In a hard fought game with high intensity, the Jr. Dinos lost to the Wildabeasts in Airdrie Elite East Spring League action 69-57. Both teams played with high emotion and desire, and there were many a time during the game when bodies were sprawled across the hard wood diving for loose balls. However, at the end of the game, it was the Jr. Dinos inability to shoot the ball, and turnovers that were the difference in the game.

The Wildabeasts featured Dominyc Coward, the U of C Dinos #1 recruit for the 2008-2009 season out of Bert Church in Airdrie, Dallon Martin (Lethbridge Community College) and Zack McKee (Grant MacEwan) also both out of Bert Church, as well as Gabe Goree and Ibrahim Mohammed, both graduates of St. Mary’s University in Halifax. Gabe was a two time conference player of the year and 2 time first team All-Canadian while at SMU.

The Jr. Dinos seemed a little out of sync from the beginning of the game, and put themselves in an early hole that they were unable to climb their way out of. The team shot a terrible 8-40 from the floor in the first half, and combined that with 14 turnovers. The half time score was 32-20. A tied 37-37 second half shows the ability of the squad, but their slow start was an obstacle they could not overcome. Add that to the inside presence of Coward, Mohammed and Goree, and the Jr. Dinos could not cut the lead to fewer than 4 in the second half.

The Jr. Dinos were unable to make the consistent right decisions leading to the obsurdbