BC AAA Boys Provincials - Championship 2018 Preview

The Byrne Creek Bulldogs and South Kamloops Titans will square off at 6:00 pm in the highly anticipated AAA final.

South Kamloops led at half against Pitt Meadows in the semi final, only to shoot 27% from the floor in the second half to allow the Marauders back into it and eventually lead 59-49 late. The Titans turning point came with a quick five point swing in the fourth, giving Kamloops the lead late which they would never relinquish.

For Kamloops, this game is also about redemption. After losing in the final last year to Rick Hansen, they are looking to finally get their hands on the provincial banner.

“The guys are excited” said head coach Bryce McMillan. “As soon as that buzzer went last year, we looked around and we said ‘We’ll be back next year.’ Well here we are, and it’s time to finish what we started.”

Byrne Creek trailed at halftime in the previous two games — and both times they’ve been able to come back and win. In the semifinal, they trailed by five at the break and into the third by 10 points before going on a 20-6 run to come back and win.

South Kamloops games have all been close — which is either a sign that they’re ready for the pressures of the final or they’ve underachieved so far, depending on who you ask. Byrne Creek will take solace in the fact that no matter how much they’re down, they have the ability to come back.

Watch for the matchup between Martin Djunga and Nick Sarai in this one. If one of them can shut down the other, that should give his team a huge advantage. Also, the battle inside will be a point of contention as Majok Deng could have trouble shutting Ripley Martin of Kamloop

Written By: Nick Bondi