Saturday's victory was somewhat bittersweet for the Porter Creek Rams senior boys' basketball team.

In a fitting end to what could be called a dream season, the Rams posted a win over the Vanier Crusaders in the final of the Yukon High School Basketball Championships, clinching their third straight title and running their overall record this year to 22-2.

While there were certainly smiles and jubilant celebration, as they stood at centre court hoisting the trophy, there were also some emotional moments for the five starting seniors, who have been playing ball together for the past five years.

'This was our last game together,' explained Sina Kazemi, who was named MVP of the senior boys' tournament. 'We knew it was all or nothing. This is truly the end of an era for us.

'It's amazing. We've been playing since Grade 8 and we've all stuck together.'

With just a few minutes left in their final match, and the Rams up by double digits, head coach Logan Wedge began taking his starters off the court and putting in the reserves.

As much as it gave those on the bench an opportunity to end the season with some action, it was more of a nod to the hard work Kazemi, Tim Beaver, Zack Carey, Sam Johnson and Chad Curlew had put in.

'What we wanted to do, was have a chance to bring the seniors off and give them a round of applause,' explained Wedge. 'We wanted to show our appreciation.'

It was thanks to the chemistry of those five, as well as the effort of the other players who came in off the bench, that the Rams were able to prevail in Saturday's final.

Vanier threw everything they could at Porter Creek, said Wedge, pointing out the strong play of Crusaders Alejandro Pulido and Tory Wiebe, who were both named the the all-star team.

'Vanier has really improved since the start of the year,' said Wedge. 'The way they've played the past two weeks ... wow ... I'm glad we got them now before they got any better.'

The coach said his team focused a lot on mental preparation prior to the final, knowing they had to play their game and not underestimate their opponent. Just because a team shows up, doesn't mean they're going to win, he stated.

'These other teams have a lot of pride. It would have made their season to beat us. But we knew if we played our game, we could win.'

Wedge gave credit to his entire team, which he said was great at taking direction and always made the necessary adjustments. Curlew and Johnson were unstoppable with their speed, he said, while Kazemi really stretched out Vanier's defence.

'They have to respect him at the three-point line, but the thing is, he can also drive and score, so he makes it tough.

'We're a tiny team ... only three guys are over six feet tall. But we're the fastest team and one of the toughest. We won't back down.'

Kazemi, who also won the boy's three-point contest earlier in the evening, said Porter Creek played good team ball throughout the week-long tournament, with everyone making their shots.

'That's how we always play and that's what won us this championship.'

It was a similar story in the senior girls' final, as the F.H. Collins Warriors showed up in top form for their contest against Porter Creek.

The Rams earned a buy into the final earlier in the week, thanks to a big win over the Warriors, and F.H. had to get through Vanier first in Friday's semifinal.

But F.H. came together when it mattered the most, and led by tournament MVP May Nguyen, as well as all-star Noria Deacon, clinched their first Yukon championship in a number of years with a strong 79-48 victory.

'I'm not used to this,' laughed Nguyen, after accepting both the title and her individual award following the boys' game. 'Before this year, I'd never even made a final.

'All of the training through the year is totally worthwhile.'

Nguyen, a senior, added she'd been training especially hard this last year, because she knew the team had a lot of potential.

'The homework's been piling up,' she joked, before paying thanks to one of her role models. 'As Miss J (coach Ann Jirousek) would say, quitters never win and winners never quit. Miss J was a huge inspiration to me.

'It's overwhelming. This is my dream ... I wanted to win this so much.'

Nguyen, like Kazemi, Beaver, Curlew, Carey and Johnson, played her final game as a member of her high school's basketball team Saturday.

A few of them are hoping to go on to university or college ball next season Kazemi has a tryout at the University of Alberta in two weeks.

Wedge said it's always tough for teams when they lose their senior leadership, but it will be particularly tough for the Rams to lose this year's starting five, from a squad he refered to as the best team he's coached in his tenure.

'I've got one more task for them before I let them go,' he smiled. 'We're going to start some spring practices for some of the younger guys. I'm going to have these guys practice against my 11s and 10s and hope they can teach them a few things.'