Tournament Updates - Thursday

Silver Fox
A couple of "Thursday games" as part of tournaments went down yesterday, most notably at the Silver Fox tournament in Hamilton, where the St. Mary's Eagles clashed with another highly regarded club, Bishop Reding (Milton).

The game was tied up at half, but a second-half surge from the Eagles got them a big 58-50 win.  Tesloth Simon led all scorers with 27 points, advancing St. Mary's to a game tonight at 8:30pm.

The Eagles will play (most likely) St. Francis (St. Catharines), regarded as one of the top teams in the province.  St. Francis defeated D'Youville a couple of weeks ago in the St. Benedict tournament final.

Call of the Wild
Another D8 senior team, Resurrection, went 1-1 on the opening day of the Call of the Wild tournament at David Suzuki SS in Brampton.

Fun fact:  That's the school where my wife teaches.

Anyways, the Phoenix dropped their opener to the host Grizzlies, 63-61, despite 24 points from Korbil Gany.

High-flying David Suzuki forward Jordon Fullerton had 18 to pace the Grizzlies.

This pushed Rez to the consolation side, where due to the tournament set-up they had to play right after their previous game ended.  It didn't seem to affect them too much, as they put 5 players in double-figures in a big 97-61 consolation quarterfinal rout over Streetsville SS (Mississauga).

The balanced attack saw contributions from Muyang Iluya (16), Korbil Gany (15), Ali Rashid (14), Zach Holness (10) and Michael Perak (10).

Resurrection will play Metro Prep (Toronto) in a consolation semifinal on Saturday.  Chingacousy (Brampton) and Heart Lake (Brampton) will battle in the other consolation semi, while championship semifinals will see David Suzuki take on St. Thomas More (Hamilton) and Burlington Assumption battle Ste-Famille (Mississauga).

Please feel free to e-mail (mark@cwossabasketball.com) or tweet me other updates from this weekend's tournament action.

#BellLetsTalk: Former NFL QB Eric Hipple and His Battle With Depression

Given that today is a day dedicated to Mental Illness, I thought I'd discuss the subject, given that it affects virtually every one of us, with statistics indicating that 1 in 5 Canadians will suffer from some form of mental illness during their lifetime.

In late November, while attending the Freed's Tournament in Windsor, I had the opportunity to attend the tournament banquet and hear from former NFL QB Eric Hipple, who documented his own personal battle with mental illness and depression to those in attendance, knowing there's others who could benefit from hearing about his own personal journey.  

NorthPoleHoops.com was also in attendance, and a short clip from Hipple's presentation can be found on the Freed's Website (homepage):  http://www.freedstournament.com/ 

Hipple, who was a starting QB for the Detroit Lions during the 1980s, is now an outreach co-ordinator with the University of Michigan Depression Center and he travels North America to discuss depression and suicide with a variety of audiences.

I picked up his book, "Real Men Do Cry", off Amazon (some used copies are $5-10 including shipping).  Here's the link to it if you're interested.

Details:

"Real Men Do Cry, by former NFL quarterback Eric Hipple, is an incredible story of tragedy and triumph. After his 15-year-old son died of suicide, Eric fell into a debilitating downward spiral. Bankrupt and jailed for drunk driving, he found the strength to seek therapy for his own depression and was able to make an amazing comeback. With unflinching honesty, Eric shares his journey, thus opening the door for others to realize that depression is treatable. This page-turner is packed with practical resources for families living with depression and is a valuable tool for counselors and mental health professionals nationwide. Resources include a Nine-Symptom Checklist for Depression along with Signs of Depression and Possible Suicide Risk."

CWOSSA Alumni Historical Tracker - Men's (2000-15)

It's a slow week this week (good luck on your exams, to those writing!).....which will likely give me a bit of an opportunity to catch up on a few things, such as the 1.5 months of 20+ scorers and the like.

One of the things that I'd like to do is to create a "historical tracker" documenting CWOSSA alumni over the years and where they played.

Once this is up and going, it can be expanded (i.e. awards, recognition, etc.).

I was at a tournament recently and overheard some players asking about a couple of guys that played for the school that were (in my opinion) well known "CWOSSA alums".  So, I figure this is a starting point of putting this all together.

