STE. ANNE DE BELLEVUE, Que. - There was a point in the second
half - with the score and time against them, staring at an 18-point
deficit - when many teams would have folded up shop and thrown in
the towel.
It speaks to the ability of the players, the brilliance of the
coaches and the character of the entire Sheridan Bruins men's
basketball team (32-11, 21-2 OCAA) that over the course of four
minutes and 10 seconds that lead had been chopped down to just one,
heading into the final frame.
But despite the white-knuckle drama, the gritty tenacity and the
tremendous heart, it wasn't meant to be, as VIU executed better -
by the most narrow of margins - in the final 90 seconds to hang on
for an 80-76 win over the Bruins in the national semi final.
"It's obviously a very disappointing finish in what has been a
great season, but we just made too many mental errors at the start
of the game and at the end of the game against a very good team,"
assistant coach Leroy Cassnova said. "When you make errors like
that [and] fall down 18, you expend so much energy to get back in
the game, then actually take the lead, only to make those mistakes
and you just can't do that at this level. You have to play
consistent for 40 minutes and we weren't that today."
The Bruins actually got off to a better start then they had in most
of their post-season contests, leading for much of the way through
the first quarter.
An 8-0 VIU run in a little less than two minutes pushed the
Double-Blue into their biggest deficit of the early going, down
16-11, but they were able to crawl back to within two, down 18-16,
after one.
VIU was able to take command again early in the second, opening on
a 13-4 run in the first 3:13 to give themselves their first
double-digit advantage of the game, 31-20.
Over the remaining six and a half minutes of play, every time
Sheridan made a run to cut into the deficit, VIU had some kind of
response, though the Bruins were at least able to cut it back to
single digits, as they trailed 43-35 at the break.
It was a similar story in the third quarter, as VIU was able to
limit what Sheridan could get at the offensive end, extending their
lead to 18, 60-42, with 5:18 left in the frame.
It didn't happen all at once, but the Double-Blue started slowly
chipping away at the margin - feeding off a boisterous crowd that
had made the trip down the 401 - closing the period on a 17-0 run
over the final 4:10 to pull within one, 60-59, heading to the
fourth.
With just over seven minutes to play, the Bruins took their first
lead of the game since the first quarter, but VIU answered by
connecting on a trio of three-pointers on their next three
possessions, while also getting stops at the defensive end, leading
72-65 with just under five minutes remaining.
Sheridan once again battled back, with an 8-0 run giving them a
73-72 edge with 2:11 remaining.
With a pair of free throws and a jumper, VIU pulled back ahead
75-73, and even though the Bruins were able to pull level, they
were unable to reclaim the lead.
VIU converted five of their six attempts from the line in the final
48 seconds to seal the win.
Now moving to the bronze medal bracket, the Double-Blue will play
the hosts from John Abbott in a bronze semi final in the morning
with the winner advancing the bronze medal game later in the
evening.
Though the task of bouncing back from being eliminated from title
contention and re-focusing efforts on bronze can be a daunting one,
Cassanova says the team still has much to play for.
"We told the guys it's a big picture thing, we're trying to win a
medal here," he said. "We can increase our overall standing in the
CCAA and that can matter for wildcard bids next year, so we've put
that out there for our guys. We don't want to come out here this
weekend and not come away without something, so that's going to be
our motivation."
Blue notes: VIU held a big lead in the free throw department,
doubling up the Bruins in attempts 34-17.
Source: Sheridan I.T.