Former coach back on Huskies bench
Man who led senior teams to B.C. titles helps out junior squad
Bill Edwards would gladly fly under the radar. It’s hard to do sometimes, considering his hoop history.
Edwards, one of the most successful coaches in B.C. high school history, has been coaxed out of retirement to handle an assistant’s role with the North Delta Huskies junior boys team.
Edwards started coaching in 1973 and guided the senior boys Huskies to a provincial title in 1975. He’s probably best known for leading a 1990 Huskies team that featured future NFL punter Mitch Berger to another B.C. senior boys title in 1990. He was named to the Delta Sports Hall of Fame in 2007.
These junior Huskies have been the top-ranked team in B.C. at their level for a chunk of the season. They lost 53-52 to R.E. Mountain in the Fraser Valley quarter-finals last week and finished fifth in the tournament. They’re the No. 11 seed for the junior boys provincials, which start Saturday at the Langley Events Centre.
Lord Tweedsmuir is No. 1, thanks to their win at the Fraser Valleys, behind tournament MVP Arjun Samra and first all-star Elijah Devison. They beat R.E. Mountain 73-34 in the final.
“Part of the enjoyment for me is that the game has changed so much in those 10 years,” said Edwards, who lists his last season coaching as 2006-07. “I have had a lot of things to learn and much adaptation to this new style of basketball. I like to think that one of the things I have been able to offer is where some of the old-school thinking can still be applied.
“I am very proud of these kids and how hard they work. I think our team has a real identity and these kids are only going to get stronger as they move into their senior years.”
Edwards finished up his teaching and head-coaching career at Sands Secondary and said, “there were a group of young teachers there who were very energetic and it was a positive influence on the enjoyment I got from doing my job over the final years.”
One of those young teachers was Jesse Hundal, who moved to North Delta and helps run the junior program. Hundal had turned to Edwards for advice in the past. When Hundal asked about a larger commitment this season, Edwards felt the timing fit.
“We asked Bill to come on board because he was one of the first to build basketball at North Delta, but also his knowledge of the game and his ability to connect and bring the best out of his players is second to none,” said Hundal, who shares the coaching duties with Gary Sandhu and Manvir Gahir, as well as Edwards.
As for similarities between Berger’s team and this junior Huskies team, Edwards says they’re there.
“I don’t think things have changed that much in terms of their attitudes,” he said. “If they weren’t nice kids 30 years ago they weren’t gonna play for us. These kids couldn’t be any nicer. They are just as dedicated, very committed to getting better and are very supportive of each other. Both Mitch’s team and this team really enjoy playing together ... there was then and is now a definite bond between all 12 players.”