the "odd one out", St. Benedict.
The pre-season D8 favourites, the St. Mary's Eagles, started their campaign with a convincing 62-24 win over St. David. Eric Druong (15) and Nathan Riley (9) were the top Eagle scorers while Jake Winter had 11 and Matt Scanlon 4 for St. David.
Monsignor Doyle completed a sweep of Rockway with their seniors picking up a 46-38 win. Tyler Saris (14) and Jamal Bell (11) led the way for the 'Stangs, while Michael Born had 8 and Tyler Schwartzentruber netted 7 for Rockway.
The Resurrection Phoenix got off to a 44-0 (yes, 44-0) halftime lead over Woodland and cruised to a 73-16 win. Tyler Bartley led Rez with 12, while Patric McGlynn added 8. Ryan Dickeson had 5 for WCHS.
D8 play continues on Wednesday with St. Benedict traveling to St. David, St. Mary's playing at Rockway, and Monsignor Doyle hosting Woodland.
Monday, November 26, 2012
Junior: Resurrection Round-Robin Results
The Phoenix, who held a comfortable 59-39 lead after three quarters, managed just 7 in the final frame compared to 24 for WCI in a game that ended 65-63 for Resurrection.
WCI's star forward, Ivan Bilandzic, tried to play through an illness but was unable to manage more than a couple minutes in the opening frame. PG Sam Sutherland displayed some great shooting ability en route to a game-high 21 point performance while 6'5" F Shamar Bailey did some great work on the interior to help lead the Vikes back in the final frame. He finished with 16 points.
Joe Hunter led the way (11) for Rez in the win while forward Sean Begy contributed 10 points and some nice work on the defensive backboards.
Here's a rundown from Friday and Saturday:
Resurrection 51, St. David 48
RCSS: Ali Rashid 16
SDCSS: Alec Scheffler & James McBride 12
WCI 55, Bluevale 19
WCI: Ivan Bilandzic 10
BCI: Cody Hamley 4
St. David 51, Huron Hts. (Kit.) 29
SDCSS: George Dumitru 13
HHSS: Alex Pantea 11
Resurrection 43, Bluevale 26
RCSS: Ali Rashid 9
BCI: Cody Hamley 6
WCI 59, Huron Heights 29
WCI: Sam Sutherland 14, Shamar Bailey 12
HHSS: Harjot Singh 8
St. David 51, Bluevale 32
SDCSS: George Dumitru 15, James McBride 11
BCI: Isaac Fishbein 7
Resurrection 68, Huron Heights 34
RCSS: Kevin Mullings 12, Jake Rush 11
WCI 68, St. David 60
WCI: Ivan Bilandzic 17, Shamar Bailey 12
SDCSS: George Dumitru 12, Thomas Lim 11
Huron Heights 41, Bluevale 37
HHSS: Jake Elliot 13
BCI: Cody Hamley 9
Resurrection 65, WCI 63
RCSS: Joe Hunter 11, Sean Begy 10, Jake Rush 10
WCI: Sam Sutherland 21, Shamar Bailey 16
Standings
Resurrection 4-0
WCI 3-1
St. David 2-2
Huron Hts. 1-3
Bluevale 0-4
Tournament All-Stars: First Team
Ali Rashid, G - Resurrection / Grade 9
Sam Sutherland, G - WCI / Grade 10
Ivan Bilandzic, F - WCI / Grade 10
George Dumitru, G - St. David / Grade 10
James McBride, G - St. David / Grade 10
Tournament All-Stars: Second Team
Jake Rush, G - Resurrection
Sean Begy, F - Resurrection
Andy Leader, G - Huron Hts.
Jake Elliot, G - Huron Hts.
Brandon Toushan, F - Bluevale
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