Heinbuch 2010: D8 Receives Two Local Bids

For the first time in a long time, two District 8 teams will participate in the Heinbuch Classic high school basketball tournament in Kitchener-Waterloo this coming November.

The Resurrection Phoenix and St. Mary's Eagles have both apparently received bids to attend ---- which isn't much of a surprise considering both schools have combined for the last three junior CWOSSA AAAA titles and each school is seeking a breakout season at the senior level with most of their core players now entering grade 12.

The prestigious sixteen team tournament generally limits itself to about 5-6 local entries. Although the field is far from certain, JF Ross & St. James (Guelph), North Park (Brantford), and WCSSAA schools Bluevale, Grand River, Cameron Heights, Southwood & SJAM would appear to be the other CWOSSA potential entries.

How good a tournament is this? Three of last year's participants swept the medals at AAAA OFSAA --- Oakwood (Gold); St. Thomas More (Silver); Mother Teresa (Bronze).

Contrary to popular belief, this isn't the first time that the D8 will have two entries in the Heinbuch. A quick search of past results at the Heinbuch's great site (http://www.heinbuchclassic.ca/) shows that two D8 schools met in the 1996 Bronze final ---- with Resurrection beating St. Benedict by a 52-40 score behind star forward Andy Kwiatkowski.

2010 All-Ontario Teams: Higgins, Cvrkalj Receive Honours

Courtesy of Jim Thomas.  Full list can also be accessed at Thehoop-la.com. 


2010 All Ontario H.S. Teams

First Team
C Stefan Nastic 6'11" Thornhill H.S. Thorhill
F Anthony Ottley 6'5" Emery H.S. Toronto
F Manny Sahota 6'6" d'Youville H.S. Brampton
G Julian Clarke 6'3" Oakwood H.S. Toronto
G Kevin Pangos 6'1" Dr. Dennison H.S. Newmarket

Seond Team
C Chris McLaughlin 6'9" Abbey Park H.S. Oakville
F Taylor Black 6'7" Orchard Park H.S. Stoney Creek
F Leon Alexander 6'3" JC Richardson H.S. Ajax
G Jehenns Manigat 6'2" REDA Hamilton
G Jahmal Jones 6'0" Mississauga H.S. Mississauga

Third Team
C Lucas Nugteren 6'10" REDA Hamilton
F Justin Shaver 6'6" Nepean H.S. Ottawa
F Satar Wahidi 6'6" Orchard Park H.S. Stoney Creek
G Aaron Redpath 6'4" JC Richardson H.S. Ajax
G Mike L'Africain 5'11" Loyola H.S. Oakville

Fourth Team
F Nick Tufegdzich 6'7" Riverside H.S. Windsor
F Cameron Robertson 6'5" Eastern Commerce H.S. Toronto
F Ryan Higgins 6'4" St. James H.S. Guelph
G Stefan Cvrkalj 6'4" Bluevale H.S. Waterloo
G Jordan Gauthier 6'2" Herman H.S. Windsor

Fifth Team
F Eric Ducharme 6'4" Timmins H.S. Timmons
F Tyshon Carter 6'3" Campion H.S. Brampton
F Bikram Gill 6'7" Ascension H.S. Mississauga
G Justin Edwards 6'1" Anderson H.S. Whitby
G Quinn Henderson 6'3" Parkside H.S. Dundas

Sixth Team
F Peter Boateng 6'4" d'Youville H.S. Brampton
F Cedric Kasongo 6'4" Notre Dame H.S. Welland
G Daniel Mullings 6'3" Laurier H.S. Toronto
G Adam Presutti 6'1" Loyola H.S. Oakville
G Brandon Bos 6'0" Markham H.S. Markham

All Ontario Academic Team

First Team
C Stefan Nastic 6'11" Thornhill H.S. Thornhill 87%
F Manny Sahota 6'6" d"Youville H.S. Brampton 88%
G Julian Clarke 6'3" Oakwood H.S. Toronto 91%
G Aaron Redpath 6'4" JC Richardson H.S. Ajax 88%
G Stefan Cvrkalj 6'4" Bluevale H.S. Waterloo 93%

