Richmond’s up-and-coming basketball talent made a big statement at the Vancouver and District Bantam Championships — earning four of the six podium finishes.
The Steveston-London Sharks and McMath Wildcats picked up right where they off two weeks earlier in the girls city playoffs — squaring off in the V&D title game. The Sharks continued their outstanding season with a 49-25 victory and solidified themselves as one of the favourites at the upcoming Grade 8 Invitational Provincial Championships in Pitt Meadows.
The Wildcats will be joining them thanks to their big 35-34 overtime win over North Shore champion Argyle in the semi-finals.
Steveston-London dominated its opponents en route to the final, rolling past Burnaby South 55-25, after opening with a 62-15 triumph over Collingwood. The Wildcats defeated Burnaby Central 38-31 in their opener.
The teams’ success reflects the work being done by the Richmond Youth Basketball League (RYBL) with 18 of the 28 combined players having come through the program. The vast majority played at the rep level the past two seasons.
The Sharks’ biggest competition at the B.C. tourney is expected to come from the Semiahmoo Totems. The South Surrey school plays for the Fraser Valley championship on Monday night and last month aged up to finish second at junior girls tournament in Penticton that featured a number of ranked teams.
The McRoberts Strikers also advanced to the V&D main draw after a 28-21 wild card win over Burnaby Mountain. The Richmond League third place finisher then dropped a 40-13 decision to Argyle.
It was a historic week for the MacNeill Ravens at the V&D Bantam Boys Championships. They secured their first-ever provincial tourney berth by reaching the title game before falling to Burnaby South on Friday.
The Ravens advanced to the final with a big 61-50 victory over North Shore champion St. Thomas Aquanis. They also cruised to a 68-28 win against Alpha in their opener.
The McMath Wildcats also locked up a spot at the provincials thanks to their 55-41 win over STA in the third place game. The Richmond champs began play with a 62-41 win against West Vancouver, before dropping a 60-47 decision to Burnaby South.
The Steveston-London Sharks narrowly missed out on a semi-final berth, falling 52-49 to STA. The Sharks advanced to the main draw with a 51-45 wild card win against Burnaby Mountain.
The boys and girls Grade 8 Provincials take place in Pitt Meadows, March 2-4.
Meanwhile, the McMath Wildcats will be headed to GP Vanier Secondary in Comox for the Grade 9 Boys Invitational Provincials after finishing second at the V&D Championships.
The Wildcats were edged 39-35 by Burnaby South in Friday’s title game. They had earlier defeated North Shore champion Carson Graham (57-48) and New West (68-58) to reach the final.
A terrific season continued for the RC Palmer Griffins as they reached the third place game at the Juvenile Girls V&D Championships before dropping a 42-24 loss to Argyle. The Richmond champs had advanced to the semis after edging New West 31-28, then lost to STA. They will be joined by McMath at this week’s Grade 9 Provincial Invitational Championships at Britannia.
At the Lower Mainland Zone Junior Girls Championships, the McMath Wildcats earned a provincial berth with a fourth place finish.
The Wildcats pulled off a wild 51-49 triple overtime win over Little Flower Academy Saturday morning to advance to the third place game hours later where they dropped a 39-33 decision to Seycove.
The fifth seeded Richmond champions opened with a 42-35 victory against Crofton House, before falling 51-39 to Crofton House in the quarter-finals. The girls then defeated St. Thomas More 34-22. The Junior Provincials take place March 1-4 at the Langley Events Centre.
The Hugh Boyd Trojans saw their season end with a heartbreaking 44-33 decision in overtime to Lord Byng. The No. 11 seed began the tournament with a 50-43 upset of No. 6 Killarney, then lost 48-38 to LFA.
At the V&D Junior Boys Championships, all three Richmond teams lost in the opening round, including a couple of heartbreakers.
The host Richmond Colts fell 52-48 to Argyle, while the Cambie Crusaders dropped a 52-28 decision to Argyle.
Steveston-London came out on the short end of a 46-31 result to eventual champion West Vancouver as North Shore schools dominated the tourney.
