Concordia Stingers' 6'2" forward
Patrick Perrotte knocked down a step-back "3" as the buzzer sounded giving
Canada Red, coached by John Abbott College's
Scott Mawhinney, an
85-82 victory over Canada White, coached by Windsor's
Chris Oliver in the 2nd annual Be One All-Canadian game played before a sparse crowd at Humber College on Saturday afternoon. With the game tied and only 4 seconds remaining on the clock, Perrotte (pictured below) took an in-bounds pass, got free and then swished a jumper to give his team the victory. Perrotte was a difficult check inside and out all afternoon, leading all scorers with 25 points and garning MVP honours in the game. Team White was led by UPEI's 6'9"
Doug McKinney, who flashed his shooting range and also scored inside on a series of turnarounds to finish with 21 points. McKinney, who fouled out of yesterday's game having to deal with Canada Red's front court duo of 6'7"
J.P. Morin and 6'2" Perrotte, looks to have lost some significant weight and played with much energy in what appears to be a concerted effort to attract attention for representing Canada.
Other top performers in the game included UBC's 6'4"
Casey Archibald (19 points/5 assists in 34 minutes), who made several tough shots as part of a 5 for 8 effort from 3 point land and worked well with Ottawa's 6'4"
Josh Gibson-Bascombe (7 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists/0 turnovers in 31 minutes), who after a silent start came on somewhat down the stretch of the game; 6'2"
Osvaldo Jeanty (13 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists in 35 minutes) from Carleton who as always played every possession as if it were his last and looked much fresher than he did during the latter stages of the season when it was pretty clear to many observers that he was playing through a number of aches and pains (see below for a sizeable piece on Jeanty from this morning's Ottawa Sun); Laval's
Morin (18 points on 8-12 shooting in 25 minutes) who again showed his tremendous inside/out game and continues to mature physically and mentally as a player; 5'8"
Martin Ajayi (12 points on 3-9 shooting, 5 assists) from McMaster who applied his usually-tough ball pressure defensively and created turnovers for his team and 6'8"
Dan Eves (11 points including 3 of 5 from three) from York, who showed off his perimeter shooting and underrated passing skills from the forward position. 5'10" Brock guard
Brad Rootes, coming off a rib injury sustained in the OUA West playoffs in early March, appeared to be rounding back into form and showed off his solid floor leader skills. 6'1" AUS MVP
Paolo Santana from Acadia who had 13 points on 5-9 shooting in only 14 minutes but saw limited action and generally struggled while usually dominating the ball when on the floor. 6'5" Cape Breton forward
Eric Breland worked well inside but appeared to be struggling with his fitness since the end of the season. 6'3"
Jean-Francois Beaulieu-Mahieux unfortunately suffered a severe charley horse during workouts earlier in the week and could not play in the game while 6'4"
Jerome Turcotte (7 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists in 30 minutes), chosen to the game after a stellar season at CEGEP Ste-Foy and will suit up for Coach
Jacques Paiement's Laval Rouge et Or showed observers that he will add another element of talent to Laval in the coming season and played as hard as anyone on the floor.
Here is a nice article mentioning former Canada National team star Howard Kelsey and some work he is contributing to for a Vancouver project
Vancouver Street Basketball gets a boost A nice piece by Neate Sager from "Out in Left Field" on Carleton's recent hiring of Taffe Charles as women's head basketball coach
Can Taffe pull the women's Ravens out of the doldrums Finally a very nice piece from Rob Brodie of the Ottawa Sun on Osvaldo Jeanty
The Wizard of OsHere is the officiall Press Release from Canada Basketball on yesterday's event:
MEDIA RELEASE
www.basketball.ca
May 5, 2007
Team Red Victorious In Both Games of Be One
All-Canadian Weekend Double-Header
(Etobicoke, Ontario) The top University and College basketball players from across the country converged on Humber College this weekend for the second annual Be One All-Canadian Weekend. Celebrating and rewarding the accomplishments of Canada’s collegiate players, the weekend culminates with a Men’s and Women’s All-Star Games. Led by Sarah Crooks, Team Red won the first game of the double-header 72-62, while Patrick Perrotte scored 25 points to power Team Red to an 85-82 victory over Team White in the men’s action.
