McMath Wildcats came ever-so-close to a perfect season — capping an outstanding campaign with a third place finish at the B.C. Junior Girls Basketball Championships in Langley.
The Wildcats closed out the 16-team tournament with a decisive 58-27 win over the Yale Lions Saturday as they outscored the Abbotsford school 22-11 in the final half.
The result came after a heartbreaking 62-57 semi-final overtime loss to the Riverside Rapids one night earlier. The tournament's top seed enjoyed a four point lead with just 10 seconds remaining when the Rapids found a way to tie the game. The Port Coquitlam school outscored the locals 6-1 in the three-minute overtime period. The tightly-contested affair saw McMath enjoy a 25-23 halftime advantage and Riverside take a 40-38 lead into the final quarter The Rapids went on to defeat South Kamloops Saturday afternoon to win the championship.
McMath had cruised through to the final four, opening the tournament with a 73-7 romp of Charles Hayes before breezing past Lord Tweedsmuir 48-31 in the quarter-finals.
The Wildcats finished the season with a 37-1 record. Jessica Jones and Jessica Zawada were named first team tournament all-stars. The girls now move onto the senior level where they are expected to be a major force for the next two years.
At the buzzer….
Richmond’s two entries finished tied for ninth at the B.C Junior Boys Basketball Championships.
The McMath Wildcats opened the tournament with a 49-36 loss to Fleetwood Park, then rebounded with wins over Duchess Park (54-51), Vancouver College (39-36) and Cowichan (44-33).
The RC Palmer Griffins opened with a 70-51 triumph over Yale before dropping a 50-49 quarter-final heartbreaker to the Terry Fox Ravens. The Richmond champions dumped Tweesmuir 51-39 then closed out the tournament with a 54-46 win over Oak Bay. Forward Marko Stojanovic was named a second team tournament all-star.
