Gators win battle of the boards
Lakeshore out-rebounds Churchill by wide margin to advance to Trib tourney B final
The Lakeshore Catholic Gators clinched a berth in the consolation championship at the Tribune Boys Basketball Tournament by hitting the shots they needed to make.
And, just as important, by denying the Sir Churchill Bulldogs second and third chances to make their shots.
Lakeshore came back from a 14-6 deficit for a 63-58 victory in semifinal-round action Friday at Notre Dame by out-rebounding the Bulldogs by a wide margin.
“We had a bit of a height advantage, which we used to our advantage, and that helped, and our speed was important, too,” Lakeshore head coach Todd Shoalts said.
“Speed and lots of baskets off of fast breaks, and that’s what it did.”
The Gators, who had defeated Churchill by 25 points at a tournament in Port Colborne, hung on for the win after leading by as many as 15 points midway into the fourth quarter.
“We kind of held on there at the end, we were a little bit sloppy, but I’m just super proud of our guys,” the coach said. “We’re playing tomorrow (Saturday) in the consolation final, and that was our goal.”
Shoalts was a little concerned the Gators would take rematch lightly given the margin of victory in the first meeting between the non-conference senior high school opponents.
“That’s something you always have to be aware of,” he said. “Churchill, to give them credit, played a lot better today than they did at the tournament in Port Colborne.
Shoalts called a timeout early in the opening quarter after Lakeshore trailed by eight points.
“I said, ‘You guys can play better, I know you can play better,’” he said. “‘You’ve got to get back in the game, two points at a time, get some stops on D.”
Thomas Cryer, selected as Lakeshore’s player of the game leading all scorers with 21 points, said the scales began tipping in the Gators’ favour after they started playing more aggressive on defence and pushing the ball down the floor midway into the first quarter.
He said capturing a Tribune
Tournament championship, albeit on the consolation side of the bracket, would be good for the boys basketball program at the Port Colborne high school.
The Gators’ last appearance in the B final at the Trib tourney was in 2015, a 57-47 loss to Thorold High. Their last consolation championship was in 2010 when they defeated E.L. Crossley 49-42.
“I think the biggest part of the game is they were a little more physical, a little more aggressive, outrebounded us,” head coach Gregg Loucks said. “They won the little battles.
Despite the loss, Loucks was pleased with the Bulldogs’ improvement since their first game against the Gators.
“I was really pleased with just kind of hanging around them,” he said. “I was really happy.”
After averaging less than 35 points per game, the Bulldogs topped the 50 mark for the second time in as many games.
“Some stuff in the key, in the paint, would be great, we can beat that team if we play a little better,” said Loucks, whose team defeated Jean Vanier in the quarter-final round Thursday.
Connor Johnston, one of Churchill’s key contributors, left the game in the second quarter after injuring his ankle.
Allan Pambianco, with 12 points; Sam Beifuss, nine; Aiden Plante, seven; Chase Beauregard, five; Travis Hill, two; rounded out the scoring for the Gators. Putting up points on the board for the Bulldogs were Nate Butler, 15; Oreoluwa Fowler, 13; Noah Garnace, 12; Nick Beaudoin, eight; Brendan Barker, five.
Lakeshore will play the winner of the consolation semifinal between the Greater Fort Erie Gryphons and Grimsby Eagles in a B final tipping off 5:30 p.m. Saturday at Notre Dame in Welland.
The championship game at 7 p.m. pits the winner of the E.L. Crossley Cyclone-Notre Dame Fighting Irish semifinal against the victor of a matchup between the defending champion Welland Centennial Cougars and Governor Simcoe Redcoats.
A summary is posted online at stcatharinesstandard.ca, niagarafallsreview.ca, wellandtribune.ca.