Now that's the way to welcome back the senior high school boys basketball season.
Although it was a warmup before the real season gets underway, you wouldn't have known it if you were at North Park Collegiate Institute Saturday night for the Ed O'Leary Memorial Tip-Off Tournament final.
With 1.1 second left, the score tied, and the Assumption Lions with possession, Nolan Drong received a pass thanks to a perfectly designed play to get the final shot off.
As Drong's shot went through the hoop, the buzzer sounded and the Lions captured their first tip-off tourney title, with a 55-52 win over the St. John's College Green Eagles.
"The coaches said that I would make that shot," said Drong, who finished the game with eight points.
"The coaches drew it up and we were just able to execute it."
"The play went right to plan," Assumption's Andre Toic said. "It was exactly what we wanted."
Toic, who led the way with a game-high 22 points, said that he and his teammates did not know what to expect, heading into the tuneup tourney. But they built confidence as the weekend went on.
"It feels great to have a weekend like this," Toic said.
"We came in wanting to just see where we stood with the other teams. Winning it is great and it's something we really hope we can build on."
Last season, the Lions beat the Paris District High School Panthers in the Brant County quarter-final. But, with a depleted lineup, things came to a disappointing end for the Lions in the semifinal.
But this season is shaping up to be different.
"Everyone believes in each other, a lot more than last year," Toic said.
"I think there's a new belief, which is much different. The guys know we can play well and winning this has given us a lot of confidence. It shows we can beat the top teams in our league. Now we just have to keep improving."
Drong said one of the keys to the strong showing on the weekend was the way the Lions came together as a unit.
"It's a great group of guys," Drong said.
"We've been able to jell pretty quick so far. We're all in it to win it. Everyone has come in with the right attitude."
As for the Green Eagles, the weekend showed that there is still work to do, said James Terejko.
"We have to be a little more together as a team on the bench and on the floor, and bring it all together throughout the games," he said.
"But we definitely saw the progress as the weekend played out. We started to work more as a team."
Which is a reason the Green Eagles were able to erase a nine-point fourth quarter lead to set up the dramatic finish Saturday night.
"The last four minutes we really came back hard and did a great job of getting back in it," Terejko said.
"It's a pretty good way to start the year. It would've been nice to be able to win, but it's a great learning experience. Now we know what to work on."
Saturday's results
Final
ACS 55, SJC 52
ACS: Andre Toic 22, Brandon Vincent 12, Nolan Drong 8, Austin Tlustos 6, Zoltan Bazna 3.
SJC: James Terejko 14, Cam Post 12, Tim Dawson 14, Adam Peters 6, Dylan Smith 4, Steve Szasz 2.
Third-place game
NPC 56, Holy Trinity 35.
NPC: Nick Minutillo 17, Matt Minutillo 10, Brodie McIvor 8, Eric Hamilton 6, Vishal Braar 4, Dan Howell 3, AK Rai 3, Tyarr Powell-Hodges 3, Chrisna Som 2.
HT: Hayden Black 12, Josh Johnson 12, Dylan McKenzie 4, Lorenzo DeSantis 3, Matt Dyjach 2, Mark Gubbels 2.
Consolation final
BCI 67, PJC 44
BCI: Mackenzie Mark 23, Ben Candy 20, Liam Biclawski 8, Kelby Sakauk 8, Ryan Jamula 4, Brandon Moxley 3, Conner Loder 2, Noel Bomberry 2.
PJC: Austin Roloson 7, Dylan Williams 6, Mike Knevel 6, Dakotta Robinson 5, Dakota Brush 6, Scott Sobczk 6, josh Hammond 2, Alex Mouselimis 1.
SCS 61, Paris 31
SCS: Tommy Tran 9, Kevin Allemang 7, Austin Gulley 7, Jordan Peever 7, Tyler Poss 2, Ben Adams 3, Steve Durish 9, Tristan Catherwood 6, Mike Caley 4, Brandon Reaney 7.
Paris: Isaac Sollazo 14, Harji Gill 11, Kris Kuik 6.
SJC 63, HT 46
SJC: Connor Kuzmich 11, Adam Peters 2, David Smith 2, James Terejko 8, Dylan Smith 5, Cam Post 16, Tim Dawson 13, Steve Szasz 4.
HT: Jordan Hill 2, Hayden Black 7, Josh Johnson 22, Tevaun Gardiner 12, Mark Gubbels 2, Lorenzo DeSantis 1.
ACS 38, NPC 34
ACS: Andre Toic 14, Nolan Drong 6, Ron Taylor 2, Austin Tlustos 11, Brandon Vincent 5.
NPC: Chrisna Som 2, Matt Minutillo 15, Nick Minutillo 8, Andrew Silla 2, Jon Dulmage 4, Vishal Brar 3.
BCI 54, Paris 37
BCI: Adam Bakken 2, Liam MacNeil 6, Mackenzie Mark 6, Tristan Almas 5, Noel Bomberry 1, Kelby Sakaluk 11, Ben Candy 21, Liam Bielawski 2
Paris: Travis Taylor 12, Kris Kuik 2, Harji Gill 8, Kevin Humiel 6, Kurtis Rideout 2, Issac Sollazo 6.
PJC 63, SCS 50
PJC: Dylan Williams 9, Austin Roloson 5, Mike Knevel 3, Dakotta Robinson 7, Dakota Brush 25, Josh Hammond 3, Ali Francis 9, Scott Sobczyk 4
SCS: Kevin Allemang 11, Tommy Tran 5, Brandon Reaney 4, Jordan Peever 15, Tyler Poss 3, Tristan Catherwood 2, Steve Durish 2, Lucas Martin 2, Wes Monrman 3.
Retrieved From: http://www.brantfordexpositor.ca/2012/11/25/senior-lions-show-they-are-ready
