Yale Secondary senior boys basketball head coach Euan Roberts has effectively been suspended for the remainder of the Telus B.C. Boys Basketball tournament which began its four-day run Wednesday at the Langley Events Centre.
In the late stages of the Yale Lions’ opening-round loss to the Vancouver College Fighting Irish, Roberts became incensed with some of the calls being made on the floor.
To get his point across, he came onto the court and began shouting in the direction of the officiating crew.
Roberts was issued two technical fouls and was ejected from the game.
“The tournament committee met and they issued a three-game suspension to coach Roberts,” said B.C. High School Basketball president Paul Eberhardt late Wednesday from the event’s site at the Langley Events Centre. “Coach Roberts has indicated that he wants to appeal the suspension so there will likely be an appeals committee meeting for him tomorrow (Thursday) to appeal it.”
No. 13-seeded Yale Lions led by as many as 19 points (39-20) in the late stages of the first half, but No. 4-seeded Lower Mainland champion Vancouver College came storming back, putting together a 17-5 run to the break and later scored 33 points in the fourth quarter to usurp the Lions 89-81 and advance in the bracket.
Roberts’ displeasure with the officials was lengthy by anyone’s standards and both a member of his coaching staff, a Yale player and others attempted to get him to leave the court in a timely manner.
“He will be suspended for tomorrow’s game automatically (due to his ejection),” continued Eberhardt. “Once the second technical foul is received and you are ejected from the game, the rules require that you leave the playing area immediately.
“He did not. He stayed on the floor. Several people tried to get him to leave and he wanted to continue to make his point. Not leaving in a timely manner is one of the reasons that there has been discipline.”
Added Eberhardt of Thursday’s additional meeting: “(The appeals committee) will make a decision to either uphold the decision or not. If they decide to change their decision, then yes, he could (still return to coach in the tournament).”
Roberts, an accomplished coach who led Yale to the 2015 B.C. Quad A boys title, is highly respected in the B.C. basketball community and has always shown a deep level of caring for all of his players.
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