A Saanich senior boys’ basketball team finished second in the province after a game-changing moment that could be ripped from the movies.
With the game tied and time winding down, Caleb Ezedebego, a Grade 11 guard from Kamloops, caught the ball, eyed up the situation and sank a three-pointer to put his team ahead for good. The Westsyde Whundas defeated Lambrick Park Lions 73-71 in the final of the 2A provincial championships Saturday afternoon at Langley Events Centre.
Lambrick’s Wyatt Bransema Stokes led all scorers in the game with 29 points, also adding seven rebounds and five steals. Ezedebego – who was named most valuable player – finished with 24 points and nine rebounds. Lions player Aidan Grew was named most outstanding defensive player. Brentwood College finished third in the tournament and was named most sportsmanlike team.
Lambrick won all three games heading into the finals. In an all-Vancouver Island semifinal, Lambrick defeated Brentwood College 85-72. The Lions previously beat Windsor 86-57 and trounced Southern Okanagan 102-43.
READ ALSO: Oak Bay junior boys finish fourth after double OT at provincials
Gryphons fly to second
In 1A boys competition, seeding proved accurate as those entering at No. 1 and 2 finished that way.
Down 21-13 after one quarter, the Unity Christian Flames exploded in the second quarter to shoot nearly 58 per cent and score 35 points to seize control in what became an 89-71 rout of Victoria’s Glenlyon Norfolk Gryphons on March 12 at Langley Events Centre.
To get to the final game, No. 2 seed Glenlyon Norfolk Gryphons went down to the wire against the third-seed Cedars Christian Eagles (Prince George) with a 91-89 victory.
Greater Victoria schools finish in top 10
In 4A action, local boys found themselves facing off for positions well off the podium Saturday evening.
The Oak Bay Bays downed Claremont 62-54 to finish ninth.
Both teams lost out of the gate, with Oak Bay dropping an 80-65 loss to Semiahmoo on March 9. The Bays came back to defeat North Peace 89-55 on Thursday then defeated Abbotsford 88-80.
Claremont dropped its first game to Burnaby South 94-62. The boys followed up with a pair of wins, 88-56 over Enver Creek and 85-64 over Terry Fox, before facing Oak Bay in the battle for ninth.
Junior girls finish 10th
The Oak Bay High junior girls finished 10th in the province losing 62-42 to Kelowna March 5.
Winning the first game out of the gate at the 40th annual junior girls provincial basketball championships, the Bays defeating Heritage Woods 49-38 on March 2. The Bays fell the same day in a narrow 41-38 loss to Yale. The team suffered a second loss, 32-24 to St. Thomas Aquinas, before downing Sir Alexander Mackenzie 44-25 to head into the game to determine ninth or 10th place.
Editors note: This story was updated to reflect the accurate score between Oak Bay and Abbotsford.
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