LANGLEY TOWNSHIP — Welcome to Day 2 of the 2026 B.C. senior boys Single-A basketball championship, coming to you from the Langley Events Centre.
Please check back here regularly as our team of writers provide first-hand game coverage from the eight sudden-elimination games being contested at this tier.
Thanks for your loyalty!
Howard Tsumura
BOYS
SINGLE-A (at Field House)
DAY 2
NO. 12 IMMACULATA 78 NO. 4 UCLUELET 68
By IAN FRENCH (Special for Varsity Letters)
LANGLEY — After pulling off an upset win on day one of the B.C. senior boys’ Single-A provincial championship, the 12th-seeded Immaculate Mustangs were faced with a similar task as they went up against the fourth-ranked Ucluelet Warriors in quarterfinal action. This year marks the Mustangs’ second trip to this tournament in the last decade, but they looked like they were a series regular when they entered the spotlight. Junior guard Mateo Rizzo held the reins for the Mustangs, leading his side to a 78-68 win through a second-half scoring outburst.
Senior Warriors forward Riley Gerbrandt posted a team-high 20 points, while sophomore guard Julien Sylvester was not far behind with 19 points of his own. For the Mustangs, Rizzo finished with 31 points, 15 of which came from beyond the arc, to lead all scorers on the day. Junior forward Ian Balaszy chipped in with 17 points, alongside countless rebounds and blocks to seal the victory.
“[Rizzo]’s a microwave”, mused Mustangs head coach Brett Boechler. “The guy can get hot at any time. He’s probably the best shooter I’ve ever coached. He’s a good leader, and he does it all.”
Defence was clearly a focus for both sides to start in this one, leading to a low-scoring opening five minutes. However, the Mustangs used this to their advantage as they put together an early 10-point lead by turning steals into transition points on the other end. Balaszy added to this run by knocking down a catch-and-shoot three on the wing before following with a layup in transition on the subsequent play, forcing a Warriors timeout. The chat with the team clearly paid off as, coming out of the huddle, the Warriors finished the quarter on an 8-2 run, which was capped off by a three-pointer by senior Warriors forward Clay Chiovitti to end the frame down, 19-10.
In the second, both sides upped the defensive intensity once more, resulting in turnover galore. Still, neither squad could turn defence into offence. Warriors’ Gerbrandt snapped the jump-shooting slump by knocking down a quick-shot three to bring the deficit down to double-digits. The paint-war began leaning in favour of the Mustangs as they routinely managed to fight through traffic for a handful of buckets to rebuild their sizable advantage. Yet as time dwindled in the half, the Warriors began to break through the Mustangs’ inside wall and slowly strung together a couple of paint scores, then finished off the half with a corner three from Gerbrandt, heading into the break trailing 37-28.
The Mustangs wasted no time coming out of the break as Rizzo kicked off the third with a no-hesitation corner three. A handful of defensive stops later, and sophomore centre Brayden McLaughlin converted a pair of lay-ins on back-to-back offensive possessions. Shortly after, Rizzo knocked down another catch-and-shoot three, then followed with a lay-up in transition to cap off a 14-1 run by the midway point of the frame. But the Warriors stayed aggressive. They compiled points off a series of possessions to shrink the deficit to 11 by the end of the quarter.
Momentum from the end of the third carried over for the Warriors as they began the fourth on a 6-0 run – and they continued to roll. Gerbrandt nailed a three on the wing after converting a three-point play on the line, making it just a one-possession game. Then, from a similar spot on the wing, Gerbrandt sized up his defender before pulling up for a heat-check three, sending the Warriors bench into a frenzy. Trailing by as much as 20 points earlier in this one, the Warriors willed their way to their first lead since the opening half. However, the Mustangs responded quickly as Rizzo quickly threw up a nothing-but-net triple on the other end to retake the lead. The Mustangs proceeded to keep pushing, slowly adding to their narrow lead to make it wide. Then, Rizzo knocked down yet another one from beyond the arc to re-establish a double-digit lead. From here, the Warriors clawed their way back to just a three-point deficit in the dying minutes through lights-out shooting from Gerbrandt, but couldn’t muster much more, falling 78-68.
“We applied ball pressure and just made sure that, offensively, we just get into our zone”, reflected Mustangs coach Boechler. “We didn’t want to do anything uncharacteristic.”
With the win, the 12th-seeded Immaculate Mustangs will move on to face the winner between the top-ranked St. John’s School Eagles and the eighth-seeded Credo Christian Kodiaks at the Langley Event Centre Centre Court on March 6, scheduled for 3:30 p.m. PT.
NO. 2 1 ST. JOHN’S SCHOOL 82 NO. 8 CREDO CHRISTIAN 54
By IAN FRENCH (Special for Varsity Letters)
LANGLEY — In the playoffs, a deep roster is everything. Not only do the top-ranked St. John’s School Eagles boast just that, but a number of their squad are returning players who took the school to a 1A provincial championship title in 2025. However, in quarterfinal action of the 2026 B.C. senior boys’ Single-A provincial championship, they were faced with a battle-tested, eighth-seeded Credo Christian Kodiaks roster with tons of length, and they tested the Eagles early. Yet, led by Douglas Cassidy and Kian Afshar, St. John’s earned an early double-digit advantage, and they didn’t look back, holding on for an 82-54 win.
Junior guards Jack Bouldman and Ben Vanderhorst tied for a team-high 13 points for the Kodiaks. While junior Eagles guard Cassidy racked up a game-high 27 points and senior guard Afshar posted 25 points of his own, to go alongside countless assists.
“Everybody watches what he does when he passes or how he shoots the ball. Watch him play defence, watch him get in guys’ faces. He is a complete basketball player, all 94 feet”, began Eagles head coach Jonathan Kinman. “Some university has got to look out for that kid. That boy can play with anybody, anywhere. We play 3A or 4A tournaments, and he’s getting 25 and 30 against some of the better teams in the province.”
The Eagles came out soaring from the opening tip. Kian Afshar kicked off the game’s scoring, wasting no time by draining a triple. A few possessions later, Philip Wong followed with a drive in transition before hitting an up-and-under, high off the glass for the score, establishing a 10-2 run in the opening few minutes. From here, Afshar continued to heat up, pouring on 12 points in the frame, six of which came from beyond the arc, as the Eagles firmly held a 23-11 lead by the end of one.
Through sound defence and swift ball movement on the perimeter, St. John’s continued to click to open the second quarter. The Kodiaks pieced together a couple of baskets, but sophomore guard Jacob Botham hit a three-pointer near the corner to establish a 15-point Eagles lead. The Kodiaks weren’t going into hibernation just yet, as they slowly strung together a pair of baskets, then Bouldman knocked down a corner three to breathe some life into the Kodiak-faithful. However, Botham and Cassidy responded for the Eagles, sinking a pair of threes to take the wind out of the Kodiaks’ sails in the final minutes of the half. They continued to tack on more to maintain a double-digit cushion, heading into the break up 47-25.
Despite the sizable advantage, the Eagles didn’t take their foot off the gas in the third. Cassidy opened the second half with a quick-shot three for the Eagles, and they continued to find paths to the basket for scores. The Eagles were looking in control as they hovered around a 25-point lead for the majority of the frame. Afshar, Cassidy and Wong led the charge, setting up around the perimeter to continuously pass back and forth, waiting for space to open up inside or out. This was highlighted by Cassidy throwing it to Wong, who proceeded to immediately give it back to Cassidy as defenders cleared, who then pulled up and knocked down the long ball. The Kodiaks continued to fight hard on both ends, but the Eagles continued to press throughout the frame and through the fourth, eventually walking away with an 82-54 win.
“Credo is long, big. You knew they were going to be ready”, reflected Eagles coach Kinman. “For us, we had to run. We had to contest shots. We matched their physicality. I don’t think our guys are ready to quit yet.”
The top-ranked St. John’s School Eagles now advance to the semifinals and will move on to face the surging underdog, the 12th-seeded Immaculate Mustangs, at the Langley Event Centre Centre Court on March 6, scheduled for 3:30 p.m. PT.
