The Burnaby South Rebels proved their ranking among the top-10 junior girls basketball teams in B.C. was well deserved by going out and winning the program’s Rebels Classic tournament on the weekend.
In the three-game series, the Rebels crossed paths with a pair of ranked rivals, including in the final where they edged W.J. Mouat 55-52.
Led by tourney MVP Laini Glover, Burnaby found a seam trailing by one with just a minute remaining and took command, pulling out a three-point win.
Glover, who scored 12 points in the first three quarters, proved to be a force and was supported by stellar efforts from Zyre Aspires, Kirsten Cajalne and Diya Sehgal.
“It was a battle, the whole tournament,” said coach Steve Glover. “We had lost one of our best players early in the second game, so it was a battle from the first half of that game right through.”
Against No. 10-ranked Mouat, Aspires tallied eight points over the first half.
In the semifinal, the Rebels bested No. 14-ranked Earl Marriott 45-36, with Cajalne counting eight points. But in that contest, two-way threat Awek Deng was injured, forcing other players into different roles.
The opportunity was met with some standout support from Segal, who took over part of Deng’s role, while Laini Glover set a tone with steals at timely moments in the final.
“It was a great development weekend for us as they stepped up as a team,” remarked the coach, who is assisted by Milan Stojanovic, Cody Cormack, Candi Glover and Norm Roberts, who runs the Eagles community basketball program at Bonsor.
The Rebels, whose lineup is almost a balanced split between Grade 9 and 10s, opened the tourney by beating W.L. Seaton 62-29, where Glover tallied 14 points and six rebounds.
Undefeated in league play, the squad had made the provincials a goal from the start.
“We wanted to make it to B.C.s and be the best team we could be,” said Steve Glover. “We knew if we keep our focus and work hard, we could make it there.”
Burnaby South is looking forward to the Holy Cross tournament in early February as preparation for the playoffs.
