The Blues travelled to Calgary and Stathcona Tweedsmuir School for the CAIS National U13 Basketball Tournament this week. The week started off well after a slightly delayed flight the team arrived in Okotoks and went off with their billet families before the first day of the tournament. Thursday morning the Blues started the tournament against a strong team from Southridge School but battled well earning a 4 pt victory over the storm to start the tournament on a winning note. Indie Feyer was player of the game owning the boards on both ends of the court.

The second game the team faced St. John's Ravenscourt from Winnipeg.  All twelve players played well as the Blues took an early lead and never looked back. Tate Atkins won player of the game in this one hitting three threes in a row to really pull the team ahead for good.

In the third game, the Blues faced the host school Strathcona Tweedsmuir and clearing outmatched them. The Blues played a classy game against their host billets moving the ball well of offense. The host school worked hard from start to finish but to no avail as the Blues stayed strong on defense allowing a stingy 12 points against.

On the second day the real fun began. The Blues started off against Ashbury College from Ottawa and took the game to the Colts from the start outscoring them by 27 to start the day on a high.

Next up were the Gladiators from The York School. The Blues knew this was for first place in their pool and was going to be a tough game. The Blues did not disappoint as they fought hard from start to finish dominating the boards and driving hard for much of their offense. The final was 42-30 for their  fifth straight victory. 

This victory meant that the Blues would face Sterling Hall in the first elimination game (1/4 finals). Again the Blues knew it would be a tough one but strong performances from everyone of the Blues allowed them the sixth straight victory and third of the day.

Due to a difficult 18 team draw though, this victory earned the Blues a fourth game in one day. The semifinals pitted the Blues against Selwyn House from Montreal. The Gryphons were a tough opponent for the Blues as they were the first team to be able to outrebound the Blues. The Blues clearly looked tired as they were the only team playing their fourth game in one day. They got down early but refused to give up. As they entered the second half they changed gears moving from a driving game to a quick passing and shooting game. Led by Ethan Sontrop's three's the Blues fought back to tie it up late early in the fourth. Unfortunately, the Blues couldn't push ahead losing their berth in the final by just six points.

On the Saturday, the Blues played in the bronze medal game against a familiar foe in Crescent School. While the Blues fell behind in the first quarter, the game was never really in doubt as they came storming back to take bronze by twelve points.

Congratulations to Jordan Ali Khan the Blues Trickett award winner.