Vancouver Metro Basketball League

It’s been another great season of Vancouver men’s league play with some amazing playoff games to finish the spring session of Metro League!  As we wait for the first round of the NBA playoffs to wrap up, we thought we would reflect on some of our very own superstars.

The top teams held their dominance in the league with sharp shooting and intimidating defense. And there have been numerous great highlight moments every week: heavy dunks, huge rejections, ridiculously tough shots and sneaky moves in the paint.  But if you want to know what it really takes to compete in this league, here are some key stats!

Top teams: Canada One and 3D.  In the regular season, Canada One averaged 103 points each game while 3D kept their opponents to a measly 68.5 ppg.

Hot Shots (regular season)
Spend the off-season working on your defense so you can try and stop these hot shots!

Playoff Clutch Players
In addition, to producing throughout the regular season, these guys stepped it up in the playoffs.  By improving their point production, hustling that extra step, nabbing more rebounds, and showing amazing heart in the playoffs, the following players turned in some great clutch performances.

Basketball is the latest addition to the Center of Gravity Festival (www.centerofgravity.ca), “BC’s all out summer sports show”, which takes place in Kelowna, BC, on the July 31st – Aug 2nd (August long weekend).

The feature sports for 2009 are beach volleyball, freestyle mountain biking, 3 on 3 outdoor basketball, and wakeboarding. The professional sports will be complimented with an interactive entertainment package which includes the Friday Beach Concert, Coronaville Beverage Gardens, skydivers, the Lake Jump, DJs and breakdancers, the Swimwear Comp, fashion shows, the Kids’ Zone, the Exhibitors’ Village, and after parties each evening.

Whats Up Ktown will be running the the 3 on 3 outdoor basketball tournaments (aka K-town Summer Slam). There will be 3 divisions: Open, Recreational, and Youth. They will all be played in the Jubilee Bowl and there will be plenty of great prizes for all divisions including $1,000 cash up for grabs in the Open Division.

The B-Ball Zone will include grand stands and 4 competition courts. There will be a number of fun competitions like the Dunk Contest and Skills Comp. To register please contact Jon Zaleski ( whatsupktown@gmail.com ).

For discounted accommodation please contact Scott Emslie ( scott@wetape.com ) before June 15th.

FINAL: Canada One – 3D, 115-99

In the highly anticipated rematch betweeen Canada One and 3D, last season’s champs set out to redeem their regular season loss and regain the top ranking in the Metro League.  Canada One’s towering defense ignited a 10-2 run with Bob Hielttes and Navi Sekhon getting easy inside buckets with perfect passes from point guard Randy Nohr.  3D’s captain Jason Hubbs brought his team back into the game with some tough hoops against the ridiculously tall Canada One team.  3D started to heat up in the second quarter, but Canada One was determined to retain their lead and responded with some very physical defense.  Lucian Sauciuc played without fear and nailed some tough hoops to finish the half at 51-39.

Canada One started the 2nd half with hot outside shooting from Sean Maxwell, extending their lead to 34 points.  3D retaliated with big athletic plays from Josh Booy (dunk and a two-handed block against the glass/goal-tend) as well as sharp shooting from Alex Zabori and Graeme McCallum.  3D nailed eight 3’s in the second half to bring the game within 16, but the damage had been done in the first and third quarter.

Canada One continues their dominance with the highest bball IQ on the court, the rest of the league will need to build on their team strategy to take on these giants next season.

Road to the Championship:
Canada One – EA Sports, 105-84
3D – Run N Gun, 102-82

Thursday April 16, 2009 marks the finale of our second season here at the Vancouver Metro Basketball League and it’s been an amazing start to what we hope is years of competitive men’s basketball league play in Vancouver.

3D will face off with Canada One tomorrow night for what’s bound to be an intense dogfight with some high powered (and high-profile) players from throughout the lower mainland who, collectively, have NBA, CIS and NCAA experience under their belt.

This is YOUR league. Bring it.

Josh may be new to the league this season, but he is definitely known by many of the guys. Hailing from Salmon Arm (aka “The System”, known for mastering the fundamentals), Josh grew up playing several sports and only focused on bball in Grade 10. After a very successful high school career (31-1 in his final season), Josh followed in his dad’s footsteps and played post-secondary ball (UCC, University of Ottawa and TRU).

Josh’s size and presence on the court is obvious, but he also has a deep understanding of the game which he credits to his many mentors. Included in that group are his teammates; namely his high school point guard Jordie McTavish (who went on to play to play for University of Utah and Team Canada). Josh is an unselfish player who likes to play a strategic defensive game (usually after guzzling back a pre-game Red Bull).

When asked for his best advice for high school players, Josh offers these simple words: “Practice. Play as much as you can and try to make everyone you play with better players too.” So, watch for some great team chemistry on the 3D this season!

Quick & Dirty
Best athlete of all time: Ali
Most exciting person in pro sports today: Lebron
Toughest guy to guard in the Metro League: Randy Nohr
Favourite Olympic Winter sport: Luge
Best stat: 10 steals, 20 rebounds, or 4 blocks? Cookies

Here at the Vancouver Metro Basketball League, our inspiration comes from all angles; Mike Jordan, CP3, Larry, Magic, all the TV Commercials, family, our friends, old high-school teammates and sports other than basketball. As we put on our game-faces for Thursday’s Metro League Championship between Canada One and 3D, check out some Tiger Woods inspiration.  This is your league. Bring it.

The Vancouver Metro Basketball League Championship game is set for 8:00 p.m. on Thursday April 16, 2009 at Vancouver College. Canada One’s powerful frontline and sharp shooting backcourt face 3D’s unconcious shooters and tenacious D.   This is your league. Bring it.

Congratulations to EA Sports for hitting grand slam with the 2009 Metro Basketball League Charity Shoe Drive sponsored by Nike/New Age Sports!

Thanks also to everyone in the league that came out and participated in this charity initiative throughout the season.  It’s important to us that, as a league, we have a heart for community/charity and the entire Vancouver Metro League did an amazing job rounding up their kicks at home and donating to folks that need them more than we do.

EA came in with over 50 pairs of shoes!  EA Sports Metro League Team includes Jeff Atienza,  Mike Mahar, Matt Mahar,  Jeff Antwi,  Shane Luke,  Colin Currie, Phil Sinnott, Mike Smit, Matt Ng, Mike Baxter,  Zach Russell, Kyle Russell and Andres Rivela.

2009 Charity Shoe Drive brought to you by New Age Sports/Nike.  Visit New Age Sports for all your athletic shoe and apparel needs at the following Vancouver Locations:

Teams came ready to play and with only the winners advancing, the pressure and intensity were at an all-time high!!  Games were extremely close and adrenaline (& testosterone) were pumping.  Final scores were all within 6 points with the exception of #1 ranked 3D who continue to prove themselves as the top team in the league.

Run N Gun – Bullets, 71-65
Canada One – Sonic Boom, 88-82
3D – Celtics, 123-74
EA Sports – Swat, 68-62

Playoff Box Scores

Next week’s semifinals will feature:
3D (1) vs Run N Gun (4)
Canada One (2) vs EA Sports (3)

Playoff Summaries 

Run N Gun’s Brian Scotland (29) picked a great night to have his best game of the season.  Scotland came out gunning from the 3 (four 3’s on the night) and Mark Tasic continues to dominate the low post with 17 points in the first half.  Bullets were within a few points in the first quarter with three treys from Ben Lee and 9pts from Jamie Robinson.  But, Run N Gun were determined to take the win with a 9-2 scoring burst to finish the half 39-26.  The Bullets fought to keep the game close with another four 3’s from Ben Lee (21) and hoops from Ian Sheffield (10) and Jamie Robinson (14), but they had trouble defending the slashing offense of Run N Gun.  This foul trouble put Run N Gun on the line a whopping 29 times in the 2nd half alone.  Another win by free throws, coaches around the world are saying “I told you so”.

Run N Gun 71 – Bullets 65

Canada One 88 – Sonic Boom 82
This game was really tight, especially considering this is the #2 seed up against #7.  Sonic Boom fought to advance in playoffs, but Canada One’s big defenders forced them beyond the arc.  Igor Dutina (33) and Paul Rother (30) hit some big 3’s, but the team was unable to get many points inside the paint due to Canada One’s towering team.  Sonic Boom held Canada One to their lowest score of the season, but last year’s chanps sealed the victory with tough defense and some clutch free throws.  Hmm, I am sensing a theme.

EA Sports 68 – Swat 62
So, the theme continues.  6 point victory and the game ends with made free throws.    This was a highly energetic game played with a lot of a passion and heart.  EA’s Mike Baxter (22) and Matt Ng (19) continue to lead the scoring for EA and Mike Mahar joined in with his best score of the season with 15 points.  Swat’s Chris Peerless took it to the hole for 17pts with big man Jeremy Alexander hitting inside and out for 16.  Monjeff Peters added another 12 points, with an epic dunk in the first half.  In the dying moments (both teams in bonus), EA was up 65-62 and hit 3 freethrows to finish the game. 

3D 123 – Celtics 74
You can always count on 3D to play an incredibly fast paced game - both on offense and defense!   Celtics fought hard to stay close with 3D early in the game, but 3D’s unselfish team play continues to prove unstoppable.  David Wicks had a great night inside with 18pts and Pat Caffrey has been heating up in the last few game and hit for 22pts.  Melvyn Mayott was back into his usual flow with 20 points, but 3D just has too many offensive threats to handle.  Graeme McCallum (35) and Jason Hubbs (26) controlled the paint with the rest of the team spread the defense by firing from the outside.  Alex Zabori nailed four 3’s in the second half and Taylor Cherris-Wilding nailed six 3’s, finishing the night with 32pts.

Watch the inspirational Kobe Bryant – Where Will Amazing Happen This Year? Video from the National Basketball Association