The Osoyoos Secondary School senior boys’ Rattlers have qualified for the provincial A basketball championships for the second-consecutive year. Head coach Casey Brouwer (far left) and his players left for Langley on Tuesday morning. They are ranked sixth in the 16-team tournament. Team members (left to right) include Justin Davis, Arshdeep Gill, Subjoit Gill, captain Benson Cheng, assistant captain Gurlal Dhaliwal, assistant captain Gurkirat Toor, Phil Cabanada, Kavneer Dhaliwal, Navraj Brar and Parmveer Chauhan. (Photo supplied)
Head coach Casey Brouwer admits his players were overcome with emotion and nerves when they played poorly during their first game at the B.C. Senior Boys A Basketball championships last year.
But he’s confident that’s not going to happen again this year.
The Rattlers left Tuesday for Langley, where they will compete against 15 other regional champions in the provincial championship tournament that kicked off Wednesday.
The Rattlers are ranked sixth heading into the provincial championships and will be facing B.C. Christian Academy from Port Coquitlam, a team ranked 10th, in their opening game.
“Last year the guys were really pleased just to make it to the provincials, but things are different this year,” said Brouwer, who is finishing his fourth year as the coach of the senior boys Rattlers. “In our first game last year, our guys got really rattled with all of the attention and the pressure and we played a very poor first half and never recovered.
“Many of our key players from last year are back as leaders this year and I don’t think you’re going to see that happen again.”
To win the provincial championship, the Rattlers would have to rattle off four consecutive wins in four days and Brouwer believes his team has the talent, work ethic and skill to win it all.
“We played the No. 1 team in the province, Kelowna Christian, at our home tournament, and we lost by a single point,” he said. “In the Valleys two weeks ago we played the No. 3 team in the province, Immaculata out of Kelowna, and we whipped them by 20 points.
“If we play the way we’re capable of and don’t get too nervous, I think this team is capable of beating any team in the province and coming home with the championship.”
The only weakness on the team is they rely heavily on several key players, including captain Benson Cheng and assistant captains Gurkirat Toor and Gurlal Dhaliwal, said Brouwer.
“We’re not a very deep team and we have to stay out of foul trouble,” he said. “Our big guys play 90 to 100 per cent of every game, so we need them to stay out of foul trouble and be able to be out on the floor for every game.”
Dhaliwal said it was frustrating to play poorly in their first game at last year’s provincials and he agrees this team is more experienced and that should ensure it doesn’t happen again.
“Getting a taste of provincials last year really taught us a lot,” he said. “We let the nerves get to us and I don’t think that will be a problem this time.”
The Rattlers are not only a basketball team, but a very good group of close friends, he said.
“The skill level on the team last year and this year is pretty much the same, but the big difference this year is we’re truly a team,” he said. “We are all very good friends on and off the court and when we’re not practicing or playing games, we hang out together all the time.
“It’s a great group of guys who really want to accomplish something special together and now we have that chance in Langley.”
The team doesn’t have any significant weaknesses as they have size, can score and defend well and can also adjust to a fast-paced game or play a half-court game if their opposition slows things down, he said.
Cheng said he’s confident the Rattlers can beat any team in the province if they play their best basketball.
“We’re going down there to win,” he said. “We know the ride isn’t going to be easy and we’re going to have to play some really good teams, but we’re confident that we can beat anybody we face if we play like we can.”
A large group of parents, siblings and other supporters are making the trip to Langley to cheer them on and that should help a lot, said rookie guard Justin Davis.
Other team members include Parmveer Chauhan, Paul Sekhon, Phil Cabanada, Kavneer Dhaliwal, Subjoit Gill, Arshdeep Gill and Navraj Brar. Brar won’t be competing in provincials because he’s travelling with his family in India.
Brouwer said he’s loved working with this particular group of kids and he said winning a provincial championship would be a dream come true.
“We’ve shown we can play with the best teams in the province … now it’s just a matter of playing our best ball when it counts the most,” he said.
KEITH LACEY
Osoyoos Times
