Three South Surrey teams advanced into the second round of the Surrey RCMP Basketball Classic after winning opening games Tuesday afternoon.
Playing at Southridge School, the White Rock Christian Academy Warriors beat Queen Elizabeth 81-42, while Southridge defeated L.A. Matheson 71-53 and Elgin Park edged Clayton Heights 56-52.
The fourth South Surrey school in the tourney’s main draw, Earl Marriott, lost Tuesday 64-34 to Cloverdale’s Lord Tweedsmuir.
In Pool B – for teams ousted from contention after Sunday’s preliminary round – the Semiahmoo Totems beat Sullivan Heights 83-63.
For WRCA, who played Princess Margaret Wednesday after press deadline, the first-round victory was a chance for every player to get into the game; all but one of the team’s 12 players scored at least one point.
Jake Newman led the team with 15 points, Vartan Tanielian had 12 and Peter Spangehl chipped in with 10. Jon Pelling was named the player of the game after a nine-point performance.
“Jon had a very good game. He put a lot of pressure on (Queen Elizabeth) defenders, he sprinted the floor, made a lot of smart decisions out there and played good defence,” said WRCA coach John Dykstra.
All three South Surrey squads still in the running for the RCMP Classic title – won last year by Enver Creek – were back on the court Wednesday, with further games scheduled throughout the week. Other teams advancing past Tuesday’s first round included Enver Creek, Tamanawis – who are ranked third in B.C. – Princess Margaret and Fleetwood Park.
Semifinals are slated for tomorrow (Friday), and the championship game takes place Saturday, 7:45 p.m., at Enver Creek.
