The next seven days will decide what kind of year it’s been for members of seven local senior boys basketball teams.
On the heels of a Burnaby-New West league final, the various combatants are steeling themselves for the next biggest challenge, as the Lower Mainland championships kick off this week.
For league victor the Byrne Creek Bulldogs, the route to a 3-A provincial tournament berth is both invigorating and a trifle imposing.
Topping crosstown rival Burnaby South 90-79 in the final last Thursday was not only about bragging rights and a banner; it also maintained valuable momentum heading into the Lower Mainland playoffs, which officially started yesterday (past the NOW’s deadline).
Led by a 40-point performance from Grade 10 guard Bithow Wan and 20 points from Abdul Bangura, Byrne Creek shook off a strong South start and built up a solid margin in the third quarter en route to a second straight league crown.
Like the independent division St. Thomas More Knights, the Bulldogs will be vying for one of four spots, which guarantee provincial tourney floor time at the Langley Events Centre next month.
Just win the next two games and a top-two Lower Mainland result is locked up. On the flip side, a couple of losses puts the season and those B.C. hoop dreams on ice.
“It’s about not getting complacent,” remarked Byrne Creek coach Bal Dhillon of the next stage. “The post-season is literally a new season. ... We played (potential first-game opponent) McNair early in the year, like early December, and got the win but they are not the same team. They’ve been ranked most of the year and they have improved (since December) and hopefully we’ve improved.”
Earning all-star honours in the league playoffs were Wan and Bangura, South’s C.J. Campbell and Aleks Kalajdzic, New West’s Luca Cuk and Burnaby North’s Ryan Hum.
Byrne Creek plays No. 6-seed McNair tonight (Wednesday), 7:30 p.m. at Byrne Creek. Lower Mainland No. 1-seed St. Thomas More, meanwhile, hosts No. 8 Richmond at 7:30 p.m.
The Knights head into this weekend off a pair of exhibition wins, besting 4-A’s No. 7-ranked Killarney 79-58, and 3-A ranked No. 4 Steveston-London 74-55.
Burnaby South has a difficult test in its opening 4-A playoff match tonight (Wednesday), up against No. 5 St. George's at 7:30 p.m. at South. The Rebels started the Lower Mainlands as the No. 4 seed.
Also competing for a possible B.C. berth are No. 8 seed Burnaby North, who edged past David Thompson in Tuesday’s opener 85-82.
Clutch three-pointers in the fourth quarter from Sungwoo Pai and Robert Green went a long way in the win, as the Vikings rallied on more than two occasions in a catch-and-chase battle.
Delivering a stand-out performance with a double-double was Zach Hou, nailing 24 points, 12 rebounds, six assists, two blocks and four steals. Big contributions also came from Nic Liu, who came off the bench in the first half as Burnaby North rallied to tie it at halftime, and Justen Chau. The Vikings moved on to play No. 1 seed Kitsilano on Wednesday.
The district's other two entries didn't fare as well on opening day: Burnaby Mountain fell 74-47 to Winston Churchill, while Moscrop suffered a 104-42 setback to No. 5 St. George's.
To stay in the hunt forIn must-win games for a 4-A provincial spot, Moscrop will play the loser of Killarney and New Westminster, 4 p.m. at Kitsilano on Friday. Burnaby Mountain is also in a must-win situation on Friday, drawing the loser of Wednesday's match between Burnaby South and St. George's for a 7:40 p.m. game, also at Kitsilano.