What I'll start with here is CWOSSA alumns that have been on a postsecondary roster from 2000-15 inclusive.  CISHoops.ca has a great historical portion that will help to identify a large number of CWOSSA alums that suited up at Canadian Universities.

Remembering those alums who played OCAA (or CCAA), NCAA (D1/D2/D3), NAIA, or Junior College will be a bit more challenging.  I'll start this list and continually update it over the next few days.

If you have any additions (of either those leagues mentioned above OR CIS players not listed on the CISHoops.ca History Links), please comment below, send me a tweet, or e-mail me.  Cheers!

Listings in Alphabetical Order (by last name) at present to facilitate locating players.

NOTE:  I'm adding the OCAA/CIS players in "chunks" --- so many are not yet listed.  Keep checking back!

NCAA Division I
Murphy Burnatowski, Colgate via Maine (SJAM) - 2009-14

Brandon Busuttil, Bowling Green (Grand River) - 2013-Present

Stefan Cvrkalj, Lehigh (Bluevale) - 2011-Present 

Kyle Dodd, Eastern Michigan (JF Ross) - 2005-09

Tyson Dorsey, Samford (Brantford Assumption) - 2000-04

JS Esposito, Duquense (Brantford St. John's) - 2000-01

Adam Falsetto, Vermont (Resurrection) - 2003-04 

James Gillingham, Bradley (St. James)

Thomas Hope, Wright State (Bluevale) - 1999-03

Gavin Horne, Wright State (WCI) - 2007-09 

Jon House, Belmont (Centennial)

Bryson Johnson, Bucknell (St. David) - 2009-13 

Mike King, UW-Green Bay (St. James)

Onnie Mayshak, Harvard (St. Benedict)

Jaan Montgomery, Binghamton (WCI) - 2005-09

Zach Nagtzaam, Ohio (Southwood)

Borko Popic, Virginia Military Institute (KCI) - 2004-05

Imad Qahwash, Central Arkansas (Grand River) - 2007-11

CIS - Canadian University

Adrian Achonwa, Guelph (Centennial)

Nur Alamin, Laurier (Cameron Hts.)

Stefan Arezina, Laurier (Cameron Hts.)

Craig Bauslaugh, Laurentian/Fraser Valley (KCI)

Andrew Beney, Guelph (Bluevale) 

Gavin Berry, Ryerson (KCI)

Phil Blumel, Laurier (St. Mary's)

Will Bradbury, Memorial (Forest Hts.)

Matt Buckley, Laurier (WCI) 

Matt Burkhart, Windsor (Paris DHS)

Dave Burnett, Waterloo (Rockway) 

Kevin Cameron, Guelph (CWDHS)

Jamie Campbell, Laurier (St. David)

Adam Craig, Waterloo (Orangeville Westside)

Filip Cvrkalj, Laurier (Grand River) 

Rob Dewar, Alberta (JF Ross)

Jon Dulmage, York (North Park) 

Ricardo Dunkley, Ryerson (Cameron Hts.)

Dani Elgadi, Brock (WCI)

JS Esposito, Guelph (St. John's) 

Matt Eves, Laurier (North Park)

Zach Folger-Laronde, Waterloo (SJAM)

Mike Friesen, McGill/Guelph (JF Ross)

Jordan Hannah, Waterloo (St. Mary's)

Mike Helsby, Memorial/Waterloo (SJAM)

Ryan Higgins, Western (St. James)

Steve Hollinger, Waterloo (Bluevale)

Colton Hood, Guelph (Rockway)

Rob Innes, Laurier (Brantford CI)

Graham Jarman, Waterloo (Glenview Park)

Scott Jaspers-Fayer, Cape Breton (Guelph CVI)

Josh Johnson, Brock (Simcoe Holy Trinity)

Milos Jovkovic, Waterloo (Cameron Hts.)

