For a basketball tournament the junior Kings and Queens had a mixed result at St. Augustine Catholic School last weekend.
The Kings played an overall strong tournament eventually winning out over the rest of their opponents to claim first place. Coach Brandon Bishop was pleased with a strong performance overall. “Our defensive game really stepped up this weekend,” he said in an email.
“Our forwards on both ends of the court were the real unsung heroes throughout the tournament, and with the added strength of the guards definitely complemented each other,” he added.
One area he is proud of is in the strong showing by all players as well as those on the bench who supported the team.
“They can hold their own on the court when called upon to give whichever starting five are on the court a rest,” he explained.
While there were some nerves at the outset of the tournament, especially during the opening game, Bishop says the team’s confidence carried the team, as it has all season. Add to that confidence is a strong team unity.
“We have great leadership from last year’s returning players that seems to get the new players feeling confident,” said Bishop. “I trust and have confidence in these young men so I think that also adds to the already existing unity and team growth.”
The final half of the Kings’ season is going to be a tough one with five league games and two tournaments, however, with last weekend’s strong performance, Bishop is excited to see how the team will do getting to the CWAJHAA qualifiers and CWAJHAA championship tournaments. He said that while the team knows it will be a busy time, players look forward to the challenge as well.
The team’s last season game is set for Feb. 14 with the season ending March 10 to 11 with the CWAJHAA championship.
Junior Queens play tough but lose overall
For the Junior Queens the weekend was not as strong with the team losing all their tournament games.
Co-coach Darien Lloyd said the players showed much improvement over previous games and worked together as a team to make plays.
“Being as our team is based on a very different variety of players, some of them being first year players, we are working on new plays for offence trying to perfect each girl’s talents,” said Lloyd.
The second day of tournament proved even more challenging as the team had only eight players, which affected the athletes’ energy levels. “Playing with eight girls was difficult due to lack of substitutes, but they showed heart and powered through the tiredness and never gave up,” he concluded.