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McMath Wildcats can stand proud after placing second at the 2019 B.C. junior boys’ high school basketball championships.
Paul Yates, Vancouver Sports Pictures
Wildcats show character in reaching final
By Don Fennell
Published 11:09 PST, Wed February 27, 2019
When the McMath Wildcats
engineered a furious third-quarter comeback to pull within six points of the
Burnaby South Rebels, head coach Jon Acob believed the ‘Cats would claw all the
way back.
But credit the No. 1-ranked
Rebels, who answered with 17 straight points of their own en route to a
convincing 66-37 victory to net the provincial junior boys’ high school
basketball championship Tuesday night at the Langley Events Centre. The Rebels
finished the season undefeated at 34-0.
“When we brought it down to six,
I thought we were going to win it. But that’s a very good team that matches up
to our style and nothing fazes them. They are very calm and that’s why they are
the champs.”
Though it may be difficult now,
the Wildcats have no reason to hang their heads. As Acob said, “they gave it
their all and didn’t give up.”
It’s the kind of character they’ve
shown all season, and why Acob and associate coach Chris Kennedy are so proud
of them.
Seeded sixth going into the B.C.
tournament, McMath exceeded expectations—particularly with exhilarating wins
over No. 2-ranked Vancouver College Fighting Irish in Monday’s semifinals and
St. Georges Saints in the quarters.
“It was a great year,” said Acob.
“When Chris and I took this team together we focused on culture and working as
a team. I’m not surprised we did this well. I knew we were good.”
The success of the Wildcats bodes
well for the future—both of the junior and senior teams.
The Richmond champions entered
the 32-team provincial tournament with optimism, and quickly showed their
athleticism in a 66-48 opening-day win over Sahali of Kamloops before topping
Yale Lions 49-41.
Further, McMath’s character was
put to the test at the provincials when they lost two key players to
season-ending injuries. Testament to their trust in each other, and their
depth, three different players earned MVP honours in their first three
tournament games. And three different players led the team in scoring.
“While this is a very talented
group, they also understood how to play as a team,” Acob said. “They didn’t
care who scored as long as they got the win. I hardly had to coach. I just
liked watching them play.”
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