The women’s game kicked off at noon with a back-and-forth first quarter that saw Team Red, coached by Vanier College Head Coach Ruby Viray – who led her team to the Canadian College title earlier this year -, take a slim 20-18 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Team White battled back in the second quarter however, outscoring red 24-17 in the period to take a 42-37 halftime led by a game-high 16 first-half points by team white’s Laurelle Weigle, the CIS rookie of the year from Simon Fraser University. Two other players finished in double-digit scoring, both from Team Red, CIS player of the year and national team player from the University of Saskatchewan, Sarah Crooks tallied 16 points while Laurentian University’s second team All-Canadian Cassandra Carpenter added 10 points.
Team Red battled back in the second half holding white to just eight points in the third quarter while tallying 23 themselves to take a 60-50 lead into the final stanza of play.
Both teams scored 12 points apiece in the fourth quarter as Team Red maintained their 10-point lead to ensure the victory.
“This event is a great opportunity for the best in Canada to showcase their talent”, commented winning team red Head Coach and Canada West Coach of the Year Scott Edwards. “Coaching Sarah (Crooks) was fun, after coaching against her several times in the season.”
Crooks led all players in points (22) and rebounds (11) and was named the games MVP. Team white was led by 20 points from Weigle.
“It was really fun to come in and play against players that you hear about all year and never had a chance to play with,” commented Crooks. “It’s great to come together and make a team and then interact with each other”.
The men’s game tipped off at 2:30 p.m. with Team Red, lead by Canadian National team member Osvaldo Jeanty, owning a 23-18 after a closely fought first quarter.
Team Red extended their lead early in the second quarter before Team White battled back with an 8-2 run in the middle of the stanza. Team White went on to win the period 23-19 and cut Red’s lead to 42-39 at the half. Doug McKinney, an AUS All-Star from the University of Prince Edward Island, led all scorers in the half with 14 points for Team White. Two other players scored in double figures with 10 points; University of British Columbia and Team White guard Casey Archibald, and Douglas College and Team Red forward Andrew Sturgeon.
Both teams fought hard in the third quarter, with Team Red outscoring Team White 21-19, on the strength of Concordia University and First Team-All Canadian Patrick Perrotte. Team Red held a 63-58 lead into the fourth quarter.
Team White closed the gap in the fourth quarter with a 9-0 run, making the game a back-and-and forth affair down the stretch until in the final seconds when Perrotte hit a three pointer as the buzzer sounded to win the game for Team Red and make the final score 85-82.
“The three point shot happened so fast,” said Perrotte. “We had nothing to lose. I hit the shot, we win the game, I miss, we go to overtime.”
Perrotte also earned game MVP honors, leading all scorers with 25 points and adding four assists. Team White was led by McKinney with 21 points.
“The weekend was a really great experience and it was exciting to showcase our skills in front of national team coaches,” added Perrotte. “It was really great to compete with and against the best collegiate players in the country”.
“It was a great weekend. The player and guest coaches got a chance to watch and learn from the national team head coaches and everyone learned a lot,” said Head Coach Scott Mawhinney. “The kids played extremely hard and you could see their improvement over the course of the weekend.”
The second annual Be One All-Canadian weekend brought together Canada’s top basketball talent under one roof. This game and weekend celebrated the accomplishments of the top players and coaches across the country, giving them the opportunity of being watched by National Team coaches.
For further information please contact: Tanya Phillipps, Canada Basketball, 416-614-8037
tphillipps@basketball.ca
Congratulations to long-time official Steve Foxcroft who has been named as officiating evaluator for the OUA East men, replacing Doug Harris who resigned shortly after last season. The role includes evaluating officials through live viewing and feedback from coaches and assigning which officials work OUA East league games. Foxcroft adds the men's officiating responsibilities to his ongoing role as evaluator for OUA women's play. Foxcroft, son of legendary referee Ron Foxcroft, has himself been a successful OUA West official since the late 80's and has worked numerous CIS Nationals games including several championship games. It is not clear whether or not this will mean Foxcroft will no longer referee games himself. Long-time Hamilton-based referee Guy Cipriani maintains his role as OUA West evaluator and assignor.
