Livingstone Sabres host Jr. A Boys Crossover Basketball Tournament

Livingstone Sabres vs Piikani Hustlers
C. Davis photos and video

Chris Davis, Pincher Creek Voice

7 teams participated in the Junior A Boys Crossover Basketball Tournament hosted by the Livingstone Sabres on Friday, December 14 and Saturday, December 15. The tournament was a chance for several teams to play opponents they don't usually encounter.

Game 1: F.P. Walshe vs Matthew Halton

Hawks vs Flyers

The first game of the tournament was between the F.P. Walshe Flyers from Fort Macleod and the Halton Hawks. The Flyers were an unstoppable force in this game, taking an early lead and continuing to build on it throughout, overwhelming the Hawks on the court and on the scoreboard, getting a free ride at the net, and ultimately winning the game 56-22.

On the Hawks' side Jack Mitchell made some really nice shots, and the drives of Deloy MacKenzie, Craig Oliver, and Brandon Giesbrecht were also notable. Top scorer for the Flyers was Cole Sawchuk with 19 points, followed by Dylan Drader with 13 points and Trent Morning Bull with 8 points.

Game 2: Piikani vs Livingstone

Sabres vs Hustlers

Host team the Livingstone Sabres played the Piikani Hustlers in the second game of the tournament. The Hustlers are a solid team, as we ended up seeing throughout the event, but the Sabres are, in a word, phenomenal. The Sabres were up 7-0 before the Hustlers got on the scoreboard with a penalty shot. I think you could put the Sabres up against almost any Senior team I've seen so far this season for the quality of their passing plays and interceptions. And can they ever shoot! They get the rebounds, they anticipate what's going to happen next well. The Hustlers put forth a very strong effort, kept their sense of humour, and never gave up, but the Sabres were overwhelming, ultimately winning it by a score of 75-37.

Sabres #10 Eric Cadonic scored 10 points in the first quarter, got a nice 3-pointer in the final quarter, and was the top scorer in the game with a total of 19 points. 2# Jonathan Erickson scored 13 points and #6 Ethan Paridaen scored 12 points. The offensive efforts of the Sabres were well supported by their defensive strategies as well, and every single member of the team made it to the scoreboard during this game.  Top scorer for the Hustlers was #11 Lane Quesnelle with 13 points, followed by #21 Blaze BadEagle with 8 points and #5 Johnny North Peigan with 7 points.

A very enjoyable game. Expect big things from the Piikani Hustlers.

Game 3: Kainai vs St. Michael's

Dragons vs Kainai

St. Michael's Dragons and Kainai turned out to be very evenly matched teams. Kainai started out up two baskets, and that turned out to be the story of the game. Kainai won the first quarter 12-9. The second quarter was neck and neck all the way, with each team scoring 8 points. The Dragons evened the score up at 28-28 by the end of the third quarter. It stayed incredibly close up to the last buzzer, with the Dragons ahead 36-35, then Kainai ahead 36-37. 38-37...38-39...

Final score Kainai 41, Dragons 38.

Top scorer for Kainai was David with a whopping 33 points, 11 of those in the final quarter. Top scorer for the Dragons was Kyle Knowlton with 20 points, followed by Mitchell Zoratti with 12 points.

Game 4: Crowsnest vs F.P. Walshe

Panthers vs Flyers

The Crowsnest Panthers took an early lead in their game against the F.P. Walshe Flyers, but by midway through the first quarter the Flyers caught up and then developed a lead, ahead 16-6 at the end of the quarter. The game stalled at 16-8 for a fair bit in the second quarter before the Flyers went on another scoring spree. The two teams battled almost to a draw in the third quarter in which the Panthers scored two baskets to 1 for the Flyers. The Flyers came out marginally ahead in the final quarter, winning the game by a score of 39-21.

Top scorers for the Panthers were Logan Wall with 9 points and Shawn Flannery with 8 points. Michael McTighe scored 11 points for the Flyers, and Dylan Drader and Stanley Morning Bull scored 8 points each.

Game 5: Matthew Halton vs St. Michael's

St. Michael's Junior A Dragons

The Dragons defeated the Hawks by a score of 54-15 in this Saturday morning game. Top scorer for the Dragons was Ryan Higgenbotham with 13 points.

Game 6: Livingstone vs F.P. Walshe

The Livingstone Sabres defeated the Flyers 82-37. I wasn't at this game, but I was told later by several people that the highlight for them was an at-the-buzzer end of the game 3-pointer by Sabres' Eric Cadonic from more than halfway across the court. He was also the top scorer in the game with 25 points, including another 3 pointer in the third quarter. Sabres' Ross Cook scored 14 points and Chris Cail scored 13 points. Top scorer for the Flyers was Michael McTighe with 11 points.

Game 7: Crowsnest vs Kainai

Kainai defeated the Crowsnest Panthers by a score of 52-30. Top scorer for the Panthers was Bobby Bedward with 9 points, followed by Ty Anctil with 8 points. Top scorer for Kainai was David with 23 points, followed by Jaylin with 13 points and Trevis with 8 points.

Game 8: Matthew Halton vs Piikani

Hustlers vs Hawks

The Piikani Hustlers took an early lead in this game, and built on it throughout with an inspired passing play, many interceptions, and some great long-shots, ultimately winning it 68-31.

Terpstra Lachlan was top scorer for the Hawks with 8 points. Blaze Ironshirt was top scorer for the Hustlers with 28 points, followed by Johnny North Peigan with 22 points. This was ultimately a victory for the whole Piikani team, who work together quite effectively.

Piikani Hustlers

Halton Hawks

Game 9: Livingstone vs Kainai

Sabres vs Kainai

The Sabres were up against stiff opposition from Kainai in this game. The Sabres were ahead by 7 points at the end of the first quarter, but Kainai almost matched them in the second and third quarters, and outscored them in the final quarter. The Sabres ultimately won the game 54-47.

Kainai's David was the top scorer of the game with 24 points. Sabres' Eric Cadonic had another great game, scoring a total of 18 points, including two 3-pointers.

Game 10: Piikani vs St. Michael's

Dragons vs Hustlers

This game between two closely matched teams was a bit of a nail-biter, with the Dragons taking a big lead in the first quarter and then defending it for the rest of the game. Evenly matched teams with different playing styles made for a very entertaining game of basketball.

The Dragons ultimately won it 48-40. Top scorer in the game was Dragons' Mitchell Zoratti with 19 points.

Game 11: Crowsnest vs Livingstone

Sabres vs Panthers

The Crowsnest Panthers had a very strong first quarter in the final game of the tournament, coming from behind to tie several times and finally win the quarter 17-13. The Sabres put the pressure on in the second quarter and had a fantastic third quarter, largely due to a 10 point scoring spree by Eric Cadonic. The final quarter was more evenly matched, but by then it was too late for the Panthers.

Final score: Sabres 63, Panthers 39.

Top scorer in the game was Sabres' Eric Cadonic with 23 points.

The Sabres won all four of their games at this tournament.

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A big thank you to the volunteers and refs who contributed such a big effort towards the success of this tournament.