Second Team
F Peter Boateng 6'4" d'Youville H.S. Brampton 88%
G Brandon Bos 6'0" Markham H.S. Markham 89%
G Kyle Gedreitis 6'0" Parkside H.S. Dundas 92%
G Adam Presutti 6'1" Loyola H.S. Oakville 86%
G Micheal Grasic 6'4" Gonzaga H.S. Mississauga 91%

WCSSAA: Cvrkalj To Return To Bluevale for 5th Year

As many people expected, Waterloo Bluevale guard (and now reigning WCSSAA MVP) Stefan Cvrkalj will be returning to Bluevale for a 5th year of high school.

To update his NCAA recruiting situation, we can also add Davidson (Southern Conference) and Penn (Ivy) to the list of schools mentioned a few weeks back.

Along with the club basketball and AAU circuit, Cvrkalj has been invited to participate in summer workouts with the Canadian National Team ---- essentially training and competing with other professional and university/college players that have returned for the summer.

Guelph Tribune: Hoops Star Stepping Away From The Game

Article By: Ned Bekavac

Retrieved From: http://www.guelphtribune.ca/sports/article/210794

The city’s top high school basketball player is stepping away from the game.

Rob House, who has earned District 10 senior boys basketball MVP honours the last two seasons, is on his way to the University of Western Ontario in the fall.

There, he was to suit up for the school’s basketball Mustangs, but the local cager has now changed his mind on the matter.

“Just recently, I’ve decided not to play basketball next year,” House said this week. “Just (for) personal reasons, I kind of wanted to take a break and check out any other options. I’ve been playing basketball my whole life.”

The Centennial Spartans star says those “other options” aren’t anything specific.

“Whatever arises,” he said. “It’s a big commitment, so I’d like to focus on the school first.”

House, the younger brother of Jon House –a former Centennial star as well who just finished his third year with NCAA Division I basketball's Belmont Bruins –said that while he's walking away from hoops, he’s not ruling out a return at some point.

“I definitely wouldn’t take out the option of playing again,” he said.

The 19-year-old will attend Western as a management and organizational studies student.

CWOSSA All-Stars: Third Team

3rd Team CWOSSABasketball.com All-Stars

Taylor McNaughton, Forest Heights CI

Position:  G/F

Season Highlights:  Put in a season-high 39 points in a nail-biting 1 point victory over KCI in league play.  Solid "all-round" performer also had 3 other 20+ outings in league play, and was named as a WCSSAA all-star.

Up Next:  Will be attending University next year, and most likely staying local.

Arben Kalaba, KCI

Position:  G

Season Highlights:  Put up some huge games against top opposition (37 against Cameron Heights, 34 vs Forest Heights and 34 in the CWOSSA final against North Park).  He added 25 in a Heinbuch game against Mother Teresa.  In league play, he was the engine that made KCI go ---- helping them to another WCSSAA "final four" appearance and almost helped them upset North Park in the CWOSSA final, taking that game to overtime.  He was named as a WCSSAA first-team all-star.

Up Next:  Arben will be attending Wilfrid Laurier University next year, majoring in English.

Cale McDonald, North Park

Position:  G

Season Highlights:  Key member of North Park's OFSAA "AAA" participating team.  Named as a D5 all-star.  Scored a season-high 27 points against rival Brantford St. John's in a key early season victory.

Up Next:  TBD

Jay Francis, CCVI
Position:  G/F

Season Highlights:  5th year veteran member of Centennial team; named as a D10 all-star.  Scored 23 points against JF Ross in the D10 championship game.  Solid slasher and shooter had a good all-around game in helping Centennial knock off eventual CWOSSA champion Bluevale in pool play at CWOSSA (if I'm not mistaken, BCI's only CWOSSA loss?).

Up Next:  TBD

Ben Reyhani, SJAM
Position:  G

Season Highlights:  Lights out shooter had eight games of 20+ points including a solid 33 point effort against a very good Brampton Notre Dame team in the WCI/BCI tournament.  Added another 29 points against Burlington Nelson in the SOSI.  Named as a WCSSAA all-star.

