Big week for oak bay, my top 8 is shakin’
Another exciting week in Vancouver Island Jr Basketball has led to some movement in the rankings and see's some new schools enter the top 8. This blog will always take into account both league games and tournament; and as always at the end of the day it will probably be completely wrong! Who knows! Read on to find out.
Oak Bay wins Edward Milne classic, squares the season with Lambrick 1-1
As some schools sat idle this weekend; Oak Bay, Lambrick, Stellys and others went south to compete at the Edward Milne classic. Hosted by the wonderful Trevor Bligh and Graham Duffield, it was a hotly contested Island tournament. The big game dropped in the Semi-Final, where Oak Bay and Lambrick met off the back of a 53-46 win for Lambrick on the opening South League game of the season November 26th. Oak Bay took its revenge winning the game by 4 and setting up a final they won against Stellys and of course I would be amidst to let this knowledge not affect my top 8 below. Oak Bay also beat Claremont 56-49 last Wednesday and very much is early proof I have no idea what I am talking about.
SMU also spent the weekend upping its credit with some good weekend wins backing up a strong win over Spectrum in the league mid-week. Dover Bay took the challenge of heading to the mainland and played some very strong teams in Holy Cross and Brentwood. These battles are only going to make them stronger and better moving forward and we will see them back in action at their tournament this weekend.
Up north, Isfeld took the weekend off after a comfortable win mid-week against Vanier; bringing their scoring touch to the court, while Highland and ADSS played a back and forth game that ADSS ended up winning by 6. Vanier then took their team down south to Edward Milne losing their first game but closing the tournament well wining their consolation brackets with wins over Reynolds and Royal Bay.
So where does this leave us?? WEEK 2 Rankings:
Brentwood 2. Oak Bay 3. Claremont 4. Lambrick 5. Isfeld 6. Cowichan 7. Belmont 8. SMU
Let the debate continue! Brentwood stays number 1 for me until proven otherwise. Oak Bay winning the Edward Milne tournament and also against Claremont moves them up to 2. Of course selfishly I hope Isfeld beats them in the opening round of the Dover Bay Xmas tournament this Friday to move Isfeld into the top 4 but we will see what happens!
SMU moves into the top 8 with some good wins this week. They are also very well coached; and will only get stronger and more structured as the season goes on. Claremont drops down after their close league loss but remain a dangerous program with a high level of individual talent that can turn a game on a Dime. Did someone say Dime? What a great club!
Anyway below is the top of the South right now and I am working to get this made for the Mid-Island and North … I will probably have to make myself… stay tuned as I will get it by next week!
Remember this blog is for good vibes only, I will only show teams that are shining or relevant wins-losses. This issue not about showing full tables.
North: Table as of Monday 8th November…
South and Mid: Starting week 3 I will have tables like this for North and Mid - as far as I know there is none and we all want one!
More GREAT players to watch!
BC and Oak Bay Guard Lucas Campbell - I have had the pleasure to coach this kid a lot in various BC programs and he was a stalwart in Oak Bays strong week. He brings a fast, aggressive mindset to the court and can give you a little bit of everything. He can get in the lane, finish strong on both sides; step outside and shoot; and can also really move the ball within the flow of an offence with his fantastic court vision. This led to him being named MVP of the tournament.
Quwustsun’s Spencer Ralfs - After Trivision showed some love with a great video of Spencer and Carson; it is no secret of the talent these 2 bring to the table. Today we highlight Spencer Ralfs… who constantly puts in the work and it is showing. After a strong season with Vikes Elite, he brings an energy and enthusiasm to the court. Can create off the dribble; catch and shoot with purpose and run the floor. He is definitely one to watch as we move forward and can cause Brentwood some problems; and will get to test his stuff against top Vancouver teams mid-week.
Luca Tukker - Senerchia - Vaniers ‘Victor Wembenyama’ brings a unique skill set to the court not seen much at the Junior level. Padding his stats with 3s and blocks this player is hard to guard and can stretch the floor within Vaniers offence. With a high release he becomes hard to block and then provides great rim protection on the other end averaging over 2 blocks a game early on. A player with massive potential; will be interesting to see his growth this year.
What’s loading this week? From North to South; and a great tournament next weekend.
Next Weekends Tournament - Dover Bay Xmas Classic starts this Friday - and should be a GREAT tournament! Before all that however we have a host of exciting league games I want to talk about. As for the tournament itself we will get to see how Oak Bay, Dover Bay, Isfeld, and Cowichan stack up against each other; as well as Semiahmoo join us to represent the mainland. Excited for this tournament to probably prove my rankings wacky and wrong again!
NORTH: First and most exciting for me is another North Island Dime showdown - we have Vanier vs Highland on Wednesday. This game features two very different looking teams; Vanier (Luca aside) is a small, fast, well coached team that plays with pace and purpose; against a big strong Highland team who can rebound really well; be dominant in the paint and defend that paint with equal tenacity.
Campbell River teams Timberline square off against ADSS, and Carihi travel to Isfeld and scores will be reported in the updated table next week. Campbell River teams remain in a development stage but have some strong players that I will shout out down the line as they grow and improve.
SOUTH: Down south we have a great match-up between Claremont and Belmont. Belmont seems to have already been in a whole host of close games; from Isfelds come from behind victory to close wins against Reynolds and Royal Bay. This will be closely contested game worth going to watch!
MID: I need help to get more info on this.. I get lots of Dover Bay content but I would love to connect with NDSS and NCS people so I can keep these repots varied and interesting. Drop me a DM on coach_withthekicks moving forward. Cowichan head to the mainland to play Vancouver College and Tamanawis. More to follow.
Stay in touch; send me more info and by next week I am going to have a league table for North and Mid Island like we have for the South. As always; like, comment and share on my IG and let the good talk roll.
Stay tuned my Dimes,
Coach Martin @coach_withthekicks