Brandon Reymerink was named Tournament MVP as Cowichan Secondary’s senior boys basketball team went 3-0 at the Claremont Spartan Invitational in Victoria last weekend.
Rather than a usual tournament format, the Spartan Invitational featured several exhibition games, and the Cowichan Thunderbirds were one of three teams to go 3-0, while Brentwood College also went undefeated at 2-0.
First up for the T-Birds was Enver Creek, which Cowichan dispatched 79-60.
“Offensively, we pushed the ball well in transition, which resulted in many 2-on-1 lay ups,” Cowichan coach Casey Parsons said. “On the defensive end, Jeremy Perkins and Pablo de Garaizabal Rafiq crashed the boards, taking away Enver Creek’s second-chance opportunities.”
Jaden Bhopal had 23 points, Reymerink added 15 and Herman Parmar chipped in with 11 as Cowichan beat Royal Bay 72-61 in their next game,
“It was a real team effort,” Parsons said. “The guys coming off the bench played hard, and gave us valuable minutes on both ends of the floor.”
Leading 33-30 at halftime against Lambrick Park in their final game, the T-Birds went on a 14-2 run to start the third quarter and held on to win 64-56. Reymerink scored 16 points and Parmar had 12.
“Both Brandon and Herman knocked down some timely threes that kept the momentum on our side,” Parsons said. “Jaden played a strong second half, causing Lambrick Park turnovers, and making several tough buckets down the stretch.”
Also over the Christmas break, the T-Birds played at the Belmont Invitational, going 1-2 to finish fifth. They beat Belmont’s B team 86-43, then lost 93-85 to Britannia and 76-40 to Carson Graham.
The T-Birds don’t have a home game until Feb. 8 when they host Dover Bay. Cowichan’s senior girls team, meanwhile, will host their invitational tournament this Friday and Saturday.