With the exception of a slight hiccup, the U15 host team turned in a strong performance in the Lake City Boys Spring Tip-Off tournament on the weekend.
The squad went undefeated in the first three games, turning in some outstanding play and exciting final moments and comebacks.
Their only blemish in the season-opening tournament, which came on the heels of the previous weekend’s Lake City Girls Spring Tip-Off, was a 44-32 loss to the Kamloops Pro Hop U15 squad.
“Overall the boys played very well. I was pleased with their effort, skill and competitiveness through all the games played,” said head coach Dustin Hyde afterwards.
Lake City opened the tournament with a nail-biter against the U14 Kelowna Heat.
After falling behind 14-0 in the opening half the coach said his team showed some true grit and resilience fighting back to eventually go in front.
With the lead exchanging hands throughout the match, it all came down to the final seconds.
“The Heat hit a three (pointer) with 10 seconds left to bring the game within one point,” said Hyde. “We managed to successfully enter the ball and avoid any potential steals or turnovers that could have led to an opportunity for the Heat to win the game.”
Top scorers in the match were Carson Drobe with 17 points and Adrian Oriolio who chipped in 15.
Related: Penticton’s Lake City basketball overcome by Kelowna Heat
The excitement continued in the second game against the U15 Kelowna Heat with Lake City edging their opponents by just a single point, 48-47.
It was Oriolio who iced the contest with less than 20 seconds to play, making back-to-back free throws.
Things went a bit more smoothly in game three against the U15 Salmon Arm Synergy.
“This was a great game for our squad with everyone playing lots of minutes, contributing offensively, and contributing to a great team win,” said Hyde.
Top scorers in the 58-38 victory were Oriolio with 13 and Nickita Sergeev adding a dozen.
According to Hyde his squad ran into problems against the zone defence of the Kamloops team in the final and did not shoot well as a result of that frustration.
“This early in the year, we had not yet practiced any zone offence and as such, struggled immensely,” he said. “Despite losing by 12 the boys competed hard and battled to keep it close.”
A total of 16 teams took part in the club tournament which ran Friday to Sunday at Penticton Secondary, Skaha and KVR middle schools.
