Youth and inexperience finally caught up to the Terry Fox Ravens.
The Ravens, comprised largely of juniors and sophomores, crashed back to earth after an unlikely run into the semi-finals of the BC School Sports AAAA boys basketball championships, losing Friday’s late game at the Langley Events Centre 92-64 to the second-ranked Dover Bay Dolphins.
On the heels of a 92-83 upset victory over third-ranked Vancouver College Fighting Irish in Thursday’s quarterfinals, the sixth-seed Ravens seemed ready to embrace their role as world beaters, taking the game to the Dolphins early. Midway through the first quarter, Fox had an 11-6 lead, built mostly on strong rebounding by centre Maksym Cichecki.
But the poise and experience of Dover Bay’s senior-heavy lineup surfaced midway through the period as Grade 12 guard Frank Linder started dominating ball battles off the defensive board while his younger brother staked his turf in the offensive zone.
By the end of the first quarter, Dover Bay was up 23-13 and never looked back. The Dolphins led 49-34 at halftime and 69-49 after three periods.
Fox coach Rich Chambers said his charges lost their hunger.
“We didn’t compete at the level you have to if you’re playing this game,” he said, adding that led to conceding too many rebounds that Dover Bay was able to convert to scores.
Indeed, the Dolphins pulled down 62 rebounds while the Ravens grabbed just 40.
Chambers said the outcome of such an imbalance was inevitable.
“We were over-matched tonight,” he said. “Everything had to go right for us to have a chance.”
Jayson Ikani’s 19 points led all Ravens’ scorers, while Cichecki chipped in 11 as the Ravens shot 41 per cent from the floor.
And while that bettered Dover Bay’s 38 per cent accuracy, Fox was out of its depth from beyond the three-point line, just hitting two of 14 attempts. The Dolphins connected on 12 of its 19 bombs.
The Ravens, which finished third in league play, will play for third place in the province Saturday at 4:45 p.m. against St. George’s. The Saints pushed defending champions Spectrum to the final moments of their semi-final earlier Friday before succumbing 81-79.
Chambers said it will be up to his players to brush themselves off from Friday’s disappointment to show they’re worthy of being ranked among B.C.’s best.
“We’ve got to come our ready to play,” he said. “I’m very proud of this group. We can’t hang our heads.”
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