WCSSAA Junior: 'Landers Cap Perfect Regular Season, Extend Winning Streak to 28

The SJAM Highlanders capped their second consecutive undefeated regular season yesterday, pulling out a 59-49 win over the Forest Heights Trojans in Kitchener.

The win was actually SJAM's 28th consecutive regular season win, a streak that dates back over three years (January 19th, 2012).  They won their last two games that year, the two regular season games during the "work to rule" shortened 2012-13 season, then 12 games both of the last two years to bring them to their grand total of 28.

In yesterday's game, Chris Bullock and Dragan Stajic had 10 each for SJAM, while Branko Damjanovic led Forest Heights and all scorers with 15.

In other action on Tuesday:

Cameron Hts. 52, WCI 43
Martin Gjorgiev and Lala Shehi had 15 each in CHCI's victory.  Ben Dobson tallied 11 for the Vikes.

Eastwood 65, WODSS 36
Eastwood takes 2nd in the standings with a win at WO.  Prabhjit Sangha and Mubaraak Adan Ilbrahim scored 13 each, while Cam Mehring led WODSS with 11.

Grand River 53, Huron Hts. 37
The Rens win this important battle backed by 19 from Luka Ninkovic.  Kuel Thomas had a game-high 21 for the Huskies.

Galt 37, Preston 19
Riley Hind's 11 led a balanced Galt scoresheet and officially clinched them a playoff berth (as well as a CWOSSA spot, which I'll get to later).  Navdeep Brar had 5 for PHS.

KCI 40, Jacob Hespeler 23
Brandon Aultman's 12 point effort was the lone double-digit scoring effort on the day in KCI's win.  The victory clinched the 9-seed for the Raiders.

Bluevale 63, Southwood 27
Ilija Nikolic had 20 and Michael Allen 10 for the Knights as they finish their regular season at 10-2; Aaron Kuch had 8 for SSS.

Glenview Park 56, Elmira 10
The Panthers clinched a first-round bye with their win over EDSS.  Eman Otong had 12 and Azam Khan 10 to lead the way.

Final WCSSAA Standings
1.  SJAM 12-0
2.  Eastwood 10-2 (Str of Sched Tiebreak)
3.  Bluevale 10-2
4.  Glenview Park 9-3 (H2H over GRCI)
5.  Grand River 9-3
6.  Cameron Hts. 8-4 (H2H over FHCI)
7.  Forest Hts. 8-4
8.  Huron Hts. 7-5
9.  KCI 6-6
10.  WCI 5-7
11.  Galt 4-8
12.  Southwood 3-9
T13.  Preston 2-10
T13.  WODSS 2-10
15.  Jacob Hespeler 1-11
16.  Elmira 0-12

1st Round Playoff Matchups
(12) Southwood at (5) Grand River
(11) Galt at (6) Cameron Hts. 
(10) WCI at (7) Forest Hts.
(9) KCI at (8) Huron Hts.

Quarterfinal Playoff Matchups
SSS/GRCI Winner at (4) Glenview Park
GCI/CHCI Winner at (3) Bluevale
WCI/FHCI Winner at (2) Eastwood
KCI/HHSS Winner at (1) SJAM

CWOSSA Qualification Notes
AA:  Glenview Park Qualifies with a Southwood loss to Grand River.  If Southwood beats Grand River, those teams will match up in the Quarterfinals.

AAA:  3 berths, and only 3 AAA teams made the playoffs.  As such, Bluevale, KCI and Galt have all qualified for AAA CWOSSA.

AAAA:  SJAM, Eastwood, Grand River, Cameron, Forest Heights, Huron Hts., and WCI are the "AAAA" teams entering the playoffs.  Top 2 will qualify.

WCSSAA Senior: Gaels Top Vikes, Sliding Vikings To 7th

As I had mentioned yesterday, the WCI Vikings had the opportunity to finish as high as 3rd, and as low as 7th depending on how things played out on Tuesday afternoon.

Unfortunately for them, it's the latter result that they'll receive after the Cameron Heights Golden Gaels dispatched the Vikes, 77-55, in the regular season finale.

The Gaels opened up a double-digit halftime advantage (37-25) and didn't look back, with Nik Farkic, Sasha Simic and Ivan Cucak each scoring 15 points.  Nick Johnny registered a game-high 16 points for the Vikes.

Before we get to the final standings and playoff picture, here are the rest of the games from Tuesday:

Grand River 64, Huron Hts. 38
The Rens go into the playoffs on a winning note, thanks to 17 each from Miro Iliev and Aleks Cvrkalj.  Ahmed Radi had 10 for the Huskies, who will finish 9th.