Nadan Kapetanovic, Guelph (North Park)

Jesse Kendall, UNB (Bishop Mac)

Serge Khayipangi, Bishop's (Centennial)

Luke Kieswetter, Waterloo (KCI)

Matt Kieswetter, Waterloo (WCI)

Andy Kwiatkowski, Western (Resurrection)

Eddie Lopez, Waterloo (St. Benedict)

Allan Lovett, Laurier (North Park)

Jesse MacDonald, Laurier (Brantford Assumption) 

Jordan MacNeil, Guelph (St. David)

Gerard Magennis, Waterloo (St. Benedict) 

Lucas Marsden, McMaster (Jacob Hespeler) 

Javon Masters, UNB (Forest Heights)

Vladimir Matovic, Laurier (Cameron Hts.)

Cam Maxwell, Laurier (Grand River) 

Dan McCarthy, Guelph (Centennial)

Cam McIntyre, Waterloo (KCI) 

Rob McMurray, Laurentian (JF Ross)

Jeff Mitchell, Laurier (KCI) 

Drew Morris, Guelph (Bishop Mac) 

Andrew Mwangi, Toronto (Resurrection) 

Sean Nickel, St. FX/Toronto (Cameron Hts.) 

Stefan Okuka, Ottawa (Bluevale) 

Andrew Pawlawic, Laurier (North Park)

Srdjan Pejicic, Waterloo (Bluevale) 

Mike Pereira, Waterloo (Resurrection)

Mark Peterson, Waterloo (Forest Hts.)

Mike Petrella, Guelph & Windsor (St. John's)

Chris Popofski, Guelph (Centennial) 

Teryn Proracki, Windsor (Assumption)

Jason Quiring, McMaster (Jacob Hespeler)

Jacob Ranton, Memorial (WCI)

Chris Richards, Lakehead (St. Benedict)

Jake Robinet, Waterloo (SJAM)

Alberto Rodriguez, St. FX (St. Mary's)

Shamlo Saeed, McMaster (JF Ross) 

Nate Samuel, Brock (Assumption)

Evan Schwantz, Laurier (Centennial)

Cory Shody, Guelph (Orangeville)

Jack Simmons, Laurier (Galt CI)

Perrin Smith, Guelph (Bluevale)

Erik Sterne, Guelph (Centennial)

Chuder Teny, Laurier (Grand River)

Quinn Turner, Waterloo (SJAM)

Kristian Vande Kemp, Waterloo (JF Ross)

Boyd Vassell, St. Mary's (Eastwood)

Adam Voll, Ryerson (St. Mary's)

Matt Walker, Laurier (Resurrection) 

Duran Wedderburn, Waterloo (North Park)

Dan White, Waterloo (Bluevale) 

Adam Wilson, Queen's (Preston)

Connor Wood, Carleton (Bishop Mac)

Mitchell Wood, Carleton (Bishop Mac)
 
OCAA or Canadian College
Troy Barnes, Fanshawe (St. Mary's) 

Chris Bauslaugh, Niagara (Grand River)

Chyro Blackwood, Fanshawe (Resurrection)

Matt Bruyn, Mohawk (Assumption)

Jake Burleigh, Fleming (Paris DHS) 

Travin Cain, Mohawk (Centennial)

Andy Campbell, Fanshawe (St. David)

Ryan Cook, Humber (JF Ross)

Jordan Dixon, Fanshawe (Resurrection) 

Darnell Garrick, Humber (Forest Hts.)

Kevin Graf, Georgian (Rockway)

Shawn Hill, Lambton (St. John's)

Jani Hnilica, Mohawk (JF Ross)

Chris Karkoulas, Niagara (Centennial)

Ian Klingenberg, Redeemer (Brantford CI)

Tanner Lane, Mohawk (Bishop Mac)

Bryan McDonald, Fanshawe (Galt CI)

Mackenzie Milmine, Mohawk (Assumption)

Cole Payette, Cambrian (Kincardine)

Eric Poulin, College La Cite (PRDG)

Dakotta Robinson, Canadore (Pauline Johnson)

Mac Samuels, Humber (Guelph CVI)

Bradley Taylor, Georgian (Guelph CVI)

Deysean Thompson-Evans, Canadore (ODSS)

Milan Tosic, Humber (Eastwood)

Other - D2, D3, NAIA, JuCo, Etc.

D2
Clint Cybulski, Emmanuel - GA (St. Mary's)

Marcus Jones, Gannon U - PA (North Park)

Cory Kenning, Palm Beach Atlantic - FL (Resurrection)

Juwan Miller, Missouri S&T (Forest Hts.)