NO. 10 SIMILKAMEEN 75 NO. 2 DAAXIIGAN SK’ADAA NEE 69
By IAN FRENCH (Special for Varsity Letters)
LANGLEY — Following Day 1 action of the B.C. senior boys’ Single-A provincial championship, the tenth-ranked Similkameen Sparks pulled off an upset win in taking down the seventh-seeded Titans. They were hoping to keep the good times rolling into quarterfinal action but were faced with the towering presence of the second-ranked Daaxiigan Sk’adaa Nee Thunderbirds. After Balkaran Lidhar willed the Sparks to an early lead, the Thunderbirds clawed their way back throughout but Jasdeep Dhaliwal poured in 23 second-half points to secure a dramatic 75-69 Similkameen win.
Senior guard Naden Brown poured in a game-high 31 points, 12 of which came from beyond the arc, and freshman guard Zion Onosemuode added 11 points to go alongside a mountain of assists. For the Sparks, junior forward Lidhar posted a team-high 28 points, while junior guard Dhaliwal was not far behind with 25 of his own.
“Balkaran [Lidhar] is just a great, all-around player. He’s a freak athlete”, mused Sparks head coach Aaron Kessler. “Jas [Dhaliwal] just gives us great composure on offence, and so pairing them together is a great system.”
The Sparks needed little time to get on the board to start the first, as Lidhar opened with a steal on defence and followed through on transition with an emphatic slam dunk, foreshadowing a dominant first quarter that saw the forward tally 14 points by the end of the frame. The Sparks’ defence clamped down on the opposition, while Lidhar continued to pile on impact plays on offence. Either from making his way to the hoop for inside scores or adding buckets via a silky jumper, the Sparks surged for a 12-1 run and ended the frame, 20-10.
After tallying seven points in the first quarter, Brown continued to heat up as the second began. He opened the frame by firing from three; the ball circled the rim before eventually falling through the mesh for the early score. Both sides traded blows for the next few minutes, but the Thunderbirds managed to keep the deficit within single digits. Highlighted by Onosemuode, as he drove hard in transition before pulling up for an elbow jumper. He repeated this action on the following play; this time, he faked going up for the shot and dished it out to a wide-open teammate, senior guard Tayias Penna, for an easy score. From here, they gained momentum, scoring four more to make it a six-point game. But Sparks’ Lidhar took it upon himself to re-establish their double-digit lead. Beginning by draining a catch-and-shoot three, the forward followed by iso-ing his way to the elbow and firing over the defender for two. On the following possession, Sparks’ Penna knocked down a three-pointer of his own, ending the half up 39-27.
Defensive intensity picked up for both sides coming out of the break, leading to bodies flying and tons of battles for loose balls. However, as the frame waned on, the T-birds slowly chipped away at the Sparks’ advantage. A pair of threes from Brown and senior forward Trace Swain, alongside a handful of free throws, cut the cushion down to just four points in the final minutes of the third. But Dhaliwal ignited the Sparks bench by sinking a triple, and Lidhar followed with a vicious swat in the paint on the other end, as Similkameen held a 56-49 lead heading into the fourth.
Brown opened the final frame with a pump-fake at the three-point line, sending a defender flying past him before stepping in for the nothing-but-net jumper. A few plays and tons of physicality later from both sides, the T-Birds inched towards a one-point deficit. That’s when Onosemuode dished out yet another flashy assist inside to tie the game at 62 apiece. But the Sparks plugged away. Shortly after, Dhaliwal pulled up from the wing and knocked down a three-pointer. After another make from the T-Birds on the other end, Dhaliwal made his way to a similar spot, pulled up and was fouled beyond the arc. He went to the line, drowned out the noise and dropped all three free throws to make it a two-possession game. Both teams exchanged buckets, but the Sparks maintained this cushion in the dying minutes, sealing a 75-69 win.
“We know [the Thunderbirds] are a really scrappy team. There are a bunch of men out there who compete really hard”, began Sparks coach Kessler. “The message was we need to step up, meet their physicality, pick up players, and essentially just play through grit and stick to our gameplan.”
With the win, the surging underdog, Similkameen Sparks, will move on to face the winner between the third-ranked Vernon Christian Royals and the sixth-seeded Meadowridge Gryphons at the Langley Event Centre’s Centre Court on March 6, scheduled for 5:15 p.m. PT.
