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Creston junior boys win home basketball tournament

Creston squad split in Blue and White teams; White places fourth, Blue beats Mount Baker to win tournament...
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The Prince Charles Secondary School junior boys basketball Blue team: (back row

The Prince Charles Secondary School Comets junior boys basketball Blue team came out triumphant at their home tourney.

The Creston team was divided into two squads, a Blue and White, to help fill the field.

The White team, composed mostly of Grade 9 students, won a close one over the Parkland Raiders of Cranbrook 41-35. Makaiah Gorham and Jeff Foster both played great defence, as well as being top scorers. The team lost a tough one to Sparwood 43-30, with Ajay Sidu and Andrew Armstrong putting in strong games. The team squeaked past Kimberley in a barn burner 32-28; Marcus Bell directed the offense and netted eight points, while Gorham led the team in steals and points with 11.

The Blue team came out on top over Mount Baker of Cranbrook 44-32. James Troughton and Leo Evans were top scorers, with 12 and 13 points. The Blue handily beat Kimberley 69-39 with Jordin Czar and Jamond Dortman hooping 18 and 15 points. This put the two Creston teams against each other in the semifinals.

The White team came out strong, taking the first quarter, but the Blue team came back triumphant with a strong second half. Hans Nicolajsen popped in 16 for Blue and Bell had eight for White. This put Blue in the final against Mount Baker and White in the third-fourth place game against Sparwood, which put in a strong performance and again came out on top taking third place. Gorham had another strong game with 22 points.

In the final, Blue had a battle on their hands. They took a two-point lead after one quarter and then six at the half, but Mount Baker slowly clawed their way back and by the end of the third, Creston’s lead was two points. The two teams battled back and forth through the last quarter, and in the final minute Dortman made a clutch three-pointer that helped secure the win and the championship. Evans and Czar topped the scoring, with 15 and 13 points, respectively, while Axel Marini played some key defence down the stretch. It was a great weekend for both teams with all players having great games and gaining valuable playing experience.

This weekend, the junior boys host the East Kootenay championship on Friday and Saturday.

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