SJAM 69, Forest Hts. 56
Nedim Hodzic had his usual strong effort, putting in 26 points while Simon Petrov added 17 for SJAM.  Rakesh Arjun led the Trojans with 17.

Galt 54, Preston 35
The Ghosts locked down the #5 seed with a win at PHS.  TJ Lall had 27 and Matt Woeller 12 for the Ghosts; Jon Ashworth was the lone Panther in double-figures with 10.

KCI 57, Jacob Hespeler 47
It wasn't easy for the Raiders, as the Hawks were fighting for their playoff lives but KCI go the job done and clinched a first-round bye in the process.  Stefan Simic (20) and David Ben-Lemotey (17) did most of the Raider damage; Eric Purdy had 17 for Hespeler.

Southwood 50, Bluevale 43
The Sabres win put them at 11th in the standings while the Knights will still get in at 12th.  Moiz Masud had a game-high 19 for the Sabres with Steve Warner adding 13; Ryan Clutton had 12 for the Knights.

Final WCSSAA Senior Standings
1.  SJAM 10-1 (H2H over CHCI)
2.  Cameron Hts. 10-1
3.  KCI 8-3 (H2H over GRCI & GCI)
4.  Grand River 8-3 (H2H over GCI)
5.  Galt 8-3
6.  Eastwood 7-4 (H2H over WCI)
7.  WCI 7-4
8.  Forest Hts. 5-6
9.  Huron Heights 4-7
10.  Preston 3-8 (H2H over SSS)
11.  Southwood 3-8
12.  Bluevale 2-9 (H2H over JHSS)
13.  Jacob Hespeler 2-9
14.  Elmira 0-11

Playoff Matchups - 1st Round
(12) Bluevale at (5) Galt
(11) Southwood at (6) Eastwood
(10) Preston at (7) WCI
(9) Huron Hts. at (8) Forest Hts.

Playoff Matchups - Quarterfinals
BCI/Galt Winner at (4) Grand River
SSS/ECI Winner at (3) KCI
PHS/WCI Winner at (2) Cameron Hts.
HHSS/FHCI Winner at (1) SJAM

CWOSSA Qualification
AA:  Southwood advances to playoff against BAA #3

AAA:  KCI, Galt, Preston and Bluevale are the AAA teams left.  Bluevale would need to beat Galt in their 1st round game to advance; otherwise KCI, GCI and PHS will qualify.

AAAA:  SJAM, CHCI, GRCI, ECI, WCI, FHCI, and HHSS are "AAAA".  Top 2 will qualify.

Brantford Expositor: Senior Lions, Junior Eagles Win Game 1

Article By:  Vincent Ball

The St. John's College Green Eagles took advantage of some costly turnovers and some cold shooting by the North Park Collegiate Trojans to take a 1-0 lead in the junior boys high school basketball championship on Tuesday.

Game 2 is Thursday at Pauline Johnson Collegiate at 5:30 p.m.

Meantime, in the senior game, the Assumption College Lions beat the North Park Trojans 52-38 to take a 1-0 lead in their best-of-three series. Game 2 is Thursday at 7 p.m. at PJ.

The junior Green Eagles won 67-49. They were led in scoring by Ben Kwasnik with 24 points and Chris Brewster with 17.

"I thought we played really hard today and we did a good job of limiting our turnovers," Green Eagles coach Mike Petrella said following the game. "We did a good job of helping out on the weak side and that limited their scoring opportunities.

"I think we played well defensively and we did a good job of getting in the passing lanes and forcing turnovers."

He gave credit to the Trojans for turning in a solid game.

The Green Eagles got off to a good start and took a 17-8 lead after the first quarter by taking advantage of some costly turnovers by North Park and some cold shooting by the Trojans on offence.

The second quarter started off the way the first quarter ended with North Park having trouble scoring and the Green Eagles continuing to get a couple of turnovers leading to points.

But at about the halfway point of the second quarter, the momentum shifted after Jackson Kingshott scored a three-pointer for North Park. Jamie Grant, also scored a three-pointer for the Trojans and so did Cal Hager. That, combined with a layup by Zach Hamed, who had spent most of the first quarter on the bench, brought the Trojans within three.

The score was 25-22 with just over a minute left when the teams exchanged points and with under 6 seconds left Hamed scored a layup and was fouled. He missed the free throw and the half ended with St. John's holding on to a 29-28 lead.

In the third quarter, North Park again had trouble making shots while St. John's continued to take advantage of turnovers and running a patient offence built a 52-32 lead by the end of the third quarter.
The Green Eagles got great contributions from Tommy Gemmell who worked hard on the boards as did Jacob Spencer and Ryan Kidd.

