Cyclones Claim Junior Boys Championship

Emotions ran high as the Central Gymnasium reached the boiling point as the Central Cyclones turned up the heat in the latter portion of the second half to claim the city league junior boys basketball title 100 - 83 over the Vanier Vikings.

The Cyclones led by 10 points at halftime but a weak defensive effort allowed the Vikings to use their shooting skills to go on a scoring rally and temporarily tie the game.

With the Vikings threatening to cruise away with the come from behind victory the Cyclones felt the pressure from their own bench and tightened their defensive game to snuff out the Vikings surge.

“It was a great game. I’m proud of the boys we worked hard. This was our goal all season to get to this game. It was nice to put it all together tonight and finish with the win,” Central Cyclones head coach Riley Seaborn said.

The usually silent and meek Seaborn had been unusually loud and emotional on the Cyclones bench shouting out instructions to the troops on the court and challenging questionable calls.

“It was an emotional game on both sides. I think this is the fourth time we’ve played them so it’s been kind of a bit of a rivalry throughout the season. So it was an emotional game,” Seaborn said.

“The fans were into it. The players were all into it. It was a great game…the fans were all showing their support so we appreciate that.”

He said the Cyclones noticed the Vikings surge in the middle of the third quarter that temporarily tied the game but the Cyclones compensated for it and retook control.

“They had a great little run there kind of towards the end of the third quarter they had a run. They got momentum and they started hitting a whole bunch of shots. They were getting by us. We just told the guys to calm down, slow it down, we know how we play.”

During the Vikings’ surge the Cyclones bench was actively calling their players to start playing defence to stem Vanier’s tide.

“That was a big thing throughout the year. We knew we could score the balls…we just need to put it together on defence which leads to easy layups and transition buckets.”

Seaborn said the Cyclones expected the Vikings to come out with a lot of intensity.

“They came out with a lot of pressure. We knew that they would. We knew they were going to be up for the championship game of course. Throughout the season we had a lot of good battles with them up and down. We won some. They won some so we knew it was going to be a great game.”

Asked about Vanier’s Luke who went out down two times with leg cramps only to return Seaborn said he played a great game.

“He played a great game. He shot the lights out today. I thought we played pretty good defence on him on a lot of the shots but he still hit them.”

Three pointers from Vanier was an issue for the the Cyclones.

“They have a lot of guys who can shoot the ball. We knew that coming in . We tried to get our hands up but they were just hitting them anyways,” he said.

Although the Cyclones lead the junior boys division throughout the season it was a lot of work and fun to make it to the final.

“It was a great season. I’m proud of the boys and the way that they worked. We had so much fun each day in practices, games and tournaments. So I’m proud of the boys. I’m glad I decided to coach them,” Seaborn said.

Seaborn is in first ever head coaching role a move from his playing days with Central and Briercrest Christian Academy.

“It’s fun. I like it (coaching). It’s a lot different than playing because you have to like tell them what to do instead of doing it yourself.”

“You know it was a great game. Both teams showed heart. It was a great crowd. They just played a little bit better than us today,” Vanier Vikings assistant coach Samuel Caplette said.

The Vanier bench, like the Central bench, was emotional and loud especially during the see saw sections of the game. Vanier had a large crowd out that was loud from start to finish.

When it was pointed out the Vikings likely played their best game of the season he said the Vikings had had a lot of practice over the year.

“We had a lot of hours of practice. A couple of things just didn’t go our way,” he said.

Asked about the feelings about the season he said it was part the final loss and the growth of the team.

“We didn’t win or I would have felt a lot better but I’m proud of these guys. They showed heart every day, every game they got better and better. That’s all you want as a coach,” Caplette said.

This season’s Vikings junior boys is seen by many basketball watchers as a grouping that could well dominate boys high school basketball locally in the years to come.

Asked about the comeback to tie the game and the continued battle Caplette said despite what the score clock said the Vikings never gave up.

“We never fell out of it. Even in the last two minutes of the game we always felt we had a chance to win…if we played them again we’d feel we’ve always got a chance to win.”

Retention for next season is important.

“They love basketball. That’s their life so it won’t be very hard to get them back and play for sure,” Caplette said.

The Scoresheet