Lakers finish fourth in Newmarket
2017-03-24 - U14 Major Bantam Boys - Meeks
The Crate Lake Country Boats Orillia Lakers Major Bantam Boys team competed at the IEM tournament on March 4 – 5 in Newmarket and earned a strong 4th place finish...
The Crate Lake Country Boats Orillia Lakers Major Bantam Boys team competed at the IEM tournament on March 4 – 5 in Newmarket and earned a strong 4th place finish. The Lakers played five games altogether, winning their four round robin games before running out of gas in the bronze medal game. The play of Orillia was characterized by strong defense, creative offence and tremendous resilience in all of their games.
Coming off a tough mini-tournament the week before in Peterborough, the players were eager to play their best in Newmarket. Orillia opened the tournament against Brampton Breakdown #2 on Saturday morning and got off to a great start running out to a quick 8 – 0 lead against a bigger, more physical team. The Lakers held their lead at half before stumbling in the third quarter, finding themselves down by four points heading into the final quarter. The boys found their defensive intensity again in the fourth, reclaimed the lead with smart passing and strong free throw shooting, completing their comeback with a 43-36 win.
The Lakers played PBA Ottawa Titans in their second game and again got off to an excellent start by forcing turnovers with their aggressive defense. The Titans battled hard throughout the first half, closing the second quarter with a run of their own. The Lakers squad gathered themselves during halftime and played a very solid second half, pulling away for a 45-33 win.
On Sunday morning, the Lakers played the Canadian Basketball Academy in their first game of the day. The players ran their press to perfection to start the game racing out to a quick 8-0 lead. CBA worked hard throughout the first half, overcoming their slow start to take the lead midway through the second quarter. Once again, the boys found another gear to finish the half up by 8. The Lakers second half was one of their more complete of the year as they ran away from the outmatched CBA team, winning 55-32.
The Lakers final round-robin game was against Ottawa Next Level, a team that posed a number of match-up difficulties for the boys. Ottawa managed the Lakers press well and earned a number of easy baskets during the first half. The Lakers regrouped at half-time and put together another dominant half. By the end of the game, the Lakers had built a double-digit lead through excellent defense, great passing and great shooting.
Despite the their 4-0 record in the round-robin, the Lakers finished second in the 7 team pool to another 4-0 team, based on point differential. As runner-up in the pool, the Lakers earned a spot in the bronze medal game against host-team IEM Aurora. The Orillia boys got off to a slow start against IEM, falling behind by eight early in the first quarter. The Lakers continued to battle, outplaying their opponents for the remainder of the half, but were unable to overcome the early deficit. After half, the long day caught up with the boys and they were unable to catch the IEM team.
The Lakers coaches were very proud of the effort of all of the players as every Laker contributed on both ends of the floor over the weekend. As always, the boys played with poise and sportsmanship, and showed that they can never be counted out of a game.
Coming off a tough mini-tournament the week before in Peterborough, the players were eager to play their best in Newmarket. Orillia opened the tournament against Brampton Breakdown #2 on Saturday morning and got off to a great start running out to a quick 8 – 0 lead against a bigger, more physical team. The Lakers held their lead at half before stumbling in the third quarter, finding themselves down by four points heading into the final quarter. The boys found their defensive intensity again in the fourth, reclaimed the lead with smart passing and strong free throw shooting, completing their comeback with a 43-36 win.
The Lakers played PBA Ottawa Titans in their second game and again got off to an excellent start by forcing turnovers with their aggressive defense. The Titans battled hard throughout the first half, closing the second quarter with a run of their own. The Lakers squad gathered themselves during halftime and played a very solid second half, pulling away for a 45-33 win.
On Sunday morning, the Lakers played the Canadian Basketball Academy in their first game of the day. The players ran their press to perfection to start the game racing out to a quick 8-0 lead. CBA worked hard throughout the first half, overcoming their slow start to take the lead midway through the second quarter. Once again, the boys found another gear to finish the half up by 8. The Lakers second half was one of their more complete of the year as they ran away from the outmatched CBA team, winning 55-32.
The Lakers final round-robin game was against Ottawa Next Level, a team that posed a number of match-up difficulties for the boys. Ottawa managed the Lakers press well and earned a number of easy baskets during the first half. The Lakers regrouped at half-time and put together another dominant half. By the end of the game, the Lakers had built a double-digit lead through excellent defense, great passing and great shooting.
Despite the their 4-0 record in the round-robin, the Lakers finished second in the 7 team pool to another 4-0 team, based on point differential. As runner-up in the pool, the Lakers earned a spot in the bronze medal game against host-team IEM Aurora. The Orillia boys got off to a slow start against IEM, falling behind by eight early in the first quarter. The Lakers continued to battle, outplaying their opponents for the remainder of the half, but were unable to overcome the early deficit. After half, the long day caught up with the boys and they were unable to catch the IEM team.
The Lakers coaches were very proud of the effort of all of the players as every Laker contributed on both ends of the floor over the weekend. As always, the boys played with poise and sportsmanship, and showed that they can never be counted out of a game.