Knights give fans 100 reasons to smile
Niagara men enter break averaging 100 points per game
Officially, they’re the Niagara Knights, and have been since the region’s community college opened its doors in 1967.
Nowadays, another nickname, much more fitting with the times, jumps to mind: Centurions.
Eleven games into the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) regular season, the Centurions, er, Knights are averaging 100 points per game.
They have topped the century mark seven times so far this season on their way to an 8-3 record, second to only the Humber Hawks, 9-0; in the West Division.
Given the Knights have had six 100-point games in the past six seasons combined, that’s an impressive feat.
Head coach Phil Mosley said Niagara has shown it belongs among the upper tier of teams in a “very competitive” division.
“We are progressing well, and have had some big victories, but we are continuing to focus on our consistent play and maintaining a high level in all games,” the first-year coach said.
Van Hutchison Jr., the team’s leader and top scorer, is having a record year. The fourth-year guard’s 24.5 points per game are third in the province, and only Redeemer’s Spencer Kerssies is averaging more rebounds than Hutchinson, 12.4 to 11.3.
Keveshan Padachey, Livingston Bromwell have given Niagara “some nice surprises” on offence.
“Both these young men have earned extra playing minutes through their hard work and solid game play,” Mosley said of Padachey and Bromwell who enter the between-semesters break averaging 12.5 and 10.9 points, respectively.
Welland Centennial graduate Alex Elliott, 12.2; Jordon McDonald, 10.9; are also averaging double digits in scoring for the Knights.
“We are hoping to have the nucleus of this group back for the second half of the season and look to build on a solid start,” Mosley said.
Niagara topped the visiting Sheridan Bruins 110-95 to enter
the break on a winning note.
Elliott, 28 points; Hutchinson, 26; Padachey, 15; McDonald, 12; Johnnie Richardson, 10; were key contributors for the Knights on offence. McDonald had a team-high 11 rebounds.
Niagara plays the Loyalist Lancers Jan. 2 and Conestoga Condors Jan. 3 in a mini-tournament at the Athletic Centre in Welland before resuming league play Friday, Jan. 11, at the Redeemer Royals.
Like the men’s team, the Niagara women will work off holiday rust and continue preparing for the final half of the season by playing Loyalist and Conestoga at home.
Unlike their male counterparts, head coach Mike Beccaria’s team enter the break 5-6 following a 57-52 loss to Sheridan.
“It’s been a difficult first semester in that we’ve been, and still are, dealing with injuries to key players, both upper and lower body,” Beccaria said.
The Knights, the coach said, are work in progress.
“We knew going in that this team was an open book, and as we always do set our goals around where we’d like to be at the end of the year then trying to figure out how we could get there,” he added.
While Niagara has defended well — “Arguably, as well as any team in the past years,” Beccaria suggested — better rebounding is needed, at both ends of the court.
“At times this year we’ve struggled trying to put the ball in the basket, and that’s probably the biggest area of concern,” the sixth-year coach said. “The only thing to do there is for the players to get in the gym and shoot the ball as much as they can.
“The athleticism is certainly there, so it’s a matter of accepting the fact that they all need to step up and score more so than in years past.”
Three Knights scored in double digits against Sheridan: Alannah Yates, 14; Bridget Atkinson, Welland Centennial, 13 points, 12 rebounds; Hannah Baker, Thorold, 10.
Atkinson, 15.7; Baker, 11.6; Tia Stys, Holy Cross, 9.1; Yates, 8.2; are Niagara’s scoring leaders at the break