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Douglas Royals ride wins to top of poll

Although it’s early, it still looks good to see your name atop a national poll.
Douglas college basketball
Douglas College’s Dylan Kinley defends against a Capilano rival during last year’s playoff run. The second-year guard scored 19 points in the team’s 94-74 win over Okanagan College last week.

Although it’s early, it still looks good to see your name atop a national poll.

 The Douglas College Royals continued their hot run to the start of the men’s basketball season, racking up back-to-back wins over the Okanagan College Coyotes last week in Kelowna.

 At 5-0 and winning comfortably, all the signs are looking good as the Royals put themselves in line as a provincial power. Head coach Joe Enevoldson, however, knows you can’t put the chicken before the egg.

 “I’d just as soon see it later, much later,” Enevoldson said of seeing Douglas first overall in the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association weekly poll. “It’s still nice to see that others recognize what we’ve accomplished to date.”

 In both games this past weekend, Douglas gathered an early lead and didn’t look back. On Friday, they rode a hot shooting hand, firing 46 percent from the field, with Courtney Anderson netting a game-high 30 points in a 94-67 decision over the Coyotes. He added seven boards. Fifth-year forward Reese Morris counted 13 points and 11 rebounds in his first game back after missing a start due to injury, while  Port Coquitlam’s Josiah Mastandrea and first-year Jiordano Khan chipped in 13 and 12, respectively.

 A day later, guard Dylan McKinley drained back-to-back treys midway through the first quarter to launch a healthy Douglas run in a 94-74 victory. Mastandrea scored 17 points.

“I thought we played pretty good basketball and we had great contributions from everyone,” Enevoldson said of the weekend’s efforts.

 The Royals visit Columbia Bible College on Friday, before heading up Burnaby Mountain Saturday for an exhibition test against Simon Fraser University (7:30 p.m.).