Talsma leads Storm into consolation final
Jeremy Talsma was a whirlwind for the Smithville Christian Storm in Thursday’s consolation semifinals of the 60th Annual Standard High School Basketball Tournament at Ridley College.
The Grade 12 student netted a team-high 20 points to lead his squad to a 59-46 victory over the Holy Cross Raiders but he also led the team in rebounds and set up countless easy looks for his teammates by driving the ball inside and dishing it back out.
“He’s a very, very quick player and he’s so intelligent as well. He has an athletic gift and it is a pleasure to have him on the team,” Smithville coach Zion Hoekstra said. “I love his hustle. He never stops working and he’s always the first in the gym and the last to leave. And he’s just a winner. He wants to win every single thing he does and I admire that.”
The 6-foot-1, 185-pounder doesn’t play travel basketball and like most of his teammates he got a late start to the high school basketball team while starting on Smithville’s volleyball team that battled all the way to an Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations A silver medal.
The Storm went into The Standard tournament without holding a single practice.
“It was a quick turnaround. The good thing that we benefitted from was that a lot of guys on the volleyball team came to the basketball team and that chemistry and connection was already there from last year,” the 17-year-old said. “The transition went pretty well seeing that we have made the consolation finals. The teamwork that we have in volleyball really pays off.”
The Storm have been able to overcome their late start with size and athleticism.
“We have got a lot of athletes on the team who contribute. No one has played basketball outside of school except for one of our guys but we just play well together as athletes working with their raw talent,” he said.
No one on the Smithville coaching staff tells Talsma to drive to the basket with abandon and look for his teammates.
“I wouldn’t say that it is the game plan but my teammates getting open is a big part of it. I keep my head up and just try to find the guys who are in the corners ready for the shots.”
Talsma is all over the court and rarely comes off.
“There is a lot of minute out there, for sure, but I am a soccer player and I am always moving. I play 90-minute games a lot and that is where my endurance comes from.”
Hoekstra was pleased with his team’s performance.
“It was a great win. It is showing that we have played more games and getting more game time. The boys are really good in transition and their defence showed again.”
It didn’t hurt that the Storm got off to a quick start.
“We had a fiery start from three. We hit four for four and that’s the best way to start a game,” Hoekstra said.
Smithville is now in a Standard final for the first time in school history.
“I am proud of the boys. The boys love each other, it’s great camaraderie on the team and it is an honour to get to the final,” Hoekstra said.
Talsma is thrilled to have a chance to take part in a Standard championship night.
“We have a small school and it’s great for us to be in the consolation final.”
Holy Cross missed their first dozen shots Thursday and found themselves trailing 12-0. The Raiders cut the lead to 12-7 before the end of the first quarter but gave up a 7-0 run to trail 19-7 in the second quarter. Smithville led 37-30 after three quarters. In the fourth quarter, the Raiders cut the lead to 49-46 but the Storm closed the game out with 10 straight points, punctuated by a late dunk from Talsma.
“It wasn’t an ideal spot to be in down 12. You are always trying to vary the defences and offences you choose to make up that 12 points,” Holy Cross head coach Austin Anderson said. “In a game where we don’t have the greatest shooting team, it is a hard deficit to make up. If we had a good shooting team, it would be a different story.”
To their credit, the Raiders never stopped trying.
“They are a hard-working team and they want to win but sometimes when our shots aren’t falling we struggle,” he said.
The Raiders learned what they need to improve upon thanks to their play in the Standard tourney.
“We need to work on our offensive sets, our shooting and our defences,” Anderson said.
STATS PACK
Storm 59 Raiders 46
Cat’s Caboose Player of the Game: Smithville’s Joseph Attia with 11 points.
Boston Pizza Player of the Game: Holy Cross’ Owen Corcoran with five points.
For the Smithville Christian Storm: Jeremy Talsma 20; Attia 11; Silas Breukelman 10; Cole Wiersma 8; Lincoln van der Wier 4; Kalan Schat 3; Christopher Nyakabasa 2; David Xie 1.
For the Holy Cross Raiders: Nathan Beveridge 9; Durico Wynter 8; Owen Bradford-Andrew 6; Terrell Wallace 6; Corcoran 5; Joey Young 5; Hunter Herring-Dent 3; Matteo D’Aria 2; Ferdinand Reimmer 2.
Up next: Smithville Christian advances to the consolation final Friday at 5:30 p.m. at St. Catharines Collegiate against Ridley College. Games will be live streamed at https://livestream.com/accounts/15502389/60thstandard.