Up Next:  Returns to SJAM for Grade 12 (4th year).

Honourable Mention Considerations:
Tyler Schneider, Resurrection
Alex Thompson, St. Mary's
Mike Couperus, Waterford
Mat West, Walkerton DSS
Jeff Robinson, Preston
Mark Dickens, North Park
Josh Loehle, Monsignor Doyle
Edem Ame, SJAM
Shamlo Saeed, JF Ross
Adrian Varilla, Centennial

GRCI Backwards Halfcourt Shot

Gotta keep some posts up from time to time during the off-season, so here's one purely for entertainment purposes.

Looks like some joking around during gym class ---- but this kid apparently went 3 for 10 shooting like this.  Not too shabby!

CWOSSA AAA/AAAA Championship History - Last 20 Years

*AAA was the highest level until 2002
*Does not include titles/medals won by teams that stayed or went back down to AAA after 2002.

Senior:
1991: JF Ross 66, Galt 60
1992: North Park 41, St. John's 37
1993: St. John's 58, North Park 54
1994: Cameron 58, Glenview Pk 44
1995: JF Ross 49, Waterloo CI 48
1996: JF Ross 52, Centennial CVI 51
1997: St. James 64, Centennial CVI 46
1998: St. James 55, Guelph CVI 48
1999: St. James 71, St. John's 57
2000: Assumption 93, Centennial CVI 89 (OT)
2001: Centennial 59, Brantford CI 46
2002: Assumption 67, Kitchener CI 41 (26 - largest margin of victory)
2003: Kitchener CI 58, St. Benedict 44
2004: Kitchener CI 58, Waterloo CI 56
2005: Waterloo CI 59, KCI 45
2006: Kitchener CI 59, Grand River 53
2007: Centennial 60, SJAM 43
2008: Centennial 68, Forest Heights 63 (OT)
2009: SJAM 53, Centennial CVI 48
2010: Bluevale 54, JF Ross 42

Most titles Won:
Centennial CVI (3 - 2001, 2007, 2008)
Kitchener CI (3 - 2003, 2004, 2006)
St. James CHS (3 - 1997, 1998, 1999)
JF Ross CVI (3 - 1991, 1995, 1996)
Assumption CS (2 - 2000, 2002)

Most CWOSSA Medals:
Centennial CVI (7) - 3 Gold, 4 Silver
Kitchener CI (5) - 3 Gold, 2 Silver
JF Ross CVI (4) - 3 Gold, 1 Silver
St. James (3) - 3 Gold, 0 Silver
Waterloo CI (3) - 1 Gold, 2 Silver
St. John's (3) - 1 Gold, 2 Silver


Junior:
1991: North Park 50, St. John's 47
1992: St. John's 62, Centennial 41
1993: St. John's 66, North Park 64
1994: St. John's 91, Centennial 63 (28 - largest margin of victory)
1995: North Park 67, Brantford 51
1996: Grand River 57, St. Benedict 40
1997: St. James 51, Assumption 45
1998: Centennial 48, Grand River 47
1999: St. James 43, Brantford CI 41
2000: Assumption 65, Preston 43
2001: Unavailable:  St. James vs. ????
2002: Waterloo CI 49, North Park 37
2003: Kitchener CI 63, St. John's 46
2004: Kitchener CI 49, Centennial CVI 32
2005: Forest Heights over North Park (Score ?)
2006: Centennial CVI 62, Forest Heights CI 50
2007: JF Ross 46, Centennial CVI 44
2008: St. Mary's 56, Grand River 46
2009: Resurrection CSS 54, Grand River 50
2010: Resurrection CSS 42, Waterloo CI 39

Most titles won:
St. John's (3 - 1992, 1993, 1994)
Kitchener CI (2 - 2003, 2004)
Resurrection CSS (2 - 2009, 2010)
Centennial CVI (2 - 1998, 2006)
North Park (2 - 1991, 1995)
St. James CHS (2 - 1997, 1999) *pending 2001 confirmation - the article I found showed them winning their semifinal game*

Most CWOSSA Medals:
Centennial CVI (6) - 2 Gold, 4 Silver
St. John's (5) - 3 Gold, 2 Silver
North Park (5) - 2 Gold, 3 Silver
Grand River (4) - 1 Gold, 3 Silver

All-CWOSSA Second Team All-Stars

I fractured my wrist while playing some basketball about a week ago ---- but it's not affecting most of my daily tasks, including typing.

