Any hope of Richmond being represented at a B.C. high school boys basketball championship tournament is now dangling by a thread.
The city could be on the outside looking in for the first time in recent memory as just two schools remain in the hunt at the Lower Mainland "AAA" Championships. The Steveston-London Sharks and Burnett Breakers were slated to meet yesterday in consolation play with the winner likely facing the Burnaby South Rebels in a do-or-die game this afternoon at Vancouver College.
The Sharks had opened the tournament with a 78-55 win over Eric Hamber, then fell 73-50 to the No. 3 ranked St. Georges Saints in the quarter-finals. The Breakers lost 95-78 to Charles Tupper in the first round, then stayed in contention with a 83-72 win over Hamber, setting the stage for yesterday's all-Richmond battle in consolation play.
Meanwhile, the RC Palmer Griffins saw their hopes of competing at the upcoming B.C. "AA" Tournament in Kamloops fall one win short.
The Richmond champions knew they were in tough at the Lower Mainland "AA" Tournament despite being the ninth ranked team in the province. Standing between them and a trip to the Interior was two schools ranked even higher, including the No. 3 St. Thomas More Knights.
Palmer cruised past the Alpha Aztecs 80-43 in the quarter-finals, setting the stage for its muchanticipated showdown with the Knights. Despite a tough start offensively, the Griffins trailed by just six points (28-22) at the half.
The Burnaby Catholic school came out firing in the third quarter and opened up a 16-point lead en route to a 64-41 victory.
"It was truly a painful game to watch as the offensive flow was non-existent," said Palmer head coach Paul Eberhardt. "We were simply too passive and didn't look to attack the way we normally do. You also have to give STM tremendous credit for their toughness and defensive intensity."
Not one Griffin managed to reach double digits with Tyler Debeer's nine points and 14 rebounds being the only offensive highlight.
The team's provincial dreams were not over but destiny was no longer in its hands. The Griffins needed to defeat St. Pat's in the third place game and hope STM would prevail over King George in a final featuring a pair of top five ranked teams. That would mean the locals would get a chance to play King George for the second B.C. berth up for grabs in the tournament.
Palmer took care of its part, rolling to a convincing 92-67 victory over the Pat's behind a 28 point and 11 rebound performance by Jamie Madewan. Karn Mann also had a big outing with 23 points and 14 boards, while Ben Sammy added 14 and Debeer 12. Point guard JP Javier dished out 10 assists.
All the Griffins could then do is sit back and watch their season end as King George prevailed over STM 67-55.
"The Lower Mainland is a very strong zone as STM, King George, and us have been ranked in the top 10 all season," noted Eberhardt.
"Unfortunately there are only two (B.C.) berths from our zone and it wouldn't surprise me to see both KG and STM make the final four."
As for the Griffins, they are still savouring winning their sixth consecutive city championship which was pulled off with a roster that featured just one player who saw significant playing time a year earlier when Palmer won the B.C. "AAA" title.
"It was a great accomplishment," added Eberhardt. "With our Grade 8 team winning the Richmond and V&D championship, our Grade 10 team coming in second place, as well all of the quality players we have returning next year, the future of Palmer basketball continues to be very exciting."