But for the Green Eagles it was their overall team effort that carried the day both on offence and on defence.

The Trojans were led in scoring by Hager with 15 points, Ethan Andrew with 12 and Grant with 10 and Hamed with 10.

"I think we played well offensively," Hamed said after the game. "We moved the ball well, we found each other but we had trouble with our shooting and our defence.

"We really missed Nathanael Penny, too. He's really important to us especially on defence. But we'll regroup and we'll be back on Thursday."

In the first half of the senior contest, the Lions used a half-court trap press to force a couple of turnovers and take North Park away from its game.

North Park, however, was strong on the boards and got a couple of second chances for points to keep the game close. Brandon John got a two-handed slam dunk when the Trojans broke the press on one occasion.

But the Lions had a balanced attack that included five points each from Mike Heron, Austin Tlustos and Brandon Vincent, while Mike King got 4.

The Trojans, meanwhile, got seven points from Brandon John, five from Ak Rai and Dyshane Powell-Hodges.

The Lions led at the half 26-23.

In the second half, the Lions went on a roll early and took control of the game using patience and terrific ball movement until they got an open shot. The overall talent of the Lions was once again reflected in their scoring.

Tlustos finished with 12 points, while King scored 11, and Vincent and Andre Toic each got nine.

"I think we played strong defence," Tlustos said following the game. "We didn't allow them too many open shots.

"We played good team basketball and everyone contributed."

He noted that the Lions can't take the Trojans for granted.

"We have to come prepared and play our game," he said.

North Park was led in scoring by Brandon John with 12 and Ryan Timms with seven and Ak Rai and Dyshane Powell-Hodges each with five.

Timms was proud of his team's effort in a hard-fought game.

"I think we played hard and Assumption played fantastic basketball," Timms said. "They moved the ball well.

"We had our ups and downs but we kept it close and I'm proud of the effort we put in. It's always fun to play Assumption, there's a lot of intensity."

Retrieved From:  http://www.brantfordexpositor.ca/2015/02/10/high-school-boys-hoops-championship-begins

D5 Playoffs: Finals Set To Tip Tonight

The BCSSAA basketball finals, which are both "best 2 of 3" series, will begin tonight at Pauline Johnson C&VS in Brantford.

On the senior side, the undefeated Assumption Lions (#1 seed) will be battling the #2 North Park Trojans, who survived a 1-point win against #3 St. John's in last week's semifinals.

All of the senior CWOSSA berths (those advancing to either CWOSSA directly or a play-in game) have been determined.  Pauline Johnson (AA), North Park (AAA), and Assumption (AAAA) will be the representatives.

It's #1 vs. #2 on the junior side as well, with top-ranked St. John's battling #2 North Park.

None of the CWOSSA berths have been sorted out on the junior side --- the winner of the finals will take the AAA spot, while play-in games are required for AA (Pauline Johnson vs. Paris) and AAAA (Brantford CI vs. Assumption).

Today's junior games start at 5:30pm, with the seniors to go at 7.  The series will continue on Thursday (same times), and if a third game is required, it will go on Wednesday, February 18th.

WCSSAA Tuesday: Standings Log-Jam to Get Sorted....Or Will It?

Today marks the final day of the WCSSAA regular season, and, from my perspective, it's been one of the most entertaining in recent memory due to the depth and competitiveness of both the WCSSAA senior and junior circuits.

Both leagues are (at least) 8 deep in terms of solid teams that could potentially make some noise in the playoffs, which should make for some interesting quarterfinals.

Let's start with the senior side of things, looking at potential standings implications from today's games and then going on to my picks....

WCI-Cameron:  Game of the Day
Obviously, the WCI-Cameron Heights game is the "game of the day" as far as the playoff picture is concerned.  The Vikes win, and they hold tiebreaks over (several of the) teams that they'd be tied with, meaning that they'd certainly finish no worse than 4th (first round bye).

Of course, a WCI win also creates potential for an interesting 4-way tie at 8-3 (KCI, Grand River, and Galt will all be "favoured" in their games today).  Among those teams, WCI is 2-0 (KCI/GRCI), KCI is 2-1 (wins over GRCI & Galt), and Grand River is 1-2 (win over GCI).

A Cameron Heights win, on the other hand, could drop the Vikes as low as 7th, assuming those other three teams win their games today.  WCI would be tied with Eastwood at 7-4, with the Rebs having the head-to-head tiebreak.

Pretty amazing for a team to have that "range" of possible finishing positions entering the final day of the season!

