Duchess Park's Colburn Pearce is a player to watch at the B.C. senior boys basketball championships beginning Wednesday at the LEC. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca)
Feature High School Boys Basketball

BC Boys Basketball Championships: A first look at all four draws, plus my ‘Game of the Day’ picks

LANGLEY — The draws are now official and that means it’s time to start figuring out your schedule for the 32-game opening-round schedule at the 2018 B.C. senior boys basketball championships which begin Wednesday at the Langley Events Centre.

Tier by tier, we present open round schedules as well, as our choices for best games of the day.

QUAD A

(all games in Arena Bowl)

TOP HALF DRAW

QUADRANT A

8:15 p.m. — Oak Bay (1) vs. Mt. Baker (16)

5:15 p.m. — Burnaby South (8) vs. Lord Tweedsmuir (9)

QUADRANT B

10:15 a.m. — W.J. Mouat (4) vs. Belmont (13)

12 p.m. — Vancouver College (5) vs. Terry Fox (12)

BOTTOM HALF DRAW

QUADRANT C

6:45 p.m. — Tamanawis (2) vs. North Peace (15)

1:45 p.m. — St. George’s vs. (7) vs. Walnut Grove (10)

QUADRANT D

3:30 p.m. — Handsworth (3) vs. Holy Cross (14)

8:30 a.m. — Semiahmoo (6) vs. Rutland (11)

GAME OF THE DAY

Burnaby South vs. Lord Tweedsmuir

The skinny — And not just because it’s the 8 v 9 game. At their best, both teams are capable of potentially beating anyone in the province.

Both have had their mis-steps, losing big after they have won big. But the consistent period of practice time will help each re-energize their focus.

Burnaby South’s young-and-rising core has taken some huge steps since the start of the season after winning the 2017 B.C. JV crown. 

And Lord Tweedsmuir, with a young base of talent, has a true talent in Dylan Kinley.

This is one of the best opening-day AAAA draws in recent memory.

If Oak Bay is the clear favourite and Tamanawis a deserving No. 2 seed, and if North Peace and Mt. Baker are the big underdogs, the parity from seeds 3-through-14 is tight as its ever been.

Vancouver College vs. Terry Fox, St. George’s vs. Walnut Grove, and Handsworth vs. Holy Cross are all excellent matchups as well.

TRIPLE A

(all games in Centre Court)

TOP HALF DRAW

QUADRANT A

3:30 p.m. — Byrne Creek (1) vs. Caledonia (16)

5:15 p.m. — Sir Charles Tupper (8) vs. Clayton Heights (9) 

QUADRANT B

8:15 p.m. — North Delta (4) vs. GP Vanier (13)

6:45 p.m. — R.A. McMath (5) vs.MEI (12) 

BOTTOM HALF DRAW

QUADRANT C

8:30 a.m. — South Kamloops (2) vs. Carihi (15)

12 p.m. — Duchess Park (7) vs. Rick Hansen (10)

QUADRANT D

1:45 p.m. — Argyle (3) vs. Richmond (14)

10:15 a.m. — Pitt Meadows (6) vs. Mark Isfeld (11)

GAME OF THE DAY

Duchess Park vs. Rick Hansen

This one might not hit the major markets too well, but this 7 vs. 10 clash should be a dandy.

In fact, on Sunday’s live draw show, I called it the best game of the entire 32-game opening-day slate.

A large part of that is the adaptability of defending champion Rick Hansen to prep for foes, despite the fact it has lost nearly all of the main rotation players that led the team to the title last season.

That, and the fact that Duchess Park, in the grand tradition of the Quad A Kelowna Owls, did not shy away from an extensive plan of invitational tournament travel.

Up-country teams like Prince George’s Condors, don’t normally win at this time of the season unless that have drilled the routine, and Duchess Park started out in December at the LEC’s TBI and kept it going right through.

Watch Hansen’s Gurkaran Mangat and Gurlal Mann, and Duchess’ Colburn Pearce and Sorren Erricson. All are prime time players.

Other opening-round games with interesting plotlines?

Tupper vs. Clayton Heights (how healthy is Tupper?), North Delta vs. Vanier (The young Huskies have shown they are ready to make a run).

Pitt Meadows vs. Mark Isfeld (The Ice must find a way to stop the size of Pitt’s front court).

DOUBLE A

(all games in South Court)

TOP HALF DRAW

QUADRANT A

8:15 p.m. — Brentwood College (1) vs. Grand Forks (16)

6:45 p.m. — Shawnigan Lake (8) vas. Pacific Academy (9)

QUADRANT B

5:15 p.m. — Charles Hays (4) vs. RC Palmer (13)

3:30 p.m. — Seycove (5) vs. DP Todd (12)

BOTTOM HALF DRAW

QUADRANT C

1:45 p.m. — Westsyde (2) vs. Southridge (15)

12 p.m. — Collingwood (7) vs. Clarence Fulton (10)

QUADRANT D

8:30 a.m. — King George (3) vs. Sa-Hali (14)

10:15 a.m. — Britannia (6) vs. Langley Christian (11)

GAME OF THE DAY

Collingwood vs. Clarence Fulton

West Van’s Cavaliers come in as the higher seed, and they are battled tested having narrowly lost to rival Seycove in the Howe Sound playoffs.

However the Maroons are an experienced lot. Isaac Olson, Nathan Banga, Caden Doyle and Hunter Krieger are all three-year varsity starters.

SINGLE A

(all games in Fieldhouse)

TOP HALF DRAW

QUADRANT A

6:45 p.m. — Credo Christian (1) vs. Gold River (16)

8:15 p.m. — Glenlyon-Norfolk (8) vs. Northside Christian (9)

QUADRANT B

12 p.m. — Heritage Christian (4) vs. Golden (13)

1:45 p.m. — Khalsa (5) vs. Ft. St. James (12)

BOTTOM HALF DRAW

QUADRANT C

10:15 a.m. — Similkameen (3) vs. Fraser Lake (15)

8:30 a.m. — B.C. Christian Academy (7) vs. King David (10)

QUADRANT D

5:15 p.m. — Kelowna Christian (3) vs. Pemberton (14)

3:30 p.m. —Bulkley Valley (6) vs. St. Andrews (11)

If you’re reading this story or viewing these photos on any other website other than one belonging to a university athletic department, it has been taken without appropriate permission. In these challenging times, true journalism will survive only through your dedicated support and loyalty. VarsityLetters.ca and all of its exclusive content has been created to serve B.C.’s high school and university sports community with hard work, integrity and respect. Feel free to drop us a line any time at howardtsumura@gmail.com.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *