It was another installment of the cross-town rivalry between the Kwalikum Kondors and the Ballenas Whalers last Thursday night on the hardwood at KSS and it didn’t disappoint.
A good crowd turned up to see the senior boys basketball teams going head to head, both looking for the all-important win and the bragging rights that go along with it. After a tough first half for both teams, the Kondors pulled off the 54-42 win in a game that was played close and physical by both sides.
“It wasn’t a pretty game by any means,” Kondors coach Butch Gayton said after the win. “You gotta give a lot of credit to Ballenas, they played an excellent game defensively and played a good, physical game. They made life difficult for our team and luckily we were able to put some points up in the second half. We haven’t been in a game like that so far this season, so it’s a learning experience.”
Leading the way on the night for the Kondors was Grade 11 Connor Haywood, who poured in 15 points and was a force in the paint for KSS while Grade 12 Jesse Goring chipped in with 10 points. Aaron Paetku led the charge for the Whalers, putting up 16 points, while Darien Mant had 14 points.
“Kwalikum is a tough team that has been having a lot of success this year,” Whalers head coach Kevin McMillen said. “I thought we competed very well against them and didn’t give them an easy inch. We came out and played with a lot of toughness and energy, which was exactly what we had to do against KSS in their own gym.”
The game was supposed to take place on Friday night, instead of Thursday, but was moved ahead one day due to no referees being available Friday.
“I thought the atmosphere was good, considering the last minute change,” McMillen said. “The fans were very supportive for both teams and it showed with the amount of effort all the players gave out there on the floor. It would have been nice to put up a few more points than we did, just for the entertainment part of things, but the defense was real good on both teams.”
The Kondors continued to play well as they have so far this season and will look to continue heading in to the North Islands.
“Every game we’ve played, we have the North Islands in mind,” Gayton said. “We’re doing what we can in practice and in games to make sure that when we get there, we’re ready to go. We’ve been building up to it all season and it’s coming up on us here in short time and we’re really excited.”
The Whalers will now look to a Tuesday night match up with the top team on the Island at the AAA level, the NDSS Islanders.
It’s another rare home game for the Whalers this season, with the tip-off scheduled for 7 p.m. tonight.
“It’s going to be another test for our young team against another quality opponent,” McMillen said. “I was happy with our defensive effort and we are still improving defensively which is kind of scary.”
