Successful Weekend For CWOSSA Teams In Tourneys

Fresh off of the exam break, it was a pretty successful weekend for CWOSSA teams at a variety of tournaments.  Here's a look at some of the action:

Grand River Wins Wayne Nugent Classic
Out at Woodbridge College, the Grand River Renegades took the 8th Annual Wayne Nugent Classic, winning 4 games en route to the tournament crown.

On Friday, the Rens defeated Cardinal McGuigan (47-39) backed by 17 points from Miro Iliev.  Iliev chipped in with 16 in their later win, a 76-37 decision over Ottawa Lisgar.

This advanced GRCI to the semifinals, where they took out St. Andrew's College (Aurora) 63-56.  Iliev had another big effort, pouring in 28 points in that one.

Waday Hamad paced the Rens in the championship final, scoring 19 points as the Rens toppled Bayview SS (Richmond Hill) 70-53.

Hamad was named to the tournament's all-star team, while Iliev was selected as the Tournament MVP. 

SJAM Cruises at Tony Marcotullio Invitational
The SJAM Highlanders did some resume building this past weekend with four double digit wins down in London at the Tony Marcotullio Invitational, to take home that tourney title.

The 'Landers eased past London St. Thomas Aquinas 65-47, before knocking off London's Clarke Road, 71-35.  Nedim Hodzic put home 25 points and 7 rebounds in the opener, and followed that up with 27 points in the second game.  Simon Petrov was in the vicinity of triple-double territory against CR, posting a 7 point, 11 rebound, 9 assist stat line.

In the semifinals, SJAM defeated Windsor Catholic Central by a 63-49 count, with Hodzic going off for 32 points and 8 rebounds.  Petrov also hit for 20 points in that one.

The tournament final was against London's HB Beal, and SJAM had their way in a 71-50 victory.  Hodzic had a 16-16 (point/rebound) stat line, while Petrov added 18 and Justin Hardy notched 16.

Hodzic and Hardy were named to the tournament's all-star team.

Rez Places Second at Suzuki (Brampton)
The Resurrection Phoenix came 2nd in the 16-team "Call of the Wild" Tournament hosted by the school my wife teaches at, David Suzuki SS in Brampton.

(The picture is my son Hudson courtside checking out the home-court Grizzlies during warmups).

The Phoenix knocked off Louise Arbour (Brampton) 74-62, Mayfield (Brampton) 57-51, and then rallied from a double-digit second half deficit against host David Suzuki to win 59-58, thanks in part to a late-game three-pointer from Ali Rashid. 

In the tournament final, Rez was on the opposite end of a run as an 8-point advantage against Brampton's Cardinal Ambrozic evaporated during an 18-0 third quarter run; the Riverhawks would go on to a 73-59 victory and the tournament championship.

Muyang Iluya was an offensive force for Rez over the weekend, scoring 29, 20, 15 and 27 points in the four games; he was named as a first-team tournament all-star.

JF Ross Tops ECI; Takes Burlington Title
The JF Ross Royals always seem to peak come playoff time, and this season may be no exception.  The Royals took a 54-51 upset decision over Eastwood CI in the semifinals of the Burlington Notre Dame tournament, before defeating MM Robinson (Burlington) by about 15 points in the championship final.

Scoring details weren't immediately available.