Other Intriguing Match-Ups
Everything else is pretty much set, unless a team is caught looking ahead to the playoffs and gets upset.

Both KCI (vs. Jacob Hespeler) and Galt (at Preston) will be heavily favoured today.  Grand River will also be favoured at Huron Heights, although the Huskies play very well at home (having beaten KCI and played CHCI within single-digits).

Both Bluevale and Southwood are 2-8 (winner gets in for sure), but will make the playoffs regardless of what happens today unless Jacob Hespeler beats KCI.  Both SSS & BCI have defeated JHSS (also 2-8) during the regular season, so would have the tie-breaker edge. 

Today's Picks
SSS (by 4) over BCI
KCI (by 19) over JHSS
GRCI (by 11) over HHSS
SJAM (by 18) over FHCI
GCI (by 17) over PHS
CHCI (by 8) over WCI

Junior
On the junior side, we'll start with Glenview Park, who at 8-3 can clinch a first-round bye today with a win at winless Elmira, combined with a Forest Heights loss to SJAM.  If the Trojans upset the 'Landers, we'll go to tiebreaks, but I believe the Panthers still have the edge there (e.g., common opponents).

Tiebreakers should be the theme of the day elsewhere, with Bluevale & Eastwood (both 9-2 entering play) heavily favoured in their games.

Five teams -- including the aforementioned Panthers & Trojans, Cameron Heights, Huron Heights and Grand River -- also enter play today either 7-4 or 8-3.

As for the final playoff spots, Southwood (3-8) and Galt (3-8) are in to the playoffs unless Preston can defeat the Ghosts today.  If that happens (and SSS loses to BCI), we'd have to sort out that three-way tiebreaker.  WODSS (at home vs. ECI) could also join the tiebreaker party if they can pull an upset in their game.

Needless to say, should be an exciting and entertaining day!

D8 Monday: Playoff Match-Ups Set

Although the teams that would participate were already determined, there was some fine tinkering of the D8 playoff picture that was made clear after the results came in from Monday.

We'll start in junior....

Both "A" division match-ups actually turned out to be previews of possible semifinal match-ups, assuming St. Benedict and Resurrection can win their quarterfinal games against "B" division opponents.

At St. Benedict, Jacob Polski had a game-high 22 points for the Saints but it wasn't enough as St. Mary's prevailed, 57-48.  Jason Jaros had 11 for a balanced St. Mary's scoresheet.

In Waterloo, Brent Lasovich had 19 points to pace the St. David Celtics to a 46-33 win over Resurrection, who were led by Jamu Iluya's 13.

Pat Martini's 33-point effort helped PRDG lock-up top spot in the "B" division, with a 64-50 win over Rockway.  The win also means that PRDG will advance to CWOSSA unless Rockway goes further than them in the playoffs (e.g., RMC beats SBCSS & PRDG loses to RCSS).

Two teams that won't be advancing to the playoffs concluded their schedule in Breslau, with Woodland winning a tight 45-41 game over Monsignor Doyle, for their first win of the season.  Frank Xu and Ryan van Leeuwen had 10 each for the Cavs, while Bryan Avila had a game-high 24 for MDCSS.

A Division - Junior
1.  St. David 12-1
2.  St. Mary's 10-3
3.  St. Benedict 6-7 (2-1 vs. RCSS)
4.  Resurrection 6-7 (1-2 vs. SBCSS)

B Division - Junior
1.  PRDG 8-5
2.  Rockway 7-6
3.  Mons. Doyle 2-11
4.  Woodland 1-12

Playoffs - Quarterfinals Wednesday
(A1) St. David - Bye; (A2) St. Mary's - Bye
(A3) St. Benedict vs. (B2) Rockway
(A4) Resurrection vs. (B1) PRDG

CWOSSA Qualification Notes
AAAA - Highest Playoff Finisher (SMHS/SBCSS/RCSS) advances to play D10 in a play-in game.

AAA - St. David advances to CWOSSA play-in game vs. D4.

A - PRDG/Rockway highest finisher gets CWOSSA berth.  If RMC loses quarterfinal game, berth goes to PRDG.

Senior
On the senior side of things, there was one spot to be determined by Monday's games and it saw the Resurrection Phoenix take 3rd place in the standings with a 62-47 win at St. David, who will finish 4th in the "A" Division.  Korbil Gany (21) and Muyang Iluya (14) paced the Phoenix, while Mason Cumming netted 17 for the Celts.

At St. Benedict in Cambridge, the St. Mary's Eagles had their 50 game regular-season D8 win streak and their 47-game overall (including playoffs) D8 win streak hanging in the balance before a wild fourth quarter.

In a possible D8 finals preview, the Eagles lead by only 2 (50-48) after three, before they outscored the Saints 35-7 in the final quarter to win going away, 85-55.  

Tesloth Simon had 25 points to lead the Eagles, while Jamari Stephenson added 16.  Zubair Seyed had 17 to pace the Saints, with Justin Malnerich and Evan Rodenburg adding 8.

The other game, a "B" division tilt on Monday didn't matter much as far as the standings were concerned, but Woodland goes into the playoffs on a winning note after a 46-37 win over Monsignor Doyle.  Shane Clarke had 21 for the Cavs; Ryan Stafford led Doyle with 15.

A Division - Senior 
1.  St. Mary's 12-0
2.  St. Benedict 9-3
3.  Resurrection 5-7
4.  St. David 3-9

B Division - Senior
1.  Mons. Doyle 6-4
2.  Woodland 4-6
3.  Rockway 0-10

Playoffs - Quarterfinals Wednesday
(A1) St. Mary's - Bye; (A2) - St. Benedict - Bye
(A3) Resurrection vs. (B2) Woodland
(A4) St. David vs. (B1) Mons. Doyle

CWOSSA Qualification Notes
AAAA - Highest Playoff Finisher (SMHS/SBCSS/RCSS) advances to play D10 in play-in game.

AAA - Winner of MDCSS/SDCSS Quarterfinal game advances to play D4 in play-in game.

A - Woodland has qualified for "A" CWOSSA.

Senior: Tony Marcotullio Invitational (London)

I need to track down some scores still from this one (if you're aware of any, tweet me or send me an e-mail), but I've essentially been able to fill out the bracket.

The tournament featured 6 CWOSSA teams, with Cambridge St. Benedict advancing to the championship final where they fell 55-30 to a strong Windsor Catholic Central team (if you recall, Windsor CCH defeated St. Mary's at the SJAM tournament).

St. James (Guelph) and SJAM (Waterloo) both lost their first games, but won their next two to advance to the consolation final, where the Lions were surprisingly dominant in a 76-44 win.  They did a nice job of limiting SJAM's top scorers, Nedim Hodzic and Brett Parrott, holding them to a combined 11 points.

Round 1
Beal def. MTS London

St. Benedict 58, Herman (Windsor) 47
SBCSS:  Zubair Seyed, 23

St. Pat's (Sarnia) 58, WCI 54
WCI:  Nick Johnny, 22

Pickering 64, St. James 55

JP II (London) 62, SJAM 53

Banting (London) 65, JF Ross 63 (3OT)

Crescent (Toronto) def. Clarke Rd (London)

CCH (Windsor) 81, Centennial 28

Round 2 - Championship Side
St. Benedict 45, HB Beal 43 - Buzzer Beater

St. Pat's def. Pickering

JP II (London) def. Banting (London)

CCH Windsor 71, Crescent 48

Round 2 - Consolation Side
Herman def. MTS London

St. James 43, WCI 33
STJ:  Joey Hasson, 11
WCI:  Nick Johnny, 13

SJAM 68, JF Ross 55

Clarke Rd 51, Centennial 44

Consolation Semifinals:
St. James 65, Windsor Herman 46
STJ:  Joey Hasson, 26

SJAM 57, Clarke Rd. 42

Consolation Final:  St. James 76, SJAM 44

Championship Semifinals
St. Benedict 59, St. Pat's (Sarnia) 54
SBCSS:  Zubair Seyed, 27

Catholic Central 63, JP II (London) 61

Championship Final:  Catholic Central 55, St. Benedict 30
SBCSS:  Zubair Seyed, 16

Junior: St. Francis (St. Catharines) Wins Resurrection's Luke Santi Memorial Tournament

St. Francis - St. Catharines

In an exciting championship finale at Resurrection on Saturday afternoon, one thing was certain --- that the Phoenix would be victorious.

Of course, with both the St. Francis (St. Catharines) Phoenix and the Resurrection Phoenix in the championship final, that was an obvious statement.

St. Francis edged Resurrection, 49-45, backed by a solid 26-point effort by tournament MVP Tyrell McLennan.  Demar Holness (21) and Jamu Iluya (16) were Rez's leading scorers.

St. Michael (Stratford) took the bronze championship (3rd place), with a convincing 63-34 win over St. Patrick's from Sarnia.  Jack Reilly led the way with 24 in that one for the Warriors.

Huron Heights (Kitchener) needed OT to beat St. Mike's (Niagara Falls) in the consolation final, 60-56.  Kuel Thomas had 16 to lead the way.  Interestingly enough, those two teams met in the first round with two overtimes being needed to decide the victor.

Here's a recap with scores & tournament all-stars:

First Round
Resurrection 47, Bishop Macdonell (Guelph) 23
RCSS:  Jamu Iluya 26

St. Mike's 71, Walkerton DSS 18

St. Francis (St. Catharines) 48, St. Pat's (Sarnia) 33

St. Mike's (NF) 51, Huron Hts. (Kit.) 46 - 2OT
STM:  Dusan Krkljus 27
HHSS:  Kuel Thomas 16

Second Round - Winners vs. Losers
Resurrection 55, Walkerton DSS 13
RCSS:  Jamu Iluya & Demar Holness 12

St. Pat's (Sarnia) 59, St. Mike's (NF) 39

St. Francis (St. Catharines) 48, Huron Hts. 40

St. Mike's (Stratford) def. Bishop Macdonell

Consolation Semifinals + Final
St. Mike's (NF) 68, Walkerton DSS 5
STM:  Dusan Krkljus 11

Huron Heights 52, Bishop Macdonell 48
HHSS:  Kuel Thomas & Everett Alford 20
BMAC:  Noah Slater 15

Final:  Huron Hts. 60, St. Mike's (NF) 56 - OT
HHSS:  Kuel Thomas 16

Semifinals + Final
Resurrection 60, St. Pat's (Sarnia) 46
RCSS:  Demar Holness 15

St. Francis 75, St. Mike's (Stratford) 65
STF:  Jack Riddell 20
STM:  Jack Reilly 18

Bronze:  St. Mike's (S) 63, St. Pat's (Sarnia) 34
STM:  Jack Reilly 24

Gold:  St. Francis 49, Resurrection 45
STF:  Tyrell MacLennan 26
RCSS:  Demar Holness 21

All-Stars from Resurrection CSS

All-Stars
MVP:  Tyrell MacLennan, St. Francis
Jack Riddell, St. Francis
Warsame Bille, St. Francis
Demar Holness, Resurrection
Jamu Iluya, Resurrection
Jaxon Matcheski, Resurrection 
Nick Iacobelli, St. Patrick's
Jack Reilly, St. Mike's Stratford
Dusan Krkljus, St. Mike's NF
Ben Jenkins, Huron Heights

D5 Playoffs: Trojans Survive Eagles

The 2nd-seeded North Park Trojans got all they could handle from #3 St. John's on Thursday, holding them off to advance to the D5 finals in a 42-41 thriller.

Matt Minutillo had 17 for the Trojans, while Neil Wiacek led the Eagles (and all scorers) with 22.

The other senior game saw #1 Assumption handle #4 Pauline Johnson, 73-34.

On the junior side, #2 North Park edged #3 Brantford CI, 53-42.  Ethan Andrew poured in 21 for the Trojans, while Keaton Thornton had 14 for BCI.

St. John's, the #1 seed, handled #4 Assumption, 68-40.

The Brantford finals are "best of 3" and will commence on February 10th in the evening at Pauline Johnson.  The other games go February 12th, and, if necessary, February 18th.

The results above mean that Assumption's seniors have secured a berth in the CWOSSA "AAAA" championships, while North Park's seniors will advance to an "AAA" play-in game.

As Brantford CI and Assumption both lost in the semifinals, those junior teams will play a "play-in game" for the AAAA CWOSSA berth.

The junior "AAA" D5 berth (to a play-in game) will be the winner of the SJC-NPC series.

Senior: Several CWOSSA Teams in London

Pretty good draw down in London at HB Beal's Tony Marcotullio Invitational Basketball Tournament.

Ranked CWOSSA teams St. Benedict, WCI, St. James, Centennial, SJAM, and JF Ross are all in the mix in the 16-team field.  Here's the first-round draw:

London Beal vs. London MTS
St. Benedict vs. Windsor Herman

WCI vs. Sarnia St. Pat's
St. James vs. Pickering

SJAM vs. JPII (London)
Banting vs. JF Ross

Clarke Rd. vs. Crescent
Centennial vs. Windsor Cath. Central

Junior: Rez Hosts Annual Luke Santi Memorial Tournament

The Resurrection Phoenix are hosting their annual "Luke Santi Memorial Tournament" this weekend, named in honour of their former junior star who passed away from cancer at the age of 16 following the 2006-07 season.

To quote from the tournament's program, "Luke was a top student in the classroom, great citizen in the community, and a strong athlete---particularly on the basketball court for the Phoenix where he was named to the District 8 all-star team in the 2006-2007 season. An outstanding shooter, he also received accolades in various tournaments, including this same tournament where he averaged 11 points a game. He was also Resurrection's player of the game during the 2007 District 8 championship game in which he netted 19 points (including five three-pointers)."

This year's tournament has a field of teams from around Southern Ontario. 

Five CWOSSA teams are represented, including the host Phoenix, Guelph Bishop Macdonell, Walkerton DCS, and Kitchener Huron Heights.  Sarnia St. Patrick's, Stratford St. Michael, St. Francis (St. Catharines) and St. Mike's (Niagara Falls) round out the field.

Stratford St. Mike's, despite a 2-14 record at this tournament in their history, are likely the favourites this time around.  They have some nice size including 6'4" Jack Reilly, who scored 20+ PPG at this tournament last year as a grade 9.  Currently in the Stratford and area league, St. Mike's are 7-0, winning games by an average of 50+ points.  They put up 100+ in a game (103 to be exact) earlier this week.

First round action features:  
Resurrection vs. Bishop Macdonell
St. Mike's (Stratford) vs. Walkerton  
St. Patrick's (Sarnia) vs. St. Francis (St. Cath)  
St. Mike's (Niagara) vs. Huron Hts.

The tournament's "OFSAA style" format will pit first round winners against losers, followed by semifinal and final action tomorrow.

Past Tournament Finals (Since Renamed in 2008)  
2014:  Jean Vanier (RH) 64, Resurrection 61
2013:  Bishop Mac 64, Lourdes 57 (OT)  
2012:  Oakville Holy Trinity 49, Jean Vanier (RH) 48  
2011:  Bishop Macdonell 55, Resurrection 49  
2010:  Oakville Holy Trinity 69, Sarnia St. Christopher 61  
2009:  Resurrection 57, Bishop Mac 56  
2008:  Resurrection 57, Sarnia St. Christopher 46

All-Time Tournament Top Scorers (PPG)  
1.  Mike Rocca, St. Christopher (2010) - 31.3  
2.  Matt Cinjau, St. Christopher (2007) - 26.0  
3.  Joe Rocca, St. Christopher (2008) - 24.8  
4.  Craig Valeriote, Lourdes (2013) - 24.7  
T5.  Chris Rocca, St. Christopher (2005) - 23.3  
T5.  Solumun Gabriel, Pope John Paul II (2003) - 23.3  
7.  Seve Sanfilipo, Pope John Paul II (2004) - 22.8  
T8.  Sharieff Peru, Lourdes (2009) - 22.5
T8.  Kascius Small-Martin, Jean Vanier RH (2014) - 22.5  
10.  Michael Ganson, Bishop Mac (2012) - 21.3  
11.  Justin Manning, Bishop Reding (2009) - 21.0  
T12.  Eric Varasso, Cardinal Newman (2008) - 20.3
T12.  Jack Reilly, Stratford St. Mike's (2014) - 20.3  
14.  Chyro Blackwood, Resurrection (2003) - 20.0  
15.  Josh Elsley, St. Christopher (2012) - 19.8  
16.  Adam Schneider, Resurrection (2011) - 19.3
17.  Ali Rashid, Resurrection (2014) - 19.0  
T18.  Mitchell Wood, Bishop Mac (2010) - 18.5  
T18.  Connor Wood, Bishop Mac (2009) - 18.5
Bold = CWOSSA Players

WCSSAA Senior Thursday: Vikings Put A Halt to the Playoff Party

Don't fill out your WCSSAA playoff brackets just yet.

The WCI Vikings continued their strong play down the stretch and threw a wrench into the playoff seeding, knocking off the Grand River Renegades 63-59 on Thursday afternoon.

The win means that 5 teams have either a 7-3 or 7-4 record entering the final day of play on Tuesday afternoon.

The beneficiary of WCI's win may be the KCI Raiders, who are now tied with GRCI with a 7-3 record but do hold a tiebreak over the Rens.

That said, WCI now also controls their own destiny.  If they defeat CHCI next week, the Vikes could finish 3rd in the standings, while a loss would likely mean they finish 7th due to tiebreakers.  Wow!

On Thursday, Etai Mizrahi and Nick Johnny led a balanced Viking scoresheet with 13 each, while Miro Iliev had 18 for the Rens.

Meanwhile, Eastwood, playing without Ousmane Kromah, got 23 points from Izzy Nemeth in his second game back to take out the Forest Heights Trojans 64-57.  Cham Ujullu had 18 more for the Rebs, while Tim Gajdos had 15 for FHCI.

Sasha Simic poured in 24 points for Cameron in their 66-57 win over Huron Heights.  Ahmed Radi and Bilal Ahmed each had 22 for the Huskies.

