Whitehorse Daily Star

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Photo by John Tonin

EYES ON THE RIM – F.H. Collins Warriors guard Ralph Hermosa, centre, gets into his shooting stroke while Vanier Crusaders guard Christian Miral, nine, defends during sec- ond half Superhoops semifinal action at Vanier on Wednesday.

Crusaders, Warriors earn finals berth

The gym at Vanier was a hopping place.

By John Tonin on February 21, 2019

The gym at Vanier was a hopping place. Students and fans packed the bleachers to watch their team do battle in the Superhoops semifinals. The emcee of the game made sure the place stayed loud, he even got the crowd to do the wave.

Those fans were treated to two high-stakes basketball games Wednesday night. The first game saw the Vanier Crusaders take on the Porter Creek Rams to see who has the opportunity to play for the championship against the F.H. Warriors tonight.

During the first two quarters, the Crusaders were able to get inside the Rams defence and get easy buckets from the paint.

Nicole Farus led the Crusader attack getting deep post position and getting hoops from the low block. Most of the first half was played in the Rams defensive zone and when the Rams did get the ball they tried to push the tempo and get on the break.

In the second half, the Rams collapsed their defence so the Crusaders could not get into the paint forcing them to shoot. The defensive scheme worked and they were able to get some points in transition but the first half deficit was to much for them too overcome.

The Crusaders took the game 58-21.

“Last year it was really close and we pulled it off 58-56 and they had beaten us all year,” said Londero. “I think it is going to be exciting and I think both teams are excited to face off again.”

Londero said that the team tried some new things on offence in preparation of tomorrow’s final.

“We are going to have to play tight defence to have a good game against them (F.H.)” said Londero. “We were trying some things tonight that we were working on the last 10 days. We have some really fast girls so the big thing is move the ball quicker.”

In the boys’ semifinal, the Warriors took on the Crusaders for the opportunity to play the Rams for the championship.

The game was everything you would expect for a game of such consequence. Each team laid it all on the floor.

The first half took some time for the two teams to look comfortable. Either team could get into an offensive rhythm which made the defence good. As well each team forced transition opportunities often resulting in turnovers or ill-advised shots.

Neither team could separate themselves from the other in the first 20-minutes and that was true going into half as the Warriors led by one.

The final two frames were an absolute barnburner.

The Crusaders opened the third on a run by ramping up their defence and hitting their shots. Their guards were making quick passes and cuts into the lane which opened up opportunities from behind the arc which they cashed in.

The Warriors made a run of their own using the fast-break and drilling their open three-pointers. The lead changed multiple times and headed into the final frame the two teams were still separated by one point.

In the fourth, player of the game, Ralph Hermosa showed why he is one of the best players in high school basketball.

The Warriors jumped out to an early six-point lead in the fourth led by Hermosa who was displaying all the facets of his game. He was hitting from deep, getting buckets in transition, and scoring from the low post.

The Crusaders made a run and got a big three from Josh Rumbaoa to bring the game within one hoop.

Hermosa had an answer.

With the clock ticking closer to zero, Hermosa caught the ball at the top of the key, drove forward, hit his defender with a step back and with a hand in his face buried a triple. The F.H. fans in the crowd went nuts.

After the game was in the books, Hermosa remained humble about his performance instead focusing on the teams’ effort.

“It was good we just pushed a lot and we got it,” said Hermosa. when asked about his own performance. “They were great, everyone battled hard, we battled hard rebounding, pushing the ball, everything.”

If you want to see some of the best young hoopers Whitehorse has to offer the Superhoops finals will be played tonight at Vanier. The girls play at 5 p.m. and the boys at 6:45 p.m.

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