Aleksa Rovic, SW Oklahoma State (Bluevale)

D8: Monday Picks

YTD:  15-2

Resurrection (4-5) at St. Benedict (7-2)
My Pick:  SBCSS by 6
The Phoenix struggled shooting the ball in their previous meeting, which went down as a 46-35 SBCSS victory.  I'd expect a fairly tight game again here, with the home court edge for the Saints coming into play.

St. Mary's (9-0) at St. David (3-6)
My Pick:  SMHS by 39
The Eagles should make it 10 straight league wins at the expense of the SDCSS Celtics.  I'd say that the junior game (between two "top 5" CWOSSA teams) would be a great game to watch here (4:30pm).

5th Edition: CWOSSA Junior Boys' Power Ranking

After a weekend of tournament play and some league games between ranked teams, things have become even more muddled as far as the junior boys' power rankings are concerned.

As always, I have to look at the "overall resume" which can explain why some teams are behind others that they have beaten.

Keep in mind that the previous ranking was back in December, which may also indicate why there was some significant movement for some teams.

Here's my 5th attempt:

1. SJAM / Waterloo (1)

2.  St. John's / Brantford (2)

3.  Bluevale / Waterloo (4)

4.  St. Mary's / Kitchener (5)

5.  St. David / Waterloo (3)

6.  North Park / Brantford (7)

7.  Eastwood / Kitchener (9)

8.  Grand River / Kitchener (6)

T9.  Resurrection / Kitchener (11)

T9.  Forest Heights / Kitchener (14)

T11.  St. Benedict / Cambridge (8)

T11.  Cameron Heights / Kitchener (10)

13.  Glenview Park / Cambridge (16)

14.  Huron Heights / Kitchener (17)

15.  Waterloo CI / Waterloo (13)

16.  Centennial / Guelph (15)

17.  Guelph CVI / Guelph (10)

18.  Brantford CI / Brantford (20)

19.  KCI / Kitchener (NR)

T20.  St. James / Guelph (18)

T20.  Centre Dufferin / Shelburne (NR)

D10 Thursday: Favourites Post Convincing Wins

If you were looking for a close game on Thursday afternoon, there were none to be found on the D10 senior circuit, as all final scores went down as comfortable "double-digit" wins.

The best game of the day on paper was between ranked clubs CWDHS and St. James, but it was the Lions pulling away for a 54-37 win.  Keegan Feeney had 8 for a very balanced Lion scoring effort, while James Scott netted 14 for the Falcons.

Lourdes received a 25-point effort from Craig Valeriote in a 79-49 win over Orangeville.  Shan Lekhi had 11 for the Bears in that one.

Bishop Mac took out Centennial, 57-39.  Chris Poloniato had an even 20 points to lead the way, while Chris Jin was tops for CCVI with 14.

JF Ross beat Guelph CVI, 71-35.  Scoring details were not available.

D10 Senior Standings
1.  St. James 12-0
2.  Bishop Mac 11-1
3.  JF Ross 9-3
4.  CWDHS 7-5
5.  Lourdes 4-8
6.  Centennial 3-9
T7.  GCVI 1-11
T7.  Orangeville 1-11

Junior
On Thursday in the D10 junior circuit, scores were as follows:

JF Ross 48, Guelph CVI 37
JFR:  Jack Rickers, 12
GCVI:  Rip Singh, 12

Orangeville 58, Lourdes 43
ODSS:  Nigel Carey-Kochan, 20
OLOL:  Mateo Roque, 13

St. James 58, CWDHS 24
STJ:  Jeff Morales, 10
CW:  Camden LaBastide, 7

Centennial 51, Bishop Mac 41
CCVI:  Tommy Nield, 14
BMAC:  Noah Salter, 11

Junior D10 Standings
1.  Centennial 11-1
T2.  GCVI 9-3
T2.  St. James 9-3
4.  Orangeville 7-5
5.  CWDHS 5-7
6.  JF Ross 4-8
7.  Bishop Mac 3-9
8.  Lourdes 0-12
 

WCSSAA Junior Thursday: Panthers Post Impressive Win

Thursday's "Three Stars"
1.  Huziafa Hassan, GPSS - 16 points in an important 55-29 win over top-10 CWOSSA-ranked Grand River.

