Staff
They started their respective days against each other and finished them the same way.
The outcomes, however, were markedly different.
Jevonte Phillips powered the defending regional champion Donald Young All-Stars to an 18-10 victory over the Sturgeon Creek Sturgeons in the final of the season-opening Grade 8 boys’ basketball tournament for the Rainy River District Athletic Association held April 1 at Crossroads School.
The All-Stars took it on the chin from the Sturgeons 22-6 to kick off the morning–a victory that paved the way to a first-place finish with a 4-0 record in the preliminary round and a bye to the final.
But it was a completely different DYS team that should have been fatigued after getting only about a 10-minute break between its 14-5 semi-final win over the Riverview Royals (who finished with the bronze medal) and the title game.
DYS (3-1 in the preliminary round) didn’t lose again after its opening setback.
The All-Stars defeated the St. Francis Sentinels 20-4, the Atikokan Voyageurs 24-10, and then crushed Riverview 28-6 to clinch second over the Royals (3-1) based on the head-to-head tiebreaker.
Sturgeon Creek followed up its morning romp over DYS by hammering the host Crossroads Tornadoes 16-2, downing the Robert Moore Mustangs 18-4, and rolling over St. Francis 22-8.
Riverview was rolling early, blanking St. Francis 16-0, then beating Atikokan 14-5 and doubling Robert Moore 20-10.
The Mustangs finished in fourth at 2-2, just missing the playoffs by one win as they pounded Crossroads 21-4 and then edged Atikokan 11-9.
The Voyageurs came fifth at 1-3, the same record as the Sentinels, but got the nod based on the tie-breaker.
St. Francis was sixth while Crossroads rounded out the standings in seventh (0-4).
Next up for the boys is the Jim Oster Memorial Tournament on April 22 hosted by Robert Moore School.
