Nanaimo teams couldn’t slow down a high-scoring star player at Superball.
The R.E. Mountain Eagles, led by their Grade 10 phenom Jarrett Jacobs, won all their games at the city’s major annual high school senior basketball tournament last week at Wellington Secondary School.
Mountain defeated the Dover Bay Dolphins in Saturday’s final by a 108-85 score.
“We were on the wrong end of who was on fire in that game, but we never gave up and we never stopped competing,” said Carson Williams, Dolphins coach.
Dover tried a variety of tactics to slow down Jacobs, trying to keep him from penetrating, trying to keep him from catching the ball, double-teaming him and throwing different defences at him.
“To his credit, he was able to navigate those things and still score,” Williams said.
Dover’s coach had no comment about sportsmanship in the game. Jacobs scored 53 points, re-entered the game late in the fourth quarter, played to the Nanaimo crowd and unnecessarily attempted and drained a half-court shot.
Jacobs said his team tried to stay focused and take good shots, regardless of the score.
“When we go play better teams we can’t just have those habits of fooling around and taking bad shots,” he said. “I was shooting the ball, getting open shots a lot better than I usually do and I was able to knock it down from pretty much anywhere.”
Dover was led in the final by Ryan MacDonald, who scored 25 points, and Jordan Gladstone, who scored 15.
Williams said despite Saturday’s setback, he’s happy with the Dolphins’ direction.
“We’ve come a long way in a short time,” he said “I … saw some light bulbs go on this weekend and I think the boys feel that way, too.”
Also at Superball, Dover Bay beat D.W. Poppy 60-29, led by MacDonald’s 14 points, and got past Spectrum 80-66, with MacDonald scoring 20 and Nick Schley adding 15.
The host Wellington Wildcats finished third, beating Spectrum 78-54 on Saturday. Alex Staniforth scored 31 points, Brooks Branchi had 22 and Ryder Jenks added 18. Welly also beat Barsby 86-27 behind Staniforth’s 32 points. The ’Cats started Superball with a 103-99 loss to Mountain. Jacobs scored 52 in that one, Staniforth scored 42, Branchi had 27 and Jenks added 19.
Barsby’s boys finished fifth at the tourney, beating Poppy 67-42. Ibrahim Herwi scored 38 points.
In Saturday’s senior girls’ final, Shawnigan defeated Credo Christian 65-53. Nanaimo District beat Wellington 37-30 earlier that day, with the Islanders’ Jenna Falkenberg and Mona Peng scoring 12 points apiece and the Wildcats’ Mccalli Franklin scoring 12, as well.
NDSS also beat Poppy 44-20, led by Brianna Gray’s 14 points, and lost to Credo 61-40 with Peng scoring 20.
Welly’s girls began Superball with a 55-44 loss to Shawnigan in which Hassy Fashina-Bombata scored 15 and Shaylie Jobbagy scored 14. Wellington handled Barsby 67-20 the next day with Franklin scoring 17 and Madelin Boas adding 12.
Barsby’s girls lost to Shawnigan 75-42, with Jessica Katzberg scoring 22, and then beat Poppy 39-30 with Katzberg scoring 21 and Krysta McGuffie adding 13. The Blazers girls also got in a game against Kwalikum, losing 50-47, with McGuffie scoring 22.
sports@nanaimobulletin.com