2.  Abil Mesfin, WCI - 26 points to help WCI win over rival KCI, 69-56.

3.  Branko Damjanovic, FHCI - 23 points in an important road win for the Trojans, 52-38 over Galt.


The Glenview Park Panthers moved to 7-2 on the campaign and turned some heads on Thursday with an emphatic 55-29 victory over the Grand River Renegades.

Huziafa Hassan led Glenview with 16 points, while Nathan Rowe had 12 to lead the Rens, who drop all the way down to 7th place (6-3) with the loss.

Meanwhile, in other action:
SJAM stayed unbeaten following a 56-27 win over Preston.  Nicolas Milosevic had 21 for the 'Landers, while Mohammed Soleh was tops for the Panthers with 15.

Bluevale posted a 53-13 win over WODSS, with Greg Smith scoring 12 for the Knights.  Christian Payne scored 7 for the Crusaders.

Eastwood, like their senior team, survived a scare at Southwood (51-47 for the Rebs).  Prabhjit Sangha notched 19 points in the win, while Ben Carbell had a game-high 24 for the Sabres.

Forest Heights won on the road in Cambridge, 52-38 over Galt.  Branko Damjanovic had a big 23-point effort for the Trojans, while Muhammad Irsalan netted 12 for the Ghosts.

Cameron was a 55-20 winner at Jacob Hespeler.  Mohamed Sheikh led a balanced Gael attack with 9, while Devin Graham had 6 for the Hawks.

Huron Heights received 12 points from Dmitri Dawson in a 54-20 win over Elmira.  Ethan Ball had 6 for the Lancers in that one.

Abil Mesfin poured in 26 points for WCI in a 63-54 win over rival KCI.  Elli Hesse had 18 for the Raiders.

WCSSAA Junior Standings
1.  SJAM 9-0
2.  Eastwood 8-1
T3.  Bluevale 7-2
T3.  Forest Hts. 7-2
T3.  Glenview Park 7-2
T3.  Huron Hts. 7-2
7.  Grand River 6-3
T8.  WCI 5-4
T8.  Cameron Hts. 5-4
10.  KCI 4-5
T11.  Preston 2-7
T11.  Southwood 2-7
T11.  WODSS 2-7
14.  Galt 1-8
T15.  Elmira 0-9
T15.  Jacob Hespeler 0-9

WCSSAA Senior Thursday: Vikes Top Raiders; Ghosts Buzzer-Beat Trojans

Thursday's "Three Stars"
1.  Nick Johnny, WCI - 23 points in leading WCI over KCI in the "game of the day".

2.  Kaan Cetinorge, GCI - 14 points and a buzzer-beater winner for the Ghosts over Forest Heights.

3.  Moiz Masud, Southwood - 21 point effort against the ECI Rebels in a near-upset for the Sabres.

Not so fast, KCI.

Facing their toughest remaining test of the regular season, the Raiders dropped a 69-56 decision to the rival WCI Vikings, dealing their hopes for a top-4 seed (and first round bye) a bit of a blow as a win would have almost certainly ensured that outcome.

On the flip side, it was essentially a must-win game for WCI as they finish their regular season against the top three teams in the league --- SJAM, Grand River, and Cameron Heights.

Nick Johnny put home 23 points for the Vikes, with Aaron Grubb adding 12.  With leading scorer Stefan Simic held in check for KCI, it was Marko Milvanovic leading the way (23) and David Ben-Lemotey adding 10.

Down in Cambridge, Kaan Cetinorge's buzzer-beater, part of a 14-point effort, propelled the Galt Ghosts to a 65-63 win over Forest Heights.  The Ghosts certainly appear to be on the upswing as they now have a 3-0 record in 2015 including wins over FHCI & Eastwood.

TJ Lall poured in a game-high 28 for the Ghosts, while Rakesh Arjun had 20 and Tim Gajdos 14 for the Trojans.

In other action:
Eastwood survived a bit of a scare in West Galt, holding off the Southwood Sabres in a 49-45 final.  Cham Ujullu had 20 for the Rebs, with Moiz Masud scoring a game-high 21 for Southwood.

