Phoenix return to Classic semifinals
The Saint Francis Phoenix’s quest to defend its All-Ontario Catholic Classic basketball championship is still alive but just barely.
Saint Francis got all in could handle from the Ursuline College Lancers from Chatham Friday evening before emerging with a 70-67 victory.
Ursuline led 19-16 after one quarter and 37-32 at the half before a 16-2 Phoenix run in the third quarter helped Saint Francis enter the final quarter ahead 52-48. The Phoenix went ahead 62-53 but the Lancers would not go away and the game was tied 67-67 late in the game. Three late free throws by Saint Francis iced the victory.
“We opened it up by nine and I thought we would be alright but they sped us up a little bit, we took bad shots and they got back into the game,” Saint Francis head coach Rich Alderson said. “Kudos to them for using that strategy but we have to be a little more disciplined at the end of the games.”
The win advances the Phoenix to the Classic semifinals for the third straight year.
“I am really proud of our program and our guys. It is a testament to the hard work the guys put in and the coaching staffs from the juniors to the seniors. It is a whole program thing and it is a lot of effort and time put in,” he said. “The players are working their butts off each and every day and spending a lot of time in the gym.”
The Catholic Classic is an important tournament for the Phoenix.
“It’s the All-Catholic tournament and you are getting the best teams from across province. I know Wade (Pychel) and the tournament committee do a lot of research to get the best teams here,” Alderson said. “It is a nice prep for the OFSAA (Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations) run. There are quality teams and we really look forward to that, playing in tough and tight games. It is what we want at this point in our season, to play amazing competition and be pushed and challenged.”
Reigning tournament MVP Andrew Ens led the Phoenix to the win with 20 points. Also scoring for Saint Francis were: Awab Ali 16; Jack Ciocca 8; Jalen French 7; Austin Hinds 5; Nawaf Kigab 5; Marley Smith 4; and Sadiekie Hayden 3. Isaih Dunlop led Ursuline with 37 points and DJ Phillip added eight.
“That was a tough game. Those three guards had great defence and 11 (Dunlop) was hitting every shot. We had to dig deep to get that win,” Ens said.
Playing well in the Classic is a big goal for the Phoenix.
“Coming back from last year winning it and two years ago falling in the semi-finals, it is really important because it is all-Ontarios for the Catholic schools,” he said. “We take a lot of pride in it.”
Like Alderson, Ens loves what the Classic does for his team.
“All these teams are OFSAA-quality teams and you want these close games. We got one and that experience will help us going into the final stretch of the season.”
Ens has settled into a new role for the Phoenix this season.
“He is transitioning his game this year. He is trying to become more of a point guard and he’s working on his defence,” Alderson said. “He is still scoring the ball for us but he is really working on the nuances that he wasn’t used to before. The things he is doing off the ball, on the ball pressure, guarding, trying to think the game through cerebrally is an evolution. I’m proud of him for taking that upon himself. If he wants to play at the next level, he has to be more diversified.”
Ens has fully bought into the process.
“He is trying to make me more of a leader and more vocal in that role since I am in Grade 12 and I’m one of the vets.”
The role takes the load off of him from a scoring perspective.
“We have so many guys. We have Austin (Hinds), Elijah (Quissua), Jack (Ciocca), all these guys who can score so it is not all on me. They rely on me for different things now,” Ens said.
PHOENIX 73 CELTICS 43
Saint Francis opened the tournament Friday morning at Notre Dame with a 73-43 victory over the Bishop Ryan Celtics from Hamilton.
Scoring for the Phoenix in the win were: Andrew Ens 17; Elijah Quissua 16; Jack Ciocca 15; Marley Smith 6; Max Cataldo 5; Sam Riddell 5; Farouk Akasha 3; Adriaan Alderson 2; Austin Hinds 2; and, Jalen French 2.
Top scorers for Bishop Ryan were: Antonio Salinas 14; and, Kai Olaf 8.
The championship semifinals will be played Saturday at 12:30 p.m.and 2 p.m. at Denis Morris with the winners advancing the championship final at 7:30 p.m. Saint Francis plays in the 12:30 p.m. semifinal.
