The Belmont Bulldogs faced perhaps their toughest opponent right out of the gate at the B.C. Junior Boys Basketball Championships in Langley, but settled in to play some solid games after that.
Having been shuttled into the consolation part of the draw early with a 67-25 loss to North Delta – a team ranked top 3 in the province until they were upset at the Fraser Valley tournament – the Bulldogs finished the 2017 provincials with a 1-4 overall record.
Belmont’s final game was a 67-43 loss to the Heritage Woods Kodiaks of Port Moody on Tuesday afternoon.
“I don’t think we were surprised at the level of competition,” said Bulldogs coach Curt Spaven. “Having been there last year, we were aware of just how much talent there is throughout the province.”
While the opening loss stung, he said, the Bulldogs rebounded well by posting a 60-41 win over the sixth-ranked Terry Fox Ravens from Coquitlam that evening. “It really showed the character that these boys have to win that game by 19 after losing the way we did,” Spaven said.
A heartbreaking 44-43 loss to Salmon Arm on Sunday saw Belmont make some uncharacteristic mistakes early, he added, and with the game still up for grabs in the dying seconds, the Bulldogs had a couple of shots roll off the rim. Ironically, a win over Salmon Arm would have put the Bulldogs up against the Claremont Spartans, who beat Belmont in the Island final the previous weekend.
The deflated Bulldogs lost their next game 54-39 to Handsworth from North Vancouver. Spaven said a number of players who hadn’t seen much action in the playoffs got some provincials playing experience in that game and the last one.
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