Here goes with my "All-CWOSSA" second team all-stars.....

Andrew Mwangi, Resurrection CSS
Position:  F

Season Highlights:  Impressed for a grade 11 "rookie".  A double-double machine who, at 6'4"+, can also step outside and hit jumpshots with regularity.  Put up 23 points and 12 rebounds in an extremely efficient D8 championship game victory over St. Mary's (7-9 FG, 7-8 FT, 2-2 3PT).  Also named as the D8 league MVP for the 09-10 season. Finished things off with 33 points (on 13/22 shooting, 5/9 3PT) in the D8 vs D10 all-star game. 

Up Next:  Returns next year to Resurrection for grade 12 (4th year of high school).

Mike Finoro, Our Lady of Lourdes
Position:  G

Season Highlights:  Helped lead the Crusaders to the "AA" CWOSSA championship game.  Named as a D10 all-star, and was the top scorer in D10 league play --- 11 games of 20+ points including a 27 point effort against AA rival Bishop Mac.  Outstanding shooter that can heat up in a hurry (16 second half points in the D8/D10 all-star game).    

Up Next:  Returns next year to Lourdes for grade 12 (4th year of high school).

Jake Robinet, SJAM
Position:  F

Season Highlights:  Key member of SJAM's WCSSAA finalist squad that also came up just short of qualifying for OFSAA.  At 6'7", created all kinds of match-up troubles for opponents --- especially with his ability to hit the outside shot as well.  Scored a season high 27 points against Cameron Heights during the regular season, then finished the Gaels off with a massive two-handed dunk in the waning moments on WCSSAA Semifinal Saturday.  Named as a first-team WCSSAA all-star.

Up Next:  Robinet will be attending the University of Waterloo and playing varsity basketball.

Andrew Beney, Bluevale CI
Position:  F/C

Season Highlights:  This forward/centre was tough to root out of the middle for many opponents, and was extremely active on the offensive glass.  Had his best games during the WCSSAA championship game (22 vs. SJAM) and in the CWOSSA final (25 vs. JF Ross) --- as the Knights won those championships for the first time in school history.  Named as a second-team WCSSAA all-star.

Up Next:  Beney will be taking Engineering at the University of Guelph and playing varsity basketball.

Ryan Cook, JF Ross CVI
Position:  G/F

Season Highlights:  High-flying 6'4" G/F who had numerous huge slams during the season, including a ridiculous dunk (quite literally) on Centennial in the D10 championship final --- only to have it waived off by a charge call.  D10 all-star who helped the Royals end Centennial's run atop the D10 league, and helped JF Ross earn their first "AAAA" OFSAA berth in school history by beating Centennial for the second time in a week.  Had a season-high 27 points in a league victory over GCVI.

Up Next:  No word as of yet where Cook will go, but there are a few interested schools including his hometown University of Guelph Gryphons.

Recruiting Trail: Preston's Robinson to Suit up for Falcons

In recruiting news, it would appear as though Preston's Jeff Robinson has continued the CWOSSA "recruiting pipeline" to London's Fanshawe College; he will be the latest local player to suit up for the Fanshawe College Falcons.

Robinson, a WCSSAA second team all-star, had some big efforts this past year.  Among his more memorable efforts were 28 points in a playoff victory over Grand River, and 18 points (despite tweaking an ankle on a dunk) in an early season 38-37 upset win over KCI.  He helped the Panthers advance to the AAA CWOSSA championship where they were narrowly defeated by Guelph St. James.

Robinson will be following a course program of study with the end goal of being a Certified Electrician.

At the start of the 2009-10 season, the Falcons had 5 other CWOSSA alumns on the roster (Andy Campbell, Will Bradbury, Brandon Cato, Jordan Dixon, Chyro Blackwood).

Early in the year, Fanshawe narrowly fell to Wilfrid Laurier University during exhibition play by a 73-69 final.  The Falcons went on to advance to the CCAA national championships, where they finished 4th overall.

Waterloo Chronicle: Cvrkalj Caps Season with MVP Nod

By:  Bob Vrbanac

Retrieved From:  http://www.waterloochronicle.ca/news/article/208589

In the span of a week he had a private workout for an NCAA Division 1 school, played in the annual WCSSAA all-star game and was named the league’s MVP after winning the Mike Moser award.

Not a bad week for Bluevale’s Stefan Cvrkalj. But he said it wouldn’t have meant a thing if he didn’t have those rings.

In this case those rings came with winning Bluevale’s first WCSSAA and CWOSSA senior boys basketball titles in the school’s 28- year history.

“I wouldn’t haven’t been able to do this without my teammates,” said Cvrkalj, who is the fourth player in school history to win the Mike Moser award. The other winners were Gord Caldwell in 1976, John Hamilton in 1989 and former national team member and University of Waterloo hall-of-famer Sean Van Koughnett in 1990.

His coach said he’s a modest kid, who elevated the game of those who played with him.

“He’s such a confident kid, and determined, that all the kids fed off of that,” said Doros Theodosiou. “He’s the first kid I can honestly say — and I’ve seen a lot of great players in this league — who made everybody around him better.”

But it was the team accomplishments that mattered most to the 18-year-old Grade 12 student who starred at point guard for the Waterloo school. The accolades that came with those championships were a nice byproduct of a year of highlights for one of the best all-around guards this area has ever produced.

Bucknell was the latest U. S. college to visit last week, scouting the potential NCAA prospect. It’s the same school, near Pittsburgh, P. A., that Waterloo St. David’s grad Bryson Johnson is starring at and could be a nice fit for Cvrkalj. He is looking for a school with a strong academic tradition in addition to a competitive basketball program.

“That will definitely be a deciding factor,” he said. “I’m looking for a program where I can get the best education.”

He’s also been scouted by some Ivy League schools, like Cornell, which would fit the criteria of what he’s looking for in his basketball future. That’s in addition to being scouted by big-time NCAA programs like Auburn and Stanford.

But if you think all this hype has gotten to the soft-spoken shooter who lets his basketball skills do all the talking for him, you’d be wrong. That’s because he hasn’t ruled out playing CIS basketball in Canada, which has local coaches at Wilfrid Laurier University and the UW hopeful that they can keep the basketball prodigy playing at home. Cvrkalj said he isn’t ready to make his great leap forward until the best opportunity to play and study presents itself. Basketball might be his ticket to an education, but he said the degree he earns would set him up for the rest of his life.

“I’m not going to sacrifice my education to play basketball,” he said.

That might mean he will be dominating local basketball courts again next season. There’s nothing wrong with back-to-back titles and perhaps an extended run at OFSAA with the Knights only graduating two starters from this year’s championship team.

Theodosiou said he’s happy to support his star player in whatever decision he makes.

“He’s ready to graduate, but his aspirations are to play Division I basketball, and that part is out of his control,” said Theodosiou, about the honour roll student with the 90 average.

In the meantime, Cvrkalj will be doing his best to improve on his already impressive basketball skills. He’s looking to play for a Toronto travel team that could give him some more U. S exposure, while continuing to improve his on-court game with his personal coach Zelimir Stevanovic.

Stevanovic, a former pro player in Europe who played at the University of Pittsburgh, has Cvrkalj working on his quickness, which should help him bring the ball up the court against smaller guards. He’s also looking to add some more muscle to his six-foot-four frame.

The one thing he’s not afraid of is hard work, especially in his pursuit of his basketball dream.

“I’ve sacrificed a lot to get this opportunity,” he said,

“I’m pretty patient — I can wait for the right thing to come along.”

All-CWOSSA Senior Boys Basketball All-Stars: First Team

Here are my "top 15" CWOSSA basketball players from the 2009-10 season. As a usual disclaimer, I don't have the opportunity to see everyone equally......but I have attempted to include players from each region in CWOSSA, at least as honourable mentions.