NO. 3 VERNON CHRISTIAN 75 NO. 6 MEADOWRIDGE 61
By IAN FRENCH (Special for Varsity Letters)
LANGLEY — Closing out Day 2 action of the B.C. senior boys’ Single-A provincial championship, the Langley Event Centre’s Fieldhouse played host to a heavyweight clash. The third-ranked Vernon Christian Royals squared off against the Meadowridge Gryphons, with both sides looking to power their way to the semifinals. After an energetic start from both teams, Oliver Gingras and JD Vass asserted themselves as the pacemakers, gradually adding to the Royals’ lead throughout before eventually securing a 75-61 win.
Junior forward Myles Galazka led all Gryphons with 15 points, while senior centre Ryan Hemati-Boroujeni added 13 points while cleaning up on the boards. For the Royals, junior guard Gingras racked up seven three-pointers and finished with a game-high 31 points, earning him player of the game honours. While senior guard Vass contributed 26 points, alongside countless assists and steals en route to the win.
“I want to say it’s on-court, but a lot of it is off-court as well. These guys are community builders”, said Vernon Christian coach Nick Purvis on the chemistry between Vass and Gingras. “They include everybody in everything. When you have two leaders like that, it brings everyone together. They put in a lot of off-time work, in terms of getting to the gym for early mornings, late nights. These guys have earned the right to shoot the shots that they do, and they do a great job leading us.”
Coming in as the underdog, the Gryphons attacked early and established a heavy presence inside the paint. Led by six-foot-seven centre Hemati-Boroujeni, the senior began his day of scoring by hauling in an offensive rebound before putting it back up for two, setting the tone physically. With this, both sides leaned on defence and trips to the free-throw line in the early going. However, with the paint clogged, the Royals began to find their shooting touch from outside. Vass bookended the quarter with a pair of threes – tallying six of his 10 first-quarter points – while Gingras added one of his own late in the frame to lift their squad to a 19-13 advantage by the end of one.
Early on in the second quarter, Vernon Christian began to separate themselves. Fuelled by defensive stops, quick ball movement, and another three-ball from Gingras, the Royals turned their six-point lead into a 13-point advantage by the midway point of the frame. As the clock ticked down, the Royals added on, but in the final two minutes, the Gryphons looked to answer. After forcing a turnover on defence, Galazka raced up the court and threw down an emphatic slam dunk in transition. Just as it looked this would generate some momentum for Meadowridge, Vass knocked another one down from beyond the arc to beat the buzzer, heading into halftime with the Royals up 36-22.
Coming out of the break, Vernon Christian tightened their defensive screws as they consistently found themselves clogging the passing lanes on defence while converting for buckets on the other end. On top of their transition scores, Gingras began to heat up throughout the frame. Highlighted by a trio of three-pointers, one of which fell from the wing to stretch the Royals’ lead to 20 in the opening minutes, it looked like this one could have gotten out of hand. However, Meadowridge refused to fold. They continued to battle, slowly chipping away at the Royals’ deficit, including a corner three off swift ball movement to make it a 12-point game in the dwindling minutes of the quarter. But as he had done all night, Gingras had an answer. In the dying seconds, the guard responded with a wide-open corner three of this own to re-establish a 15-point Royals lead heading into the fourth.
Momentum carried over for Vernon Christian, as pristine passing and chemistry took centre stage early in the final frame. On one possession, Vass drove and kicked it out to Gingras, who pump-faked before sending it back to Vass, who, in the meantime, made his way to the corner and proceeded to knock down a triple. As the lead rose, the Gryphons’ effort never wavered. They tried to claw back into it, with Galazka throwing down yet another vicious slam in transition, followed by a high-arcing three from senior forward Ethan Banack to make it a ten-point game, but they couldn’t muster much more as the Royals held on for a 75-61 victory.
“Ultimately, it’s the controllables. It’s the defensive effort and intensity”, added Royals coach Purvis when asked about their team’s keys to success. “You can’t always control the ball going through the hoop, but we like to build our backbone on the stuff we can control. Defensive intensity and limiting the team to one shot by grabbing the defensive rebound, then going from there.”
The third-ranked Vernon Christian Royals now advance to the semis, where they’ll face off against the 10th-seeded underdogs, the Similkameen Sparks, at the Langley Event Centre’s Centre Court on March 6, scheduled for 5:15 p.m. PT.
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