Cameron Heights cruised past Jacob Hespeler in a 57-41 final; Chris Phomsouvanh led the way for the Gaels with 12 while Brandon Roth netted a game-high 26 for Hespeler.

Huron Heights was a 68-23 winner over Elmira, with Hassan Ahmed scoring 20 and Osdautaj Egzon adding 14.  Ryan Bauman was tops for EDSS with 7.

SJAM continued to pace the WCSSAA standings following a 58-32 win over Preston.  Justin Hardy had 17 for the 'Landers to lead the way.

WCSSAA Senior Standings
1.  SJAM 8-1
2.  Cameron Heights 7-1
3.  Grand River 7-2
4.  WCI 6-2
5.  KCI 6-3
T6.  Forest Hts. 5-3
T6.  Galt 5-3
8.  Eastwood 5-4
9.  Huron Hts. 4-4
10.  Preston 2-6
11.  Bluevale 2-7
T12.  Southwood 1-7
T12.  Jacob Hespeler 1-7
14.  Elmira 0-9

WCSSAA & D10 Picks: Thursday

WCSSAA (YTD:  44-8, .846)
One very interesting game today in WCSSAA play (3:15 senior start times), as it features two teams that have been playing very well as of late -- rivals KCI Raiders and WCI Vikings.

Should be a great game, I'll go with KCI by 4 in a close one.

Other games:
FHCI over Galt (by 6)
Cameron Hts. over Jacob Hespeler (by 34)
SJAM over Preston (by 38)
Huron Hts. over Elmira (by 33)
Eastwood over Southwood (by 39)
 
D10 (YTD:  28-2, .933)
Bishop Mac over Centennial (by 12)
JF Ross over Guelph CVI (by 31)
Lourdes over Orangeville (by 14)
St. James over CWDHS (by 7)

D8 Senior Wednesday: Top Teams Continue to Roll

The St. Mary's Eagles had a stronger effort on Wednesday, putting forth a nice shooting effort in an 86-57 victory over Resurrection in D8 Senior Boys' basketball.

Adham Eleeda (17), Jermaine Lyle (16) and Tyrick Thompson (14) did the most damage for the Eagles, while Muyang Iluya had a game-high 20 for Rez with Korbil Gany (15) and Ali Rashid (13) also in double-figures.

Zubair Seyed had another 20+ effort in St. Benedict's 59-35 win over St. David.  Alex Douglas and Justin Malnerich added 10 each, while Paul Radocchia had 9 for the Celts.

The one "B Division" game saw Woodland edge Rockway, 37-34.

A Standings
1.  St. Mary's 9-0
2.  St. Benedict 7-2
3.  Resurrection 4-5
4.  St. David 3-6

B Standings
1.  Mons. Doyle 4-5
2.  Woodland 2-5
3.  Rockway 0-8

D8 Junior Wednesday: Rez Juniors End SMHS Streak

It was over a calendar year since the St. Mary's Juniors had tasted defeat in a D8 game, but their 13-game league & playoff win streak came to an end yesterday at the hands of the Resurrection Phoenix, with Rez using a late run to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat in a 51-48 final.

Rez trailed 43-34 early in the fourth quarter but used a 13-0 run in around 4 minutes to take a four-point lead (47-43) with just two minutes to play.

After the Eagles had cut things to 47-46, and were in possession with :30 to go, Rez's Demar Holness had a huge steal, getting fouled and making both free-throws to extend to a 49-46 lead.

The Phoenix were able to hold on from there, although the Eagles certainly had a couple of opportunities late to send the game to OT.  After Pawel Nowak's 1-for-2 FT trip made it a 51-48 lead with 2 seconds left, St. Mary's had the ball out-of-bounds but a Rez steal on the heave pass preserved the win.

Jaxon Matcheski led Rez with 15, while Demar Holness and Jamu Iluya had 14 each.  Jason Jaros notched 9 for a balanced Eagle attack.

Rez's win was good news for the St. David Celtics, who moved into a tie for first place following a 35-27 win over St. Benedict.  Brent Lasovich had 11 in the win, while Josh Nikolic netted 8 for the Saints.

