With high school basketball season in full swing, civic bragging rights will be on the line when two all-Surrey tournaments – one for girls, the other for boys – take place this month, starting Tuesday (Jan. 8).
First up, for senior girls, the 18th annual Surrey Fire Fighters Goodwill Basketball Classic will be held from Jan. 8 to 12 at the host school, Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary, with Westland Insurance as presenting sponsor.
Last January, the girls of Semiahmoo Secondary won the Fire Fighters Classic after defeating Lord Tweedsmuir on their home court in Cloverdale, by a score of 76-62.
Twenty teams from Surrey participate in the city invitational, and many teams have made it a permanent fixture in their tournament calendar.
“Many firefighters volunteer their time organizing game schedules, sponsorship providing BBQ sales with all proceeds supporting the tournament,” says a post on the tourney website (surreyfirefighters.com/basketball).
“The theme of the tournament involves promoting volunteerism, diversity in the fire service, and female sport.”
CLICK HERE to see photos from last year’s tourney.
• RELATED STORIES:
Firefighters basketball classic shows ‘Goodwill’ from Surrey’s high school girls, from December 2017.
600-plus boys in action during Surrey RCMP Basketball Classic, from January 2018.
For senior and junior boys, the 28th annual Surrey RCMP Classic basketball tournament will take place during the week of Jan. 13 to 19.
In the 2018 RCMP Classic final last January, Semiahmoo topped Tamanawis to win the Classic’s senior boys championship by a score of 73-64 at Enver Creek Secondary. Semiahmoo was down by 18 at halftime, but rallied to win the tournament for a second year in a row.
“The RCMP tournament is a really meaningful one – it means a lot to us as a team, and it means a lot for the city, too,” Semiahmoo head coach Ed Lefurgy said after the game. “So for us to be back-to-back champs, it’s a big deal for us.”
More than 600 boys played in the 2018 RCMP Classic, which featured 22 senior teams and 20 junior squads in action at school gyms across Surrey.
In the 2018 junior final, the Manny Dulay-coached Tamanawis team beat Lord Tweedsmuir to win the banner.
The 2018 tourney was held in honour of Raphael Alcoreza, the Panorama Ridge senior who died in hospital in December 2017, a week after collapsing during a basketball game at Holy Cross Regional High School.
The tourney website is surreybasketballclassic.info.
Also in Surrey this month, the BC Catholics tournament will be played at Holy Cross Regional High School from Jan. 16 to 19.
tom.zillich@surreynowleader.comLike us on Facebook Follow us on Instagram and follow Tom on Twitter
