This past Saturday our guys were at the local Provigo grocery store in Lennoxville bagging groceries. The guys raised $625 for the Alexander Galt Regional High School Christmas Basket Fund. The number was a little lower than years past, but we were sharing the store with another fantastic charity, the Salvation Army.
The initiative was started 5 years ago by Gaiter Alum & former coach Charles Kobelt and to this date our players have raised in the neighbourhood of $4000 for the local Christmas charity.This day is always a highlight in the year for our guys. They really enjoy interacting with the people in our community and take a lot of pride in making a difference at this time of year.
On behalf of everyone in our program we would like to wish you all a wonderful holiday season and the very best for the New Year!
Go Gaiters!!!
Wednesday, 19 December 2012
Friday, 7 December 2012
1st Semester Recap
This has been a very nice season SO FAR for our team. I am stressing the SO FAR part because there is still a lot of basketball left to be played and a lot of work to do if we are going to be able to say we had a very nice season in March!
We did not exactly know what to expect from this team early in September. We lost a couple of key guys, but were returning a core group of 3rd & 4th yr guys who we would have to say were unproven. We had some highlights last season, but struggled and underachieved when league play started. However, we a had terrific month of training in September where the guys really worked hard, pushed themselves and built strong team chemistry. This team has been pushed hard and has responded well all year...they are fit and take a lot of confidence from the fact that they probably do more than most opponents they face.
As we sit here on December 7th the Gaiters have an overall record of 9 wins & 4 losses which includes a record of 7 - 3 vs. CIS competition. We are on the fringe of the CIS Top Ten coach's poll and are ranked #2 in the CIS in Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) http://cishoops.ca/cis2012/cisrpi.php which takes into account winning percentage & strength of schedule. We have played one of the toughest schedules in the CIS and have a record of 4 wins & 1 loss to teams that have been in or are ranked in the CIS Top Ten coach's poll.
From a player production perspective I would say we don't have a star player. We have had 6 different players score at least 18 points in a game while we have 4 or 5 guys who are averaging at least 10 ppg. 3rd yr point guard Scott Ring has stepped in and replaced Sean Monplaisir in fine fashion. Scott has worked hard to become a good CIS player and is taking advantage of his opportunity to play this year. Few expected (including myself) Scott to have such an impact this year. Very happy for him and he deserves the recognition. 3rd yr, 6'10 Mike Andrews has started to blossom (Mike will love that I used blossom to refer to him!) as well. He has come a long way in his 3 yrs here and has continually improved his skills & work ethic. 3rd yr, 6'8 fwd Matt McLean also has emerged as an improved scorer and rebounder up front. Matt along with Mike gives us a solid base on the front line as we move into the next couple of years. The improvement of our 3rd year guys has been significant and it is what we needed to compete with the better teams. However, our veteran core of Tim Hunter, Jeremy Leonard-Smith & Onnex Blackwood has provided stability and a strong presence within our team on & off the court.
Our bench has been anchored by our 3rd yr high energy guard Patrik Kabongo. PK's positive attitude is infectious and he has given the team a boost several times coming off the bench. Freshman point guard Jona Bermillo has had a good first semester & has steadily improved. We expect that Jona's role will increase as the year progresses. We have had contributions from various members of our bench over the course of the first half, but more importantly the competition level in practice & attitude of Jamil Abiad, Ridolphe Aristil, Ryan Foster, Shawn McAlpine & Jonathan Goyette is an intangible factor that really has impacted our team positively. The bench guys do not always get their due, but for those of us who have been around the game a bit we know how much they mean to a team.
Our next action is December 28th in Montreal at the UQAM Tournament. The schedule is listed below and we hope to see a few of you out at our games! Happy Holidays to everyone!
Rod
We did not exactly know what to expect from this team early in September. We lost a couple of key guys, but were returning a core group of 3rd & 4th yr guys who we would have to say were unproven. We had some highlights last season, but struggled and underachieved when league play started. However, we a had terrific month of training in September where the guys really worked hard, pushed themselves and built strong team chemistry. This team has been pushed hard and has responded well all year...they are fit and take a lot of confidence from the fact that they probably do more than most opponents they face.
