The Muskie junior boys’ basketball team suffered a tough 46-45 loss to the St. Thomas Aquinas Saints (Kenora) in exhibition action here yesterday afternoon.
“It was an unbelievable game–probably the most exciting game all year. It went right down to the last second,” noted head coach Dave Ashworth.
Kevin Gemmell and Keith Wepruk led the Muskies with nine points each, followed by Rick Ricard and Billy Whitecrow (six apiece). Mike Buist, Keith McKay, and Cullan McGinnis chipped in four each while Andrew Mueller added three.
The juniors were coming off a tough weekend at the Kenora Invitational Tournament, where they finished with a 1-2 record. But they wrapped up the weekend with a big 40-18 win over the Dryden Eagles.
“We had a slow start that game but came out strong in the second half,” noted Ashworth.
Gemmell topped the Muskies with 10 points, with Mueller adding seven and Anwar Cheblaoui six.
Gemmell also was awarded a plaque for being named to the tournament all-star team.
The black-and-gold got rocked in their first game against River East–the number-one ranked team in Winnipeg.
“We got whomped 70-28,” said Ashworth. “They just had too much–they were bigger player with better ball movement. They were unbelievable.”
Their second loss was a 51-26 setback at the hands of Hillcrest (Thunder Bay).
“We ran into a very hot three-point shooter and that guy killed us from the outside . . . alone he scored 24 points,” said Ashworth.
“This weekend opened the players’ eyes about the calibre of the other junior players out there,” he added.
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