As previously announced by Canada Basketball, open tryouts for Canada's three international teams competing in various events this summer begin in mid-June in Toronto. Several current, former and rising CIS players should have strong opportunities to make U-21, FISU games and Senior National team rosters. The recent All-Canadian game at Humber College was the first of several opportunities for coaches to evaluate prospect talent and here is a quick look at some of the potential CIS stars who could have an impact on our national team programs this summer. One of Canada's strongest hopefuls for a long, successful career with the National program is 6'7" Aaron Doornekamp (Carleton), who brings a wide array of skills to the table including a competitive streak virtually like no other. Doornekamp already displays all the necessary skills of a prototypical international wing with the size, shooting range, passing and ball handling skills, plus some intangibles that contribute to winning. Doornekamp played through various ailments this season that contributed to less-than-stellar numbers during the regular season but he showed that when the stakes are highest, he can elevate his game, as he did in capturing the MVP at the recent CIS nationals. All Doornekamp lacks currently is experience (he's still only 22 years old) and some strength to compete with older, more physical international opponents at his position to possibly become one of Canada's better international players, beginning this summer on the Senior men's team. At 6'4", Casey Archibald possesses the perimeter shooting skills to stretch defenses and the strength and ball handling abilities to handle the basketball if and when required. Archibald matured dramatically in his last 2 seasons of CIS play with UBC as he transformed himself from a tall, relatively slight guard who needed screens to get open to a stronger, mentally tougher wing player who could create his own shot, shoot from distance and get to the rim when needed. He also improved his rebounding and playmaking skills. He could be a smaller version of a Sean Vankoughnett-type player who can make shots in bunches who can be productive in the proper system with the proper lead guard. Expect Archibald to play a role on the FISU games team at a minimum and possibly push for a role on the Senior team. Those who count out 6'2" Osvaldo Jeanty, the two-time Moser Award winner and five-time CIS champion with Carleton could again be in for a surprise as Jeanty's infectious competitive spirit and cerebral understanding of the game could be appealing qualities for the senior program. Jeanty is a bit undersized as a wing for international play however he understands the defensive principles that Canada is likely to implement, has no problem trying to lead in any environment and is not afraid to take big shots. Expect Oz to push for a role on the Senior men's team and if not be a solid part of the FISU team. A veteran of international play for Canada, St. FX's 6'3" Garry Gallimore brings explosive athleticism and the ability to play a shut-down role defensively as he displayed a couple of summers ago against USA's J.J. Reddick (now in the League with Orlando). Garry is a very hard worker who is very coachable and has the mental toughness to play whatever role is assigned to him. This summer is a very important one in Garry's basketball career as he aspires to play professionally somewhere either this coming season or next. Expect Gallimore to push for an important role with Canada's national program in some key capacity. Gallimore's teammate at X, 6'10" Neil MacDonald has previous experience internationally with Canada and has been preparing daily for what could be his final chance at wearing the Red and White. MacDonald has the length and experience that could find him on the senior team but more likely as a FISU team candidate. At 6'7" with solid perimeter skills and a nice back-to-the-basket game, Laval's J.P. Morin has the tools to be a contributor at the International level for Canada. For the second consecutive year, Morin was one of the top players at the recent All-Canada game and has a genuine opportunity to play internationally for Canada as soon as this summer. Others who may have opportunities with Canada internationally include Ryan Bell from Carleton who was in the program last summer but experienced only an average season by his standards with the Ravens this past winter. Ryan has a solid understanding of the game at the point, can defend well with his length and knowledge of the game and is at his best when he is consistently making perimeter jumpers, an area of his game that was solid in '05-'06 but fell off a bit last year; Victoria's Jacob Doerksen who brings a blend of talent and athleticism to the table and Ottawa's 6'4" Josh Gibson-Bascombe, a taller point guard who can stretch defenses with his shooting and can be effective when playing aggressively.