In the "B" division games on Wednesday, Pat Martini had 25 points for PRDG in their 37-22 win over Monsignor Doyle, while Rockway topped Woodland 49-34.

D8 - "A" Junior Standings
T1.  St. Mary's 9-1
T1.  St. David 9-1
T3.  Resurrection 5-5
T3.  St. Benedict 5-5

D8 - "B" Junior Standings
1.  PRDG 6-4
2.  Rockway 4-5
3.  MDCSS 1-9
4.  Woodland 0-9

Senior Boys CWOSSA "Top 20": Edition #5 - Rankings Shake-Up

With a bit of an absence on my end last week, it was the perfect way to allow for a couple of "upsets" and a resulting "rankings shake-up".

To be fair, I've said it before and I'll say it again --- this appears to be one of the deepest CWOSSA seasons in recent memory.  Double-digit ranked teams have been competitive (even beaten) the upper-echelon clubs.

It's made for an exciting season to this point, and I'm sure the playoffs will be no exception.

Here's this week's ranking (last ranking in brackets):

1.  St. Mary's / Kitchener (1)
Lost the SJAM final to Windsor Catholic Central last weekend, but are still undefeated against CWOSSA opposition.

2.  SJAM / Waterloo (2)
A couple of big wins (Cameron Heights in tournament, Eastwood in regular season play) to keep them solidly in the #2 spot.

3.  Cameron Heights / Kitchener (4)
Furious comeback against St. Mary's (down 13 with 1:30 to go) just fell short, but they did rebound nicely with a win over Grand River yesterday.

4.  St. James / Guelph (5)
Still undefeated (10-0) in D10 play, which is saying something given the depth of that league.

5.  Assumption / Brantford (6)
A new entry to the top 5, the Lions have been quietly going about their business.  Nice effort this weekend at the SJAM tournament, which culminated with a consolation title over London HB Beal.

6.  Grand River / Kitchener (3)
A bit of a shaky week for the Rens, with losses to KCI and Cameron Heights in league play sandwiched around a tournament loss to Bishop Mac.  The talent is there, though, for a playoff push.

7.  Bishop Macdonell / Guelph (10)
A bit of a closer-than-expected call yesterday in league play against Lourdes, but consistent results in league and tournament play have the Celts on the upswing.

8.  North Park / Brantford (7)
The Trojans and their solid core will certainly be a factor come D5 playoffs and CWOSSA (AAA).  Big showdown for first-place in league coming up against Assumption.

9.  KCI / Kitchener (11)
Coach White noted in last week's Record article that if his team takes a game off, they'll "get blown out by 40".  So far, they haven't taken any games off and it's shown with some impressive results as of late.

T10.  Waterloo CI / Waterloo (15)
The Vikes have been up-and-down over the course of the season, so it's tough to spot exactly where to place them.  That said, it's about time to give them their due for some quality tournament wins (CWDHS, St. James, St. Benedict) that overshadow their league losses (Forest Hts., Eastwood).

T10.  Eastwood CI / Kitchener (8)
The Rebels, who currently sit 8th in the WCSSAA standings, are the team that nobody would want to face come playoff time.  A bit of a slip-up last week at Galt could prove costly in terms of their final standing, but did play well against SJAM yesterday.

12.  St. Benedict / Cambridge (9)
The Saints can compete with anyone in the CWOSSA circuit, but have dropped a couple of tournament games lately, including one to WCI this past weekend.  Another high-calibre win should get them right back into the top ten.
 
13.  JF Ross / Guelph (12)
The Royals have played well of late, with some single-digit losses to good teams (Grand River, St. James, Sarnia St. Patrick) and have beaten who they should have in league play.  

14.  CWDHS / Fergus (13)
After clinching a home playoff game, things don't get any easier for the Falcons.  Huge games tomorrow at St. James (a potential semifinal preview in the D10 circuit).

15.  Resurrection / Kitchener (14)
The Phoenix gave St. Mary's a big run earlier this week (trailing by 2 after 3; losing by 7) and are another team that is "top 10" calibre --- but without the wins on the resume to warrant it.  Still a dangerous club in league & tournament play the rest of the way.

16.  Forest Heights / Kitchener (16)
How's this to end their season schedule?  Galt, Cameron Heights, Eastwood, and SJAM.  

