CAIS National Basketball Tournament Recap
The Blues travelled to Ridley College for the annual CAIS Basketball tournament.
The Upper Canada College Blues Varsity Basketball team opened up their season at the CAIS tournament hosted by Ridley in St. Catharines. After graduating a number of seniors from last year’s OFSAA team this tournament was a good opportunity for new and returning players to find their legs against competition from across the nation. The Blues were seeded third in the tournament and were matched up against teams from King’s Edgehill School and Trinity College School.
In their opening game the Blues faced off against King’s Edgehill and got off to a strong start defeating their opponents 67-18. UCC looked to build on the momentum from their first game when they played against TCS in game two of the tournament. The Blues again got off to a strong start taking an early lead in the first half, however, a number of UCC turnovers allowed TCS to close the gap to within five points in the third quarter. A strong fourth quarter helped the Blues to a 41-32 victory and into the top tier for the re-seeding playoffs. After the re-seed the Blues were placed in a pool against Selwyn House and the host, Ridley College.
The Blues opened the day against Selwyn House. The boys in blue had a tough day shooting the ball, converting only 26% of their shots for points. Despite their struggles from the field, UCC fought hard and pulled to within three points in the closing minutes of the game. In the final minutes of the game Selwyn was able to knock down some timely shots and pull ahead for good, winning the game 55-46 to drop the Blues to 2-1 in the tournament, facing a must win against host Ridley. In their afternoon matchup UCC faced off against the top-seeded Ridley College. With their backs against the wall the boys came out firing, playing tough defence and making contested shots. The Blues kept the game close throughout the first half and heading into the break they were down by two. Ridley went on a quick run early in the third quarter to extend their lead to six, but the Blues would not be denied on this day. With 20 seconds remaining on the clock and down by two the Blues walked the ball up the court. UCC had an open look to tie the game but missed, however, they scrambled to recover the offensive rebound and had one more look with seconds remaining. With two seconds left the Blues hit a three-point-shot to take the lead. At the other end their defense stole the ball on an inbound attempt by Ridley and held on with the 47-46 victory. After the second-round robin the Blues were tied with Ridley and Selwyn with a record of 1-1. Because of the tie-breaking procedure the Blues were unable to move onto the final playoffs and had to settle for a relegation match against Hillfield-Strathallan.
In this exhibition matchup the Blues come up against some excellent shooting from their opponents from Hamilton. Hillfield made 10 of 15 three-points attempts during the game, despite this good shooting the Blues had an 11-point lead in the third quarter. Hillfield continued their hot shooting in the fourth quarter and pulled away late in the game to come away with a 62-55 victory. The Blues finished their opening tournament with a 3-2 record. A good start with a lot of positives to take away from the weekend.
The Blues will next play an exhibition game on the road on November 30th.
Back
In their opening game the Blues faced off against King’s Edgehill and got off to a strong start defeating their opponents 67-18. UCC looked to build on the momentum from their first game when they played against TCS in game two of the tournament. The Blues again got off to a strong start taking an early lead in the first half, however, a number of UCC turnovers allowed TCS to close the gap to within five points in the third quarter. A strong fourth quarter helped the Blues to a 41-32 victory and into the top tier for the re-seeding playoffs. After the re-seed the Blues were placed in a pool against Selwyn House and the host, Ridley College.
The Blues opened the day against Selwyn House. The boys in blue had a tough day shooting the ball, converting only 26% of their shots for points. Despite their struggles from the field, UCC fought hard and pulled to within three points in the closing minutes of the game. In the final minutes of the game Selwyn was able to knock down some timely shots and pull ahead for good, winning the game 55-46 to drop the Blues to 2-1 in the tournament, facing a must win against host Ridley. In their afternoon matchup UCC faced off against the top-seeded Ridley College. With their backs against the wall the boys came out firing, playing tough defence and making contested shots. The Blues kept the game close throughout the first half and heading into the break they were down by two. Ridley went on a quick run early in the third quarter to extend their lead to six, but the Blues would not be denied on this day. With 20 seconds remaining on the clock and down by two the Blues walked the ball up the court. UCC had an open look to tie the game but missed, however, they scrambled to recover the offensive rebound and had one more look with seconds remaining. With two seconds left the Blues hit a three-point-shot to take the lead. At the other end their defense stole the ball on an inbound attempt by Ridley and held on with the 47-46 victory. After the second-round robin the Blues were tied with Ridley and Selwyn with a record of 1-1. Because of the tie-breaking procedure the Blues were unable to move onto the final playoffs and had to settle for a relegation match against Hillfield-Strathallan.
In this exhibition matchup the Blues come up against some excellent shooting from their opponents from Hamilton. Hillfield made 10 of 15 three-points attempts during the game, despite this good shooting the Blues had an 11-point lead in the third quarter. Hillfield continued their hot shooting in the fourth quarter and pulled away late in the game to come away with a 62-55 victory. The Blues finished their opening tournament with a 3-2 record. A good start with a lot of positives to take away from the weekend.
The Blues will next play an exhibition game on the road on November 30th.
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