Dave Leaderhouse
Special to the Herald
Yogi Berra once coined a phrase “It ain’t over till it’s over.” While the legendary catcher for the New York Yankees was referring to his time in major league baseball, that same sentiment was inherited by the St. Mary Marauders as they nearly pulled off a miraculous comeback in the championship final of the St. Mary Senior Boys Basketball tournament on Saturday.
Down by 12 points with less than two minutes to play, the Marauders dug deep to knot the score at 70-70 only to see Sowka Tombe of the Saskatoon Bethlehem Stars steal the ball and go the length of the court to score the game-winning basket with 2.1 seconds left on the clock.
Still, the Marauders had a chance to get back on even terms once again as an inbound pass to TJ McKay was then directed towards the Saskatoon basket, but the clock expired as it rattled off the rim giving the Stars the 72-70 decision.
“They (Bethlehem) are a top three team in Saskatoon and I thought our guys were a little shell-shocked at the start,” admitted St. Mary head coach Dave Seto. “The more times we play teams like that the guys will get used to the pace and the tempo.”
Kyeran Murphy once again led all Marauders in scoring when he registered 28 points while McKay had 13 and was named the player of the game for St. Mary. Murphy had an exceptional tournament scoring 27 points in the opening-round victory over Meadow Lake and following that up with 29 points in the semi-final triumph over Balgonie earlier on Saturday.
Tombe, who was the player of the game for Bethlehem, had 24 points to lead all Saskatoon shooters including a pair of slam dunks that had the Stars’ bench rise to their feet and loudly voice their approval. Marcus Aranda also had a strong game for the visitors netting 18 points.
St. Mary had little trouble advancing to the final four as they easily got past Meadow Lake 94-48 in their opening game, but Saturday was a test as they outscored Balgonie 80-76 before the thrilling final against Bethlehem.
“It’s good to get in games against teams like this,” said Seto. “It’s not always learning the x’s and o’s but dealing with adversity and gaining experience. That can go a long way.
“Those were two tough games,” added Seto. “They (Bethlehem) really pressed us and Balgonie was a little more physical.”
John Paul II out of North Battleford finished in third place at the tournament after they posted an 82-63 decision over Balgonie.
The Marauders will continue with their tournament schedule later this month when they head to Moose Jaw for an event and they will follow that up with a stop in North Battleford in early March before regional qualifiers are held in mid-March. The ultimate goal is to get a spot in HOOPLA, which is to be held in Moose Jaw at the end of March.
