By Jeremy Siggelkow

The first quarter of the Briercrest home game started off with a loud bang, as Grady Taylor, a forward from the Lethbridge Kodiak’s made the first point. Shortly after, star-player Ethan DaSilva, tried to regain calibration leading his team with a great play, yet the net remained empty. As the 1^st quarter unfolded, Kodiaks took the lead with a monstrous slam dunk, by Robert Miles III, that sent the crowd into a loud cheer, bringing the scoreboard up to 15-0 advantage for Lethbridge.

Despite the odds, Briercrest continued to push back, as Ethan Da Silva, executed impressive ball-handling skills, carefully weaving his way in-and-out of the defensive line of his opponents with precision. Shortly thereafter, Daniel Reynolds, a 6’3 guard for Briercrest fired off an incredible 3-point shot, but it didn’t find the net. Later, Da Silva forced his way into the box for a beautiful center lay up, but got fouled. He sunk his first shot with authority, then proceeded to sink his second with consistency. Following directly after Da Silva’s success with his foul shots, he pushed back with another impressive lay up right down the middle of the court.

In the 2^nd quarter, Pierce Van Gaalen from Lethbridge set the tone of the game, powerfully sinking a 3-point shot, which advanced the scoreboard to 27-7 for Lethbridge. Despite the lead, Briercrest held their heads high and continued to hustle hard with strong, relentless attempts to catch back up. Directly following the 3-point shot, Brian Tolentino confidently dribbled the ball in between his legs, carrying the ball up the court; while initiating a consecutive progression of multiple passes around the top of Lethbridge’s end. Still, great passing skills and confidence was not enough to infiltrate the strong defensive line of Lethbridge. With only 45 seconds left on the clock, Da Silva led his team on their last offensive crusade, but they get pushed back by Lethbridge who scored another basket just before the buzzer chimed in to end the 2^nd quarter.

Again, Robert Miles III led the game with a basket; while Da Silva led the 3^rd quarter for Briercrest with a confident execution of a beautiful lay up right down the center of the court. But, this fancy maneuver by Da Silva wasn’t enough to put Briercrest ahead. Following shortly after, Ben Kornelsen intercepted the ball from Lethbridge and passed it off to Da Silva. Briercrest fought hard, but Cory Richardson from the Kodiak’s powerfully intercepted the ball and performed a disheartening slam dunk that sent an electric shock through the crowd. DaSilva pushed back with a strong offensive attack forcing Lethbridge back to their end. His moves were impressive, but he just barely missed the net. After a short timeout, the players returned to the court. Briercrest continued to fight hard, as Thomas Neustaedter, from Briercrest, got a break away, but it wasn’t enough. In the last 45 seconds, Christopher McLachlan, from Briercrest, tried to send Da Silva on an impressive break way, but the ball was intercepted, leaving the score at a 64-28 advantage for Lethbridge.

Leading the 4^th quarter, Lethbridge held their ground, sinking a well-thought out basket almost immediately. Briercrest returned fire, with an equally as nice basket showing that they won’t accept home defeat. Shortly after, Da Silva threw up a beautiful 3-point shot. It didn’t go in, but both teams continued to fight hard exchanging basket-for-basket, and push-for-push, moving the ball up and down the court. Later on, Joshua Mohammed, a player from Briercrest, banked an impressive 3-point basket, and Zephaniah Moore of Briercrest made a great play. Despite Briercrest’s intensity and impressive moves, Lethbridge continued to set the pace for the game as Thomas Anderson got a basket for Lethbridge keeping them in the lead with a score of 82-34. As the clock timer slowly counted down, reading 24, 23, and 22, time began to run out for Briercrest, as Taylor Hammel, a player from Lethbridge, threw down a huge slam dunk that wowed the crowd. Da Silva responded aggressively and confidently from Briercrest, as he passed off an impressive play to Ben Kornelsen, Although Briercrest looked strong, well-polished, and well-practiced, they couldn’t get enough baskets in the net to take the lead. Losing to the Kodiaks 91-44.

Brandon Tolentino was Briercrest Player of the Game with a team high 10 points.

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