Enriched by a basketball heritage which not only includes the game's inventor James Naismith, but also the likes of former SFU Clan star Jay Triano (left) and the late Handsworth Royals' icon Quinn Keast, high school basketball players in the province of B.C. have plenty of inspiration with which to work on their games despite the challenges brought on by COVID-19. (Photos property of Simon Fraser Athletics and Blair.photo (Blair Shier) 2020. All Rights Reserved. Photo graphic created by Gabriel Lynn)
Feature High School University

B.C. coaches say “…basketball is going back to being about you and a hoop” How to summon your inner-Naismith in a time of social distancing

NORTH DELTA — What defines a self-made athlete?As the 2019-20 B.C. high school basketball season was coming to an end last March, just days ahead of a province-wide COVID-19 shutdown, it was certainly not a topic I spent much time pondering.Yet some two months later, I can say with great confidence that it has emerged […]

Defensive lineman Kaishaun Carter (left) and receiver/return man Jason Soriano are two of B.C.'s blue-chip graduating Class of 2020 set to begin their university football careers next season with the UBC Thunderbirds. (Photos by Howard Tsumura, Varsity Letters, and Richard Lam, UBC athletics. All Rights Reserved. Photo graphic by Gabriel Lynn)
Feature High School Football University Football

A Sunday Read: UBC football coach Blake Nill says Jason Soriano, Kaishaun Carter “…the ones who can make you Coach of the Year”

VANCOUVER — UBC Thunderbirds football in the Blake Nill-era hit its low ebb in 2019, yet four seasons after its rousing, unexpected 2015 Vanier Cup national championship title debut, a second wind has begun to blow through the ranks of the blue and gold.

The St. Thomas More Knights just wanted to make the B.C. tournament. On Sunday, they added the first-ever Sea-to-Sky zone title to their cache and didn't hold back their joy. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca 2020. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Boys Basketball

Ok, so where did these Knights come from? Internal belief in face of mounting losses helped St. Thomas More earn a most unexpected BC AAA berth!

LANGLEY — If you had simply counted up the W’s and the L’s along the will-testing 3-10 stretch which Burnaby’s St. Thomas More Knights navigated over the first six weeks of 2020, you wouldn’t have believed your eyes this past Sunday afternoon at the Langley Events Centre.

North Delta's Sagar Ranouta (left) grimaces under the defensive watch of Duchess Park's Benjamin Dyck on Friday in the Chancellor Invitational semifinals. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca 2019. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Boys Basketball

Chancellor 2020: No lack of motivation for No. 2 Duchess Park! Condors top North Delta Huskies in first meeting since 2019 B.C. Final Four

BURNABY — You didn’t need Duchess Park head coach Jordan Yu to provide further details following his team’s semifinal clash Friday night here against the North Delta Huskies at St. Thomas More’s Chancellor 2020. Some games are pretty hard to forget.

Duchess Park's standout Grade 11 Caleb Lyons led his team to a win over Walnut Grove in the opening round of the 2019 Tsumura Basketball Invitational last month at the LEC. Lyons is back this week with the rest of the Triple-A No. 2-ranked Condors of Prince George for the 2020 STMC Chancellor Invitational. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca 2019. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Boys Basketball

STMC’s Chancellor 2020: With no talk of rankings allowed, PG’s No. 2-ranked Duchess Park Condors take a business trip to Burnaby

BURNABY — One week into the new year, and Jordan Yu is happy to report that the Duchess Park Condors have been resolute on their latest resolution.“We’ve stopped talking about rankings and championships,” Yu said Tuesday afternoon from Prince George, breaking the silence for a brief second to make an important point one day ahead […]

G.W. Graham senior forward Zach Klim leads the Triple A No. 1-ranked Grizzlies in both scoring and rebounding heading into the 2020 Chancellor Invitational beginning Wednesday at Burnaby's St. Thomas More Collegiate. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca 2019. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Boys Basketball

STMC’s Chancellor 2020: No. 1-ranked G.W. Graham Grizzlies arrive following blueprint of defending champion North Delta Huskies

CHILLIWACK — As the St. Thomas More Chancellor Invitational gets set to tip off Wednesday in Burnaby, B.C.’s No. 1-ranked Triple-A team is following what it hopes is a winning recipe.“We have the best losing record in the province,” joked G.W. Graham Grizzlies head coach Jake Mouritzen, whose Chilliwack-based school is actually sitting at 8-8 […]

Battling in the paint to score two of her eight points is Langley Christian's Kathryn New. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca 2019. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Girls Basketball

TBI 2019 Elite Eight: Lightning strikes in defensive battle! Double A No. 1 LCS tops STM, faces Triple-A No. 1 OKM in Friday night Final Four

LANGLEY — It wasn’t too long ago when the Langley Christian Lighting were competing in the province’s small school Single-A tier.Tonight (6:45 p.m.), the Lightning face Kelowna’s Okanagan Mission Huskies in the TBI 2019 semifinals, sitting a win away from a berth in Saturday’s championship final.Maintaining poise and patience, and ultimately finding ways to execute […]

Vancouver College star running back Daesaun Johnson (2, front) shakes hands with St Thomas More's Vincent Catania after rushing for three scores and helping lift the Fighting Irish into next week's Subway Bowl AAA final against Surrey's Lord Tweedsmuir Panthers. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca 2019. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Football

Subway Bowl 2019 AAA Final Four: Playing at another level, VC’s Fighting Irish look unstoppable in win over STM Knights

VANCOUVER — Vancouver College’s Daesaun Johnson rushed for three first-half touchdowns, and an Irish defence which has been near impenetrable the past two months simply lived up to form, seemingly impervious to the rising stakes and elevated atmosphere that come with the semifinal round of the Subway Bowl Triple-A playoffs.

St. Thomas More's Matthew Custodio (right) tries to gain separation from the Vancouver College defence in Saturday's 2019 B.C. Grade 8 football championship at B.C. Place Stadium. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca 2019. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Football

Subway Bowl Grade 8 final: Knights’ MVP Custodio carries STM to record 14th Quadra Cup title

VANCOUVER — The St. Thomas More Knights spent almost all of Saturday’s Subway Bowl Grade 8 championship final showing how consistently adept they were at breaking big scoring plays at the most opportune moments.Burnaby’s Knights had opened the contest by scoring its first three touchdowns from 51, 87 and 62 yards, and two of those […]

St. Thomas More quarterback Anthony De Lazzari (left) and running back Nick Osho rise above the B.C. Place turf on Saturday to celebrate a touchdown against the Mt. Douglas Rams. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca 2019. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Football

Subway Bowl 2019 AAA Final 8: St. Thomas More the picks of the litter, Knights feast on interceptions in win over Mt. Doug Rams

VANCOUVER — St. Thomas More are experts in the fine art of the interception, and it’s that gift for the theft which helped send Burnaby’s Knights into the Subway Bowl Triple A Final Four next weekend against the Vancouver College Fighting Irish.Trailing 21-7 at the half, the Knights parlayed a field goal and two second-half […]