The breakdown is as follows:

(5) First Team "All-CWOSSAbasketball.com" selections (one CWOSSAbasketball.com player of the year)

(5) Second Team "All-CWOSSAbasketball.com" selections

(5) Third Team "All-CWOSSAbasketball.com" selections

(10) Honourable Mention "All-CWOSSAbasketball.com" selections

With that being said, let's get right to it.

CWOSSAbasketball.com ***FIRST TEAM***

Stefan Cvrkalj, Bluevale (CWOSSAbasketball.com's CWOSSA Player of the Year)

Position: PG/SG

Season Highlights: 2009-10 (Team) WCSSAA & CWOSSA champions, WCSSAA First Team All-Star, Mike Moser Award Winner (WCSSAA MVP), Scored over 1000 points including 20+ points 27 times. Season highs of 39 vs. WCI in a league game and 37 vs. HB Beal (including this shot to force OT) in the Heinbuch Classic.

Up Next:  Cvrkalj, who has a mid-90s academic average, has already been accepted to several Canadian Universities including Laurier, McMaster, Western and Ryerson.  Also has been contacted by a variety of NCAA Division I schools, including Virginia, Stanford, Lafayette, Bucknell, Lehigh, Princeton and Cornell.

Stefan Arezina, Cameron Heights

Position: SG

Season Highlights: Scored a CWOSSA high 40 points in tournament win over Kingston Loyalist (OFSAA AA qualifer) and had 11 other 20+ reported scores. Scored 27 points in a playoff game against WCI to help the #6 Gaels upend the #3 Vikings on the road. Named as a WCSSAA First Team All-Star.

Up Next: Arezina, a 4th year guard, will not be returning for a 5th year at Cameron Heights. He has an academic average in the neighbourhood of 90% and is looking at attending either Laurier, Brock or Waterloo for Health Sciences and playing varsity basketball.

Rob House, Centennial CVI

Position: SF

Season Highlights: Named to the D10 all-star team and was selected as the D10 Senior Boys' MVP for the 3rd consecutive season.  Led CCVI to an undefeated D10 regular season and the championship of the East Side Mario's shootout.  Hit for 30+ points twice in league play (36 - CWDHS 12/17, 30 - GCVI 12/8). 

Up Next: House has committed to the University of Western Ontario for next season.

Ryan Higgins, St. James

Position: SF

Season Highlights: Named to the D10 All-Star team. Hit 20+ points in seven league games, including 27 points against JF Ross in a hard fought semifinal loss. Averaged almost 25 PPG in the Knights-Vikings Classic (25 vs. Chatham-Kent, 24 vs. Brampton Notre Dame and 24 vs. GRCI).

Up Next: This high scoring and high-flying forward will be returning to St. James next season for his 5th year of high school. He has already received interest from a couple of NCAA schools south of the border, including Holy Cross and Cornell.

Dave Eves, North Park CVS

Position: F

Season Highlights: Helped guide the Trojans to their first OFSAA basketball appearance in school history.  Hit for a season-high 34 points against Hamilton MacNab in tournament play.  Had a very impressive Chancellor tournament with a 29 point performance against St. Thomas Aquinas (Oakville) and 23 against St. Augustine.  Scored 21 points against KCI in the CWOSSA final to help the Trojans escape in overtime with a victory.

Up Next:  Eves is graduating this year from NPC.  Up next for him is still to be determined.

WCSSAA All-Star Game: Light Team 112, Dark Team 109

At what is becoming a normal occurrence, both teams put up tons of points in a close game on Wednesday evening at the annual WCSSAA all-star game in Waterloo.

The Light ("home") Team, coached by Bluevale's Doros Theodosiou, ended up winning a 112-109 decision over the Dark ("away") Team, who were headmanned by SJAM's Steve Maloney.

The home squad was led by WCSSAA MVP Stefan Cvrkalj's 26 points.  Teammate Andrew Beney had a 21 point outing and KCI's Darnell Simpson put home 14 points.

For the guests, it was a couple of Cameron Heights products leading the way ---- Stefan Arezina pumped in 30 points while Nebojsa Djeric added 13.  Elmira's Eric Alderice added 13 points as well.

