The Muskie Sr Boys Basketball team returned from their last tournament as B-side champions.
Both the senior and junior teams were in Thunder Bay this past weekend, for the annual Tom Mustapic Tournament. Under the care of head coach Josh De Jong (far right) and Muskie alum Cole Kowalski (far left), the Senior boys had success.
They close out the season with a game against the Beaver Brae Broncos on Tuesday Feb. 4 which will be senior day.
The Muskies will then host the NORWOSSA court sports finals on Feb. 14.
–Allan Bradbury photos
The tournament got off to a slow start, with an early loss to tournament runner-ups St. Ignatius. Saturday had two matches. The first game, the Muskies handily beat Superior high school from Thunder Bay in a strong defensive matchup 35-24. The Muskies had a balanced scoring with nine different players scoring but were led by Zii Smiths eight steals.
That win earned the team a place in the B Side Consolation Championship game where they faced off against a strong Terrace Bay Stinger team. The Muskies started strong, coming out to a 18-9 lead after the first quarter. The Stingers fought back with a strong second quarter to end the half with a 28-24 lead. After that it was a back and forth game with both teams going on runs. Being down 49-48 Everett Aucoin drove down the right wing and hit a layup to put the Muskies up 50-49 with 40 seconds left. After a tense 20 seconds the Muskies got a defensive rebound, the Stingers fouled Zii Smith who hit both of them. 52-49. The final possession was a defensive masterclass that saw the Muskies play shut down defense against the Stingers and notably their leading scorer Jase Coughlin who finished with 30 points. Muskies are B side Champions! Top scorers from the Muskies: Everett Aucoin with 13, Tristan Councilor-Smith with 10, Logan McCart with 13, Jordan Hunter with 9.
Way to go Muskies!
