The Lambrick Park Lions and Ladysmith 49ers are no strangers in the night, having played each other in three sa国际传媒 boys鈥� high school Double-A championship games over the years.
They renewed acquaintances Thursday night at St. Michaels University School gymnasium in the 2018 Double-A Island championship quarter-finals, with the Lions emerging victorious by an 84-51 score.
The present, however, appears to belong to two rival private institutions just over the Malahat.
Provincially top-ranked Brentwood College defeated Pacific Christian School 91-52 and the Shawnigan Lake School Stags easily dispatched Brooks of Powell River to advance to tonight鈥檚 semifinals.
The host SMUS Blue Jags defeated Highland of Comox 93-55 in the other quarter-final to advance to a semifinal date with Brentwood College at 5:30 p.m. The other semifinal will feature Shawnigan Lake and Lambrick Park at 7:15 p.m.
Blake Gage鈥檚 Brentwood College squad is the class of the four semifinalists, a sentiment echoed even by opponents.
鈥淏rentwood is a cut above and clearly the best, and by some distance, in the province,鈥� said SMUS coach Ian Hyde-Lay.
That could cut across all levels, up to the big-school Quad-A level, noted Hyde-Lay.
鈥淏rentwood is as good as any team in the province,鈥� concurred Lambrick Park coach Ed Somers.
The question is who will take the other spots behind Brentwood College this weekend. The top-two earn direct spots into the sa国际传媒 Double-A championships while the third-place finisher will play the third place team from the Okanagan for a berth into provincials.
鈥淭his is the toughest zone to get out of,鈥� said Somers, in his 30th season of coaching Lambrick Park.
鈥淭here is no easy path. Shawnigan Lake, who we play in the semifinals, is extremely talented and play the [coach] Vito Pasquale trademark defence.鈥�
Right back at you, said Pasquale, the former University of Victoria Vikes guard.
鈥淓d [Somers] has had the tradition and his players work hard for him,鈥� said Pasquale.
The provincially eighth-ranked Stags, however, are the clear favourites in tonight鈥檚 semifinal against the Lions.
鈥淲e have outside shooting and also an inside presence,鈥� said Pasquale, of his balanced squad.
But everybody knows who everybody is watching in this tournament. Brentwood College, best known in sports for producing Olympic-medallist rowers and World Cup rugby players for sa国际传媒, has shown it can also slam it down on the court.
鈥淏rentwood College plays a running game and they score 30 to 40 points a game off turnovers,鈥� Pasquale said. 鈥淭hat makes playing them very hard.鈥�
Meanwhile, the Island boys鈥� Quad-A championships, with the sa国际传媒 top-ranked Oak Bay Bays the favourites, are taking place through Saturday in Cowichan.