As we sit here on December 7th the Gaiters have an overall record of 9 wins & 4 losses which includes a record of 7 - 3 vs. CIS competition. We are on the fringe of the CIS Top Ten coach's poll and are ranked #2 in the CIS in Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) http://cishoops.ca/cis2012/cisrpi.php which takes into account winning percentage & strength of schedule. We have played one of the toughest schedules in the CIS and have a record of 4 wins & 1 loss to teams that have been in or are ranked in the CIS Top Ten coach's poll.
From a player production perspective I would say we don't have a star player. We have had 6 different players score at least 18 points in a game while we have 4 or 5 guys who are averaging at least 10 ppg. 3rd yr point guard Scott Ring has stepped in and replaced Sean Monplaisir in fine fashion. Scott has worked hard to become a good CIS player and is taking advantage of his opportunity to play this year. Few expected (including myself) Scott to have such an impact this year. Very happy for him and he deserves the recognition. 3rd yr, 6'10 Mike Andrews has started to blossom (Mike will love that I used blossom to refer to him!) as well. He has come a long way in his 3 yrs here and has continually improved his skills & work ethic. 3rd yr, 6'8 fwd Matt McLean also has emerged as an improved scorer and rebounder up front. Matt along with Mike gives us a solid base on the front line as we move into the next couple of years. The improvement of our 3rd year guys has been significant and it is what we needed to compete with the better teams. However, our veteran core of Tim Hunter, Jeremy Leonard-Smith & Onnex Blackwood has provided stability and a strong presence within our team on & off the court.
Our bench has been anchored by our 3rd yr high energy guard Patrik Kabongo. PK's positive attitude is infectious and he has given the team a boost several times coming off the bench. Freshman point guard Jona Bermillo has had a good first semester & has steadily improved. We expect that Jona's role will increase as the year progresses. We have had contributions from various members of our bench over the course of the first half, but more importantly the competition level in practice & attitude of Jamil Abiad, Ridolphe Aristil, Ryan Foster, Shawn McAlpine & Jonathan Goyette is an intangible factor that really has impacted our team positively. The bench guys do not always get their due, but for those of us who have been around the game a bit we know how much they mean to a team.
Our next action is December 28th in Montreal at the UQAM Tournament. The schedule is listed below and we hope to see a few of you out at our games! Happy Holidays to everyone!
Rod
UQAM Classique des Citadins 2012
*Friday December 28th Bishop’s vs Mtl. Alumni Team 20h30
Saturday December 29th Memorial vs Bishop’s 14h00
Sunday December 30th Bishop’s vs Waterloo 12h00
*exhibition game
Friday, 30 November 2012
Gaiters Top Unbeaten Redmen @ McGill
Thursday @ McGill
BU 17 20 23 24 - 84
#3 MU 20 15 21 23 - 79
Thursday we traveled into Montreal to face CIS #3 and undefeated McGill. McGill is a very well coached team that really plays well together...they were 10-0 vs. CIS opponents this year. This was going to be no easy task, but we were confident & have not been slouches ourselves as we boasted a record of 6-3 vs. one of the toughest schedules of any team in the CIS this year according the Ratings Percentage Index (RPI).
The game was intense right from the start. Both teams knew what they were up against and it showed as it was very physical. The lead seesawed back & forth with neither team taking more than a 4 point lead before the 4th quarter started. We made a good push to start the 4th quarter as we had 3 consecutive 3 pointers to take a double digit lead. McGill had switched to a zone to start the 4th because they had trouble guarding Jeremy Leonard-Smith the last few minutes of the 3rd Q. We moved the ball well against the zone and found Tim Hunter for a 3 on the first possession & then Scott Ring connected on back to back 3's. To that point our inside game had carried us.
We took a lead as large as 14 before McGill charged back. They had cut it to 2 in the final minutes, but never had a shot to tie or take the lead fortunately. We had been very good defensively for most of the game, but lost a couple of shooters allowing McGill to make a run. We made our free throws for the most part and our defense held as we won by 5. Did a lot of good things, but still have not played our best basketball. We need to clean up our rebounding as McGill out rebounded us by 12. Forunately we are taking care of the ball and forcing a lot turnovers...we are plus 10 per game in turnover margin in 3 league games while leading the conference in field goal % defense.
Big Mike led us with 21 points, 6 rebounds, 4 steals and 2 blocks. Scott continues to be very solid as he scored 18 pts on 7 shots while only committing 1 turnover in 34 minutes. Jeremy was strong around the rim scoring 17 while Onnex added his usual double digit effort with 10 points.
I am on the road recruiting as soon as I have the post finished, but will send out a first semester summary next week while our guys are busy studying & writing final exams!
Rod
BU 17 20 23 24 - 84
#3 MU 20 15 21 23 - 79
Thursday we traveled into Montreal to face CIS #3 and undefeated McGill. McGill is a very well coached team that really plays well together...they were 10-0 vs. CIS opponents this year. This was going to be no easy task, but we were confident & have not been slouches ourselves as we boasted a record of 6-3 vs. one of the toughest schedules of any team in the CIS this year according the Ratings Percentage Index (RPI).
The game was intense right from the start. Both teams knew what they were up against and it showed as it was very physical. The lead seesawed back & forth with neither team taking more than a 4 point lead before the 4th quarter started. We made a good push to start the 4th quarter as we had 3 consecutive 3 pointers to take a double digit lead. McGill had switched to a zone to start the 4th because they had trouble guarding Jeremy Leonard-Smith the last few minutes of the 3rd Q. We moved the ball well against the zone and found Tim Hunter for a 3 on the first possession & then Scott Ring connected on back to back 3's. To that point our inside game had carried us.
Jeremy Leonard Smith |
Big Mike led us with 21 points, 6 rebounds, 4 steals and 2 blocks. Scott continues to be very solid as he scored 18 pts on 7 shots while only committing 1 turnover in 34 minutes. Jeremy was strong around the rim scoring 17 while Onnex added his usual double digit effort with 10 points.
I am on the road recruiting as soon as I have the post finished, but will send out a first semester summary next week while our guys are busy studying & writing final exams!
Rod
Monday, 26 November 2012
Back on Track...
Saturday vs. Laval
BU 21 16 19 18 - 74
UL 15 17 18 8 - 58
After a difficult loss last week we needed a win at home to get back on track. Laval had an impressive 20 point win over UQAM on Wednesday and we expected them to come in with some confidence. Fortunately after a good week of practice our guys were equal to the task. Defensively we were very good at times as we held Laval to 32% shooting and forced 26 turnovers. However, we had too many lapses and gave up some needless easy hoops to Laval.
After finishing the half with a Scott Ring 3 pt shot we had some momentum. We had opportunities to really stretch our lead out in the 3rd quarter, but we were not disciplined enough to do so. That was frustrating. Regardless, we maintained the lead and managed the clock well the final 5 minutes of the game pulling away for a comfortable win in the end.
Scott Ring was excellent scoring a career high 23 pts and adding 7 assists. Scott controlled the game and played with poise throughout. Onnex & Tim scored 14 & 10 pts respectively while Patrik Kabongo was a spark off the bench with 7 points & 3 steals.
Next up is #3 CIS ranked & undefeated McGill this Thursday night at McGill. Game time is 8 pm and we hope to have a few friends, family and alumni there!!
Rod
BU 21 16 19 18 - 74
UL 15 17 18 8 - 58
After a difficult loss last week we needed a win at home to get back on track. Laval had an impressive 20 point win over UQAM on Wednesday and we expected them to come in with some confidence. Fortunately after a good week of practice our guys were equal to the task. Defensively we were very good at times as we held Laval to 32% shooting and forced 26 turnovers. However, we had too many lapses and gave up some needless easy hoops to Laval.
3rd yr guard Patrik Kabongo |
Scott Ring was excellent scoring a career high 23 pts and adding 7 assists. Scott controlled the game and played with poise throughout. Onnex & Tim scored 14 & 10 pts respectively while Patrik Kabongo was a spark off the bench with 7 points & 3 steals.
Next up is #3 CIS ranked & undefeated McGill this Thursday night at McGill. Game time is 8 pm and we hope to have a few friends, family and alumni there!!
Rod
Monday, 19 November 2012
Gaiters Give Concordia Early Christmas Gift
Saturday vs. Concordia
BU 19 16 23 18 - 76
CU 15 23 16 23 - 77
After playing very well for 39 minutes and 37 seconds we helped facilitate a monumental comeback by Concordia to lose by 1 point. With 23 seconds to go we were up 7 points. However, going 3-6 from the line in the final (we were 17-18 for the game before that!) minute combined with a couple of needless fouls, some tough hoops by Concordia and a turnover with 7 seconds left we found ourselves on the wrong end of a game we most certainly should have won. We beat Concordia on Saturday night, but we did not win the game...none of us take any satisfaction out of that. Despite what the non-believers might think this is not the same team as in the past and we don't expect & won't falter after a good pre-season.
A good effort was wasted as we did not get the victory. It taints a fantastic performance by 3rd year post Mike Andrews. Big Mike scored 28 points, grabbed 11 rebounds and swatted 6 Concordia shots while altering many more. Mike has really started to come into his own this year and we are hoping this break out is a sign of things to come. Onnex & Jeremy each added 12 & 10 points respectively while, but I would not say we had better than average performances overall from the core of our team. Still room for improvement and our guys are expecting a lot more from themselves.
This Saturday we host an offensively talented team in Laval. Laval has struggled vs. Concordia and McGill, but has the ability to win a lot of games in our league.
I will keep you posted!
Rod
BU 19 16 23 18 - 76
CU 15 23 16 23 - 77
After playing very well for 39 minutes and 37 seconds we helped facilitate a monumental comeback by Concordia to lose by 1 point. With 23 seconds to go we were up 7 points. However, going 3-6 from the line in the final (we were 17-18 for the game before that!) minute combined with a couple of needless fouls, some tough hoops by Concordia and a turnover with 7 seconds left we found ourselves on the wrong end of a game we most certainly should have won. We beat Concordia on Saturday night, but we did not win the game...none of us take any satisfaction out of that. Despite what the non-believers might think this is not the same team as in the past and we don't expect & won't falter after a good pre-season.
Mike Andrews |
This Saturday we host an offensively talented team in Laval. Laval has struggled vs. Concordia and McGill, but has the ability to win a lot of games in our league.
I will keep you posted!
Rod
Sunday, 11 November 2012
UQAM Game Postponed
Just in case anyone was looking for a result or boxscore from our game Saturday night...there was no game! Apparently there was an administrative error. This game has been on the schedule since the initial draft and has never changed...wasted trip into Montreal for our teams and parents.
Keep you posted on the the re-scheduling of the game.
Rod
Keep you posted on the the re-scheduling of the game.
Rod
Friday, 9 November 2012
RSEQ Season Opens @ UQAM Saturday
Saturday night we open up our league schedule at 7 pm at UQAM. Every game in our league will be incredible important as we expect all 5 teams to be very tight and competitive. It is likely that points for and points against will be a factor in breaking ties at the end of the year for playoff position and home court advantage in the playoffs.
The highest rank team in our league right now is McGill. They are undefeated in CIS exhibition play. No doubt a favourite, but the league champion will have to go through perennial power Concordia and that will be no easy task. Below those 2 teams it is expected that ourselves, Laval and UQAM will be fighting for the final 2 playoff spots.
UQAM started league play with a 5 point loss to Concordia on Wednesday and will definitely be ready to play Saturday night in their own gym. They are always a tremendous rebounding team who possesses excellent athleticism & size. The level of intensity will be up a notch from our pre-season competition as things do get testy at times in league play!
We hope to see some friends, family and alumni out Saturday night in Montreal. Just a reminder that game time is 7 pm and not the traditional 8pm!
Rod
Matt McLean 3rd yr Post |
UQAM started league play with a 5 point loss to Concordia on Wednesday and will definitely be ready to play Saturday night in their own gym. They are always a tremendous rebounding team who possesses excellent athleticism & size. The level of intensity will be up a notch from our pre-season competition as things do get testy at times in league play!
We hope to see some friends, family and alumni out Saturday night in Montreal. Just a reminder that game time is 7 pm and not the traditional 8pm!
Rod
Monday, 5 November 2012
Gaiters Defeat Lyndon St. to Finish Pre-season
Friday at Lyndon St.
BU 32 43 - 75
LSC 31 37 - 68
I would not classify this as one of our most spirited efforts of the season. However, we did manage to get a win on the road which is seldom a bad thing. Lyndon St. played very hard and we did not respond well. We missed 10 first half free throws which does not include missing the front end of a couple of 1 & 1 bonus situations which really means we missed 12! We did not shoot much better from the 3 point line either.
We did manage to make 16-22 free throws in the 2nd half and build a double digit lead before Lyndon made some late 3's to make it interesting. Onnex Blackwood had 21 points while Mike Andrews added 18 points & 15 rebounds against a much smaller LSC team. Scott Ring had a very efficient 15 points while shooting only 5 shots.
The 'real' games start Saturday at UQAM, game time is 7 pm. We have finished the pre-season at 7-3, but that does not matter now as league play is literally a brand new season and what you did in October counts for nothing. Every league game will be a battle and the team that has the best focus is likely to be the victor on that night!
Hope to see a few of you out at UQAM on Saturday night!
Rod
BU 32 43 - 75
LSC 31 37 - 68
I would not classify this as one of our most spirited efforts of the season. However, we did manage to get a win on the road which is seldom a bad thing. Lyndon St. played very hard and we did not respond well. We missed 10 first half free throws which does not include missing the front end of a couple of 1 & 1 bonus situations which really means we missed 12! We did not shoot much better from the 3 point line either.
The 'real' games start Saturday at UQAM, game time is 7 pm. We have finished the pre-season at 7-3, but that does not matter now as league play is literally a brand new season and what you did in October counts for nothing. Every league game will be a battle and the team that has the best focus is likely to be the victor on that night!
Hope to see a few of you out at UQAM on Saturday night!
Rod
Friday, 2 November 2012
Gaiters Travel to Lyndon State
Tonight we play our final pre-season game vs. NCAA D3 Lyndon State which is about a 75 minute drive from our campus down into Vermont. We are hoping to keep the momentum we built so far in our exhibition schedule as we head into RSEQ conference play next week.
We know Lyndon St.will be smaller than us and will pose some match-up issues. No doubt they will be hard to guard for our bigs and they will show us a lot of pressure defense. Both things that will help us get better. We expect to see pressure next week when we face UQAM so this is good prep for that.
Stay tuned for the update early next week and a bit of a preview on our league opener vs. UQAM on Saturday the 10th.
Rod
Freshman Jona Bermillo |
Stay tuned for the update early next week and a bit of a preview on our league opener vs. UQAM on Saturday the 10th.
Rod
Monday, 29 October 2012
Gaiters Win Jack Donahue Tourney
Friday vs. uOttawa GeeGees
BU 12 14 15 23 - 64
UO 22 21 11 9 - 63
This weekend we took the tourney title in Ottawa. You can check out Wayne Kondro's story from the Ottawa Citizen at this link:
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/sports/basketball/Host+Ottawa+falls+short+netting+hoops+crown/7461700/story.html
We managed to defeat a very good Ottawa team again after being down a large number at half time for the 2nd time. When we played them 4 weeks ago we were down 21 at the half and managed to come back and win in the 2nd half. The game plan was not to spot them a big first half lead! However, they were on fire from the 3 point line and capitalized on our defensive miscues. Fortunately we executed very well defensively in the 2nd half holding them to a paltry 20 points.
I was really pleased with the toughness and poise our guys showed throughout the 2nd half. They worked so well together both defensively and offensively to chip away at Ottawa's lead before we finally took the lead for the 1st time in the game with 30 seconds to go.
I have to mention, it kind of felt like playing a home game. I believe the BU fans out numbered the UO fans and were definitely much louder! I know our players fed off that energy down the stretch in the 4th quarter. Thanks to all the alumni who made it out and cheered us on...and of course, the school song was sung by the alums at midcourt following the game!!
Onnex Blackwood led all scorers with 18 points. Tim Hunter and Jeremy Leonard-Smith each had 13 points and 11 rebounds.
Saturday vs. U of Toronto
BU 18 19 17 27 - 81
UT 14 20 19 23 - 76
In this game we did some things well...out rebounded the Blues 47-23, shot 9-21 from the 3 pt line and did some things poorly...27 mostly unforced turnovers! If we are going to put 40 minutes of solid basketball together we must take better care of the ball first & foremost! At times we looked very good, but managed to open the door for U of T too many times.
After pulling out to a 10 point lead mid way through the 2nd quarter things seemed very much in our favour. Defensively we were solid, but we managed to turn the ball over about 17 times in the next 15 minutes! That kept the game close and fortunately we got our act together playing well down the stretch to hold off U of T. The lead changed hands several times in the 4th, but our guys are playing with a lot of confidence and they made plays when they needed to.
Tim stepped up big in this game scoring 30 points and grabbing 8 rebounds. Tim has been putting some extra time in making an additional 500 shots a week outside of practice...it is showing! Jeremy continues to shine as he added 17 points and 6 rebounds. Mike Andrews struggled this weekend after not practicing last week with the flu. However, Big Mike had a double double with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Scott Ring added 10 points in 18 minutes of play...less time than he usually plays, but Scott, the hometown boy, managed to draw the ire of one of the officials getting called for 4 suspect fouls in about 8 minutes of play in the first 3 quarters by the one ref.
Next up for us is our final pre-season game vs. Lyndon State this Friday in Lyndon, Vermont. If you happen to be in Lyndon stop by and check out the game! If you need directions let me know!! The real fun begins the following week when we open up league play at UQAM...no easy games in our league!
I will keep you posted,
Rod
BU 12 14 15 23 - 64
UO 22 21 11 9 - 63
This weekend we took the tourney title in Ottawa. You can check out Wayne Kondro's story from the Ottawa Citizen at this link:
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/sports/basketball/Host+Ottawa+falls+short+netting+hoops+crown/7461700/story.html
We managed to defeat a very good Ottawa team again after being down a large number at half time for the 2nd time. When we played them 4 weeks ago we were down 21 at the half and managed to come back and win in the 2nd half. The game plan was not to spot them a big first half lead! However, they were on fire from the 3 point line and capitalized on our defensive miscues. Fortunately we executed very well defensively in the 2nd half holding them to a paltry 20 points.
Onnex Blackwood |
I have to mention, it kind of felt like playing a home game. I believe the BU fans out numbered the UO fans and were definitely much louder! I know our players fed off that energy down the stretch in the 4th quarter. Thanks to all the alumni who made it out and cheered us on...and of course, the school song was sung by the alums at midcourt following the game!!
Onnex Blackwood led all scorers with 18 points. Tim Hunter and Jeremy Leonard-Smith each had 13 points and 11 rebounds.
Saturday vs. U of Toronto
BU 18 19 17 27 - 81
UT 14 20 19 23 - 76
In this game we did some things well...out rebounded the Blues 47-23, shot 9-21 from the 3 pt line and did some things poorly...27 mostly unforced turnovers! If we are going to put 40 minutes of solid basketball together we must take better care of the ball first & foremost! At times we looked very good, but managed to open the door for U of T too many times.
Tim Hunter |
After pulling out to a 10 point lead mid way through the 2nd quarter things seemed very much in our favour. Defensively we were solid, but we managed to turn the ball over about 17 times in the next 15 minutes! That kept the game close and fortunately we got our act together playing well down the stretch to hold off U of T. The lead changed hands several times in the 4th, but our guys are playing with a lot of confidence and they made plays when they needed to.
Tim stepped up big in this game scoring 30 points and grabbing 8 rebounds. Tim has been putting some extra time in making an additional 500 shots a week outside of practice...it is showing! Jeremy continues to shine as he added 17 points and 6 rebounds. Mike Andrews struggled this weekend after not practicing last week with the flu. However, Big Mike had a double double with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Scott Ring added 10 points in 18 minutes of play...less time than he usually plays, but Scott, the hometown boy, managed to draw the ire of one of the officials getting called for 4 suspect fouls in about 8 minutes of play in the first 3 quarters by the one ref.
Next up for us is our final pre-season game vs. Lyndon State this Friday in Lyndon, Vermont. If you happen to be in Lyndon stop by and check out the game! If you need directions let me know!! The real fun begins the following week when we open up league play at UQAM...no easy games in our league!
I will keep you posted,
Rod
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