Jacob Hespeler was a winner on Thursday, 44-30 over Elmira.  Chad Dempster had 13 for the Hawks, while Colin Wideman notched 8 for EDSS.

TJ Lall had 29 on Thursday as Galt kept pace with the teams around them, defeating Southwood 55-40.  Moiz Masud led the Sabres with 11.

Preston essentially locked up a playoff berth in the other game on Thursday with a 60-49 win over Bluevale.  Lucas Moffitt led PHS with 18, while Jamal John had 15 for the Knights.

WCSSAA Senior Standings
T1.  SJAM 9-1
T1.  Cameron Hts. 9-1
T3.  WCI 7-3 (W KCI/GRCI; L - ECI)
T3.  KCI 7-3 (W GCI/GRCI; L - WCI)
T3.  Grand River 7-3 (W GCI/ECI; L - KCI/WCI)
T3.  Galt 7-3 (W ECI; L - KCI/GRCI)
7.  Eastwood 7-4 (W WCI; L - GCI/GRCI)
8.  Forest Hts. 5-5
9.  Huron Hts. 4-6
10.  Preston 3-7
T11.  Jacob Hespeler 2-8
T11.  Bluevale 2-8
T11.  Southwood 2-8
14.  Elmira 0-11

In the middle of the standings with the teams tied for 3rd, here are the remaining games:
WCI @ CHCI
JHSS @ KCI
GRCI @ HHSS
GCI @ PHS

We'll get to the playoff possibilities in a different post, probably on Monday.

As far as the final playoff berths are concerned, Preston is essentially in at 3-7.  Bluevale and Southwood play on Tuesday, with the winner also assured of a berth.  

Jacob Hespeler (having lost to both SSS & Bluevale) would need to beat KCI on Tuesday or they would be eliminated.

WCSSAA Junior Thursday: Trojans Hand Rebels 2nd Loss

What an interesting week for the Forest Heights Trojans.

After getting smacked by 40+ points on Tuesday by the Cameron Heights Golden Gaels, the Trojans rebounded nicely to hand the Eastwood Rebels just their second loss of the season, 46-44, at ECI on Thursday afternoon.

Branko Damjanovic had 19 to lead the Trojans, while Layee Jabateh had 20 for the Rebs.

Both teams are in the mix for one of the better playoff positions, as there are now 5 teams with 9-2 or 8-3 records.

Another of those teams, the Glenview Park Panthers, got off to a slow start but came back in a 42-39 win over KCI.  Eman Otong put in 15 for the Panthers, while Will Urosevic led KCI and all scorers with 16.

Assuming GPSS can beat Elmira in their finale (and FHCI loses to unbeaten SJAM), they will clinch a top-4 seed in the WCSSAA standings, the first time they would ever have done this since WCSSAA switched to a 12-team playoff format.

The other games on Thursday went generally as expected.

Top-ranked SJAM continued their perfect WCSSAA season, locking up top spot in the standings officially with a 64-30 win over WODSS.  Harkirat Ahluwalia had 17 and Nino Spasik 14 for the 'Landers, while Cam Mehring had 9 for the Crusaders.

Grand River toppled WCI 68-44, backed by 13 by Jacob Grisold.  Ben Dobson also had 13 for the Vikes.

Cameron picked up a big win, 71-59 over Huron Heights in a high-scoring affair.  Martin Grjorgiev had 22, while Lala Shehi also had 21 for the Gaels.  Kuel Thomas put home a game-high 25 for the Huskies.

On the other end of the spectrum, points were at a premium in Jacob Hespeler's 23-16 win over Elmira.  Devin Graham and Jared McLean had 4 each for JHSS, while Dexter Roth had 6 for Elmira.

Muhammad Irsalan had a big 32-point effort for Galt in their 56-30 win over Sotuhwood, keeping the Ghosts playoff possibilities alive.

Ilija Nikolic scored 13 for Bluevale in their 54-16 win over Preston in the other game on Thursday.

WCSSAA Junior Standings
1.  SJAM 11-0**
T2.  Bluevale 9-2**
T2.  Eastwood 9-2**
T4.  Glenview Park 8-3**
T4.  Grand River 8-3**
T4.  Forest Hts. 8-3**
T7.  Huron Hts. 7-4**
T7.  Cameron Hts. 7-4**
T9.  KCI 5-6**
T9.  WCI 5-6**
T11.  Galt 3-8
T11.  Southwood 3-8
T13.  WODSS 2-9
T13.  Preston 2-9
15.  Jacob Hespeler 1-10
16.  Elmira 0-11

** - clinched playoff berth