Semiahmoo's Grade 12 forward Faith Dut (centre) helped her Totems past Walnut Grove in the Gators Classic final, then later joined teammate Deja Lee on the all-star team. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca 2018. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Girls Basketball

01.09.18 B.C. girls hoop ranks: No. 1 Semi tops No. 2 Walnut Grove in Gators tourney final; Aquinas is AA’s new No. 1

LANGLEY — It was a No. 1 vs. No. 2 showdown at the highest tier of B.C. senior girls basketball this past weekend, and in the end, the rankings held true.

Riverside Secondary's Tessa Burton models the Rapids' all-pink jersey which the team will wear Tuesday through Friday at its 15th annual A Tournament For Emily cancer awareness fund-raiser and basketball tournament at the Port Coquitlam school. (Photo courtesy Riverside Athletics)
Feature High School Girls Basketball

Riverside girls to wear all-pink jerseys at A Tournament For Emily! Says Rapids’ Tessa Burton: “…I think it makes a big statement”

PORT COQUITLAM — For Tessa Burton, there was nothing ordinary about getting a chance to don her basketball team’s newest game-day jersey and shorts.

Walnut Grove's Tavia Rowell, picked tourney MVP, dished the rock like never before Saturday night in helping her Gators win the 2018 girls Tsumura Basketball Invitational at the Langley Events Centre. (Photo by Wilson Wong property of UBC Athletics 2018. All Rights Reserved)
Kelowna's Nicole Torozan (left) is guarded by Riverside's Jessica Parker during TBI semifinals Saturday at the Langley Events Centre. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca 2018. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Girls Basketball

TBI 2018: Defending tourney champ Walnut Grove to face Riverside in Saturday’s 8 p.m. title final at the LEC

The semifinal portion of championship Saturday here at the Langley Events Centre is over. The Riverside Rapids of Port Coquitlam will face Langley’s Walnut Grove Gators in tonight’s 8 p.m. Tsumura Basketball Invitational 2018 title game.

Few anywhere play the game with the same outward joy of Walnut Grove senior Tavia Rowell (centre), pictured as she explodes to the hoop off the dribble against Langley Christian's Makenna Gardner (left) and Hailey Van Roekel. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca 2018. All Rights Reserved) (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca 2018. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Girls Basketball

TBI 2018: Now Final Four-bound, Walnut Grove senior star Tavia Rowell says her Gators play every game “…like it’s our last game”

LANGLEY — Point out a box on her team’s list still to receive a check mark and Walnut Grove’s star senior guard Tavia Rowell takes no offence.Instead, following an 86-59 win over the Langley Christian Lightning on Friday in the quarterfinals of the 2018 Tsumura Basketball Invitational, Rowell noted that the process her team is […]

Lord Tweedsmuir's Alex Le hit eight treys and scored a game-high 33-points in a win at home over the Terry Fox Ravens on Tuesday in Surrey. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca 2018. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Boys Basketball

So who is B.C.’s No. 1-ranked Quad-A team? Tweedy rebounds from loss to Gators with huge win Tuesday over Terry Fox

SURREY — Who is the No. 1 team going to be this week in B.C. senior boys Quad A basketball?“Ah, good luck with that!” Lord Tweedsmuir head coach Drew Gallacher said after a rollercoaster five-day ride for his team ended with an impressive 104-97 victory Tuesday over the visiting Terry Fox Ravens as part of […]

Kelowna's Jaeli Ibbetson (centre) and Kennedy Dickie (left) move to the front of the Owls' leadership group following the graduation of Taya Hanson. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca 2018. All Rights Reserved)
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Encore, encore 2019: With Kennedy and Jaeli ready to run, Kelowna Owls set to begin defence of 2018’s B.C. title triumph

If Kennedy Dickie and Jaeli Ibbetson are to lead their Kelowna Owls in a quest to repeat as B.C. senior girls AAA basketball champions, then that run to the title is going to have a lot to do with how much the talented senior forwards are actually willing to run.

Kelowna's Taya Hanson (left) has graduated but the Owls will still have a tremendous rivalry this season with Tavia Rowell and the rest of the Walnut Grove Gators. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca 2018. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Girls Basketball

Senior girls preseason basketball rankings: Defending champion Kelowna Owls, South Kam Titans retain top spots heading into 2018-19

Pollsters were given the option of revamping preseason B.C. senior girls high school basketball rankings from those published following the 2017-18 chapionships last March. Here are the latest preseason Triple-A and Double-A rankings courtesy of the B.C. Secondary Schools Girls Basketball Association.

The 2018-19 Kelowna Owls, including Jaeli Ibbetson (left) and Kennedy Dickie will help headline the 2018 Tsumura Basketball Invitational this December at the LEC. It will be the Owls' first trip back since they won it all last March. (Photo by Garrett James property of Langley Events Centre)
Feature High School Girls Basketball

Tsumura Basketball Invitational: Our 2018 girls tournament brings the best of B.C.’s present and future talent to the LEC

LANGLEY — Gold, silver, bronze and the future beyond? That’s the theme moving forward as the countdown begins for the senior girls 2018 Tsumura Basketball Invitational, set to tip-off a three-day engagement Dec. 13-15 at the Langley Events Centre.

It became their good luck charm earlier in the season, and this past March, the Walnut Grove Gators girls hoisted it high after winning the B.C. junior varsity title at the Langley Events Centre. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca)