Falcons show fortitude, keep medal hopes alive in win over Ste-Foy

The Fanshawe College Falcons can still leave Calgary this weekend with a national bronze medal in their talons. But their coach notes there’s much, much more at stake.

“Are you playing for something? Yeah, you’re playing for your teammates,” said longtime head coach Glenn Johnston, after his London, Ont.-based Falcons bombed the CEGEP de Ste-Foy, Que., Dynamiques 88-64 on Friday afternoon in a bronze-medal qualifier at the 2010 Canadian Colleges Athletic Association men’s basketball national championship tournament, hosted by SAIT Polytechnic.

“Your teammates are more important the school, the coach, a medal, whatever. There’s a bond. You’re going to war. And if you don’t want to be a part of it, then it’s up to me to get you off and get someone out there who’s going to work hard.”

Fanshawe, ranked No. 8 at this tournament, had nearly pulled off a shocking upset of the No. 1-seeded University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC) Northern Timberwolves on Thursday, losing 76-71 on a late Timberwolves rally. But 24 hours later, the Falcons showed no signs of feeling sorry for themselves.

Will Bradbury (1st-year guard, Kitchener, Ont.) drained 20 points and Pat Wright (4th-year post, Port Edward, Ont.) added 19 as Fanshawe advanced to a bronze-medal semifinal on Saturday, March 20 at 12 p.m. MT. The CCAA bronze-medal game goes at 6 p.m. MT, with the national title game following at 8 p.m. MT.

“We came to play. When you’re seeded No. 8, you like to do OK,” said Johnston. “I’m proud of them all. I was proud of them yesterday, and I’m proud of them today. They’re a great group of kids. We worked hard today. Nobody can say we didn’t give it an effort.”

The Falcons had advanced to nationals as the second wild-card entry after losing the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association title game to the Humber College Hawks of Etobicoke, Ont.

“Our bench played a significant role. If we go to the bronze, we’re going to need our bench more than ever,” said Bradbury.

The Falcons shot 53.1 per cent in the first half, and led 48-36 at the break, but really broke it open in the third quarter, outscoring the Dynamiques 21-6.

Ste-Foy was the surprise Federation Quebecoise du Sport Etudiant (FQSE) champion this spring, but has lost two straight at the CCAA tournament and will play for seventh place on Saturday, March 20 at 2 p.m. MT.

“It was hard to get going early. I think we had three points in the six minutes,” said first-year Dynamiques head coach Eric Segal. “We did get it going, but it was not enough for us to make a run at the end of the second quarter. In the second half, we tried for three minutes to really get back into the game . . . and after that, it was working for next year.”

Robinson Odoch Opong (4th-year guard, Quebec City), the MVP of the FQSE championship tournament, came to play Friday, with 19 points and 14 rebounds, 13 of them on the defensive side of the ball. Boris Hadzimuratovic (2nd-year forward, Quebec City) added 14 points and eight boards.

“We didn’t come out as strong as we wanted to. We need to keep the rhythm, and listen more to our coach,” said Opong, originally from Uganda, who’s the only fourth-year player on the Dynamiques roster. “Tomorrow we’ll come out strong, finish strong, and go back home feeling accomplished.”

For live game webcasts, real-time stats, photo galleries, and recaps, visit the official CCAA national tournament website at http://www.sait2010.ca/