Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Score Card
Top teams take aim at Shootout Like the Golden Globe awards, the Centennial Top10 Shootout is a must-attend event for this year’s finest. The senior girls AAA basketball showcase tournament hits the twin gym floors in Coquitlam with the top nine teams from the most recent provincial poll. Also in attendance are a handful of highlyranked squads knocking on the door. When it comes to a preview of the AAA B.C.s, this is where the elite come to meet: REACH FOR THE TOP The Centennial Top-10 Shootout continues to attract the best programs from around B.C., in a mid-season AAA senior girls hoop showdown. This year’s edition is no different, beginning Thursday 9:30 a.m. in the blue gym when No. 2 Handsworth take on honourable mention Gleneagle, who are fresh off of winning the Archbishop Carney Classic last week. Game 2 on opening day, 10 a.m. in the red gym, has a battle of two teams tied at No. 8 in the rankings — Port Coquitlam’s Riverside against Kelowna. The tourney has 16 teams in all, with games starting right until 7 p.m. The second round starts 10 a.m. on Friday, with the semifinals slated for 6 and 7:45 p.m. The championship goes Saturday at 4:30 p.m. at Centennial Secondary. FULL STEAM AHEAD Regrouping after last week’s trade deadline deals, the Coquitlam Express get back to business with three B.C. Hockey League games — including two at the Poirier Sports Centre. On Friday, Coquitlam hosts rival Langley in a battle for the final playoff spot, starting at 7 p.m. After a trip to Merritt, Coquitlam returns to face Interior leading Penticton, who feature ex-Express sniper John Siemer, Sunday, 2 p.m.
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OT winner boosts Express confidence
It’s not often the Coquitlam Express get to lead off a segment on The Sports Network. On Friday night, they did just that — and they can thank forward Adam Rockwood for that. Rockwood’s dipsy-doodle penalty shot goal on Friday — that lifted the Express past the visiting Merritt Centennials 5-4 in 1:48 of double-overtime — gave the snakebitten squad a respite from recent bad news and tough breaks. It also got them on the national TV sports show’s highlight reel. The win also marked the start of a new era, or at
least the last leg of the 2012-13 season following the team’s trading of scoring leaders John Siemer, Philip Zielonka and captain Mitch Nardi last Thursday. Coquitlam finished the weekend with a tough 7-2 loss to the Prince George Spruce Kings on Saturday. The twin contests mirrored some of the club’s regular shortcomings this season — against Merritt, the Express struggled through a slow start and generated just 19 shots over 66 minutes. Against Prince George, the home team put up 37 shots, outshooting the Kings, but were bombarded in the second period
of a game they dressed just nine forwards in. But the spirited comeback on Friday and a goal that went viral was something that gave the club hope for its playoff chase. “It was after a long shift and I was pretty exhausted,” recalled Rockwood of his double-overtime penalty shot winner. “All I was thinking of was what move, what to do… Once I narrowed it down I had it in my mind, it wasn’t like improvised or anything.
CONT. ON PAGE 21, see SQUAD BUCKS UP.
Reyes sparks Ravens past Talons for Beagle bronze Stories by Dan Olson sports@thenownews.com Extra time played a big role at the Terry Fox Legal Beagle Invitational senior boys basketball tournament last weekend. The title tilt required double-overtime before the White Rock Christian Academy Warriors prevailed 86-80 over the Walnut Grove Gators in Port Coquitlam. The two heavyweights, who were ranked No. 3 (Walnut Grove) and No. 4 (WRCA) heading into the weekend, provided tremendous entertainment and a lot of intensity over the two-plus hours of action. It was extra practice time and some sharper defensive skills that propelled the Terry Fox Ravens over district rival the Gleneagle Talons 68-64 in the third place matchup earlier Saturday. Thanks to some fine sharpshooting from Grade 10 guard Jomari Reyes, the Ravens erased a 14-point deficit beginning late in the second quarter to collect the momentum heading into a busy week of league play. “We were thinking we had to shoot better, we just wanted to win third and finish the tournament on a strong note,” remarked Reyes, who tallied 16 points in the third quarter alone to lead the rally. “We weren’t playing well in the first quarter, so we just had to work harder.” Reyes ended up with 25 points, cashing in six treys while being a source of energy from his point guard position. Chipping in with 10 points and a strong game on the boards was Trevor Casey. Reyes’ shooting has benefitted from the support of his father, who accompanies the teen to school three times a week for 6 a.m. gym time, and the lessons learned from basketball dean Rich Chambers
in three times a week evening classes. He was named to the tourney’s first all-star team. “[Reyes] was totally hot, he definitely deserved his all-star honour,” noted Casey. There’s much momentum to be gained at a high-calibre competition like the Legal Beagle, which featured three of the top four teams and five of the Top 10 in attendance. That two of them were usurped in the opening round kind of set the stage for final day fireworks. Unranked Fox bumped off No. 9 Sardis 63-47, while Gleneagle shocked No. 1 and previously undefeated Kitsilano 72-67. As he did most of the tourney, Denver Sparks-Guest topped Gleneagle shooters, earning a position on the second all-star squad. Although it didn’t set the table for better things, Talons coach Tony Scott said it was an effort that the club needs to replicate against other teams. “We were solid, we just never gave up against Kits,” said Scott, who coaches the only senior boys team this year to beat both Kits and Yale, the top two squads who’ve traded places during the first half of the season. “We’re young and these guys are full of confidence when they play the No. 1 [team]. The thing is to get them to think they can play that way against other teams.” It would also help to have a full lineup. Following Thursday’s win over Kits, Scott was without two of his starters due to disciplinary suspensions. He anticipates that both should be back this week. Terry Fox, meanwhile, also hopes to convert the serious lessons learned at the Beagle into victories in the North League regular season. Head coach Steve Hanson thought a couple of slow starts reflected his roster’s relative youth
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Terry Fox’s Jomari Reyes, shown in a league game last month, tallied 25 points Saturday to lead his squad past Gleneagle 68-64 at Fox’s Legal Beagle Invitational. — but was pleased to see them shake it off against both Sardis and Gleneagle.
“We had a horrible start and were down 21-10,” recalled Hanson. “For me, the key was
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