17.  Galt CI / Cambridge (19)
Any time you have TJ Lall on your team, you have upset potential, and that's what the Ghosts did by beating ECI last week.

18.  Centennial / Guelph (18)
A team with a solid core of grade 11s that are improving daily.  Won't be much fun to run into this team the rest of the way.

19.  St. John's / Brantford (17)
Came close to North Park in league play, so they may be close to turning the corner (at the right time, too).

20.  Huron Heights / Kitchener (T20)
Having beaten KCI in league play, which is enough of a resumé builder to keep them ranked for now (and for teams not to overlook them).

Guelph Mercury: CWDHS' Uhrig Dominating Under the Basket

Article By:  Rob Massey

GUELPH — If he wanted to be, Ty Uhrig of the Centre Wellington Falcons could be a force to be reckoned with in the District 10 high school senior boys' basketball league. 

He wanted to be a force Tuesday as he scored 34 points in leading the Falcons to a 64-47 victory over the Centennial Spartans. 

"That was my best game of the year," he said. "The key was to work the ball down low and get me good looks." 

"I think he had his most complete game today," Centre Wellington coach Jeff Brubacher said. "We've been challenging him to go to work in the paint and use his size. Today, it paid off for him for sure." 

At six-foot-seven and a half, Uhrig is one of the taller players in the league and he is usually used under the baskets at both ends of the court. However, he isn't afraid to stop and put up a long shot now and then. He hit two three-pointers against the Spartans. 

"I'm athletic and I can shoot threes," he said. "I'm working on my dribbling right now, but I can shoot the long ball, too." 

However, he likes the play under the basket and he doesn't mind the physical play that comes with living there. 

"It's a higher-percentage," he said of shots from in the paint near the hoop. 

The Falcons led throughout the game as they were up 15-10 after the first quarter, 33-22 at halftime and 51-37 after the third quarter. 

James Scott collected 13 points for Centre Wellington while Jasmer Brar hit for 16 points to lead Centennial while Chris Jin had 10. 

The win secured a home game in the quarter-finals for the Falcons. Such is the eight-team league this year that the top four have already clinched home games in next month's playoff openers with three games to go in their regular seasons. 

"We let a couple get away from us," Brubacher said. "I'm not saying we would've won them, but the opportunity was there and we didn't close the door. We're in a good position right now. We've got three tough games coming up and we want to be peaking at playoff time for sure." 

"We've had our ups and downs so far," Uhrig said. "We've been doing pretty good in tournaments so far, but in season games, we're in the middle. I'm hoping we can win our next three games so we can get a higher seed for the playoffs." 

The St. James Lions lead the league at 11-0 and are followed by the Bishop Macdonell Celtics at 10-1, Ross Royals at 8-3 and the Falcons at 7-4. Centre Wellington completes its regular season with games against St. James, Ross and the Lourdes Crusaders (3-8). 

"We had high expectations," Brubacher said of Centre Wellington's hopes heading into the season. "We thought we could be certainly in the conversation as one of the top teams in the league. We've won a couple of tournaments and played well, but we know we've got a lot of work to do." 

Bishop Macdonell 59 Lourdes 53

Chris Poloniato led Bishop Mac with 19 points while Jake Chaput added 13. Craig Valeriote and James Gerstenkorn each had 13 for Lourdes while David Khayapangi added 12. 

St. James 76 Guelph CVI 26

Scoring details were not reported. 

D10 Jr. Boys Basketball

Ross 35 Orangeville 33

Scoring details were not reported. 

Bishop Macdonell 32 Lourdes 29

Kurt Suilanna and Matteo Straddiotto collected seven points apiece for Bishop Mac. David Casupanan led Lourdes with 12 while William Vandenheuvel had 10. 

Guelph CVI 54 St. James 33

Lincoln Rosebush hit for 14 points for GCVI while Rip Singh had 13 and Tapan Aghera chipped in with 12. Matt Sanvido had 12 for St. James while Mike Piovesan contributed 10. 

Centennial 45 Centre Wellington 26

Andrew Gray's 13 points led Centennial while Tommy Nield followed with 10. Cole Newton had 10 for Centre Wellington while Camden LeBastide had nine. 

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