Bluevale's Cvrkalj Named WCSSAA MVP

As expected, 6'4" Bluevale guard Stefan Cvrkalj has been named the recipient of the Mike Moser Award, presented annually to the WCSSAA Senior Boys Basketball MVP.

The announcement was made at halftime of the WCSSAA Senior Boys' all-star game tonight at Waterloo Collegiate.

Needless to say, this was a pretty obvious selection.  Cvrkalj, who was the lone returning WCSSAA first team all-star from a season ago, was key in leading the Knights to their first WCSSAA & CWOSSA titles in school history.  Furthermore, he did so by putting up some big highlights in the process.  He had 27 games of 20+ points, 15 games of 25+ points and 6 games where he notched 30 or more points.  Plus, he didn't just put up those points against just anybody.  He scored 39 against WCI, 39 against St. Theresa's of Midland (OFSAA AAA qualifier) and 37 against London's HB Beal (OFSAA AAAA qualifier).

You hear many people in the States talking about a player hitting 1000 points in their high school career ---- Cvrkalj hit for over 1000 (1017 to be exact) in his 45 games this season, a 22.6 scoring clip.

Of course, when asked about Cvrkalj's best attributes, Knights head coach Doros Theodosiou pointed out that he did more than just score. 

Theodosiou noted that "(Cvrkalj's) best attribute is how wonderful of a person he is. He is very respectful to his coaches as well as his teammates and takes a team first approach.  He is one of the most coachable players I have ever had."

"He is a great leader and a role model for the Bluevale basketball program," he continued, "he was an outstanding leader during games and in practice. He has an unbelievable work ethic which rubbed off on his teammates --- his teammates saw what it took to be an elite basketball player and as a result they started staying extra time in the gym to work on their skills."

"He is one of those few elite basketball players who made everyone around him better. Everyone fed off of his confidence and determination. Although he knew he needed to score for us, he was never concerned about his own statistics, just whether we won", noted Theodosiou.

Cvrkalj isn't just a star on the court but in the classroom as well ---- he has a mid-90s academic average.  The grade 12 student has already been accepted by Laurier, McMaster, Western and Ryerson. Furthermore, he's being actively recruited by a handful of NCAA Division I schools including a pair of Ivy League schools (Princeton & Cornell), a trio of schools from the Patriot League (Bucknell, Lehigh, Lafayette) and a couple of schools from "power conferences" (Virginia out of the ACC & Stanford from the PAC 10). 

All that being said, Cvrkalj hasn't ruled out a 5th year at Bluevale ---- which is a scary thought for WCSSAA opponents.

Cvrkalj joins an impressive list of winners in recent memory:

Previous Mike Moser Winners:

2010:  Stefan Cvrkalj, Bluevale

2009:  Justin Tomas, SJAM

2008:  Nik Saric, Forest Heights

2007:  Zach Nagtzaam, Southwood

2006:  Cam McIntyre, KCI

2005:  Gavin Horne, WCI

WCSSAA All-Star Game Going Down Tonight

A reminder - the WCSSAA Senior Boys' all-star game is going down tonight (April 21st) over at Waterloo Collegiate.

Tip time is scheduled for 7:00pm.  Cost is $3 with a student card; $5 without.  All proceeds benefit Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Waterloo Region.

Remember to become a Fan on Facebook for all the latest CWOSSA basketball information right in your Facebook newsfeed. 

Recruiting News: Bluevale Big Man Beney Commits to Guelph

In recruiting news, Bluevale's 6'6" F/C Andrew Beney has committed to the University of Guelph.

Andrew will be enrolled in the school's engineering program while playing basketball for the Gryphons.

This past year, he was a key force down low in helping Bluevale to WCSSAA & CWOSSA championships, and the school's first OFSAA appearance.  He especially came through in those two championship games, scoring 25 (of Bluevale's 46) in the CWOSSA final and 22 points during Bluevale's 51-46 victory in the WCSSAA final against SJAM.

Beney will join 5 other current Gryphons (Danny McCarthy, Michael Petrella, Adrian Achonwa, Drew Morris and Cody Shody) that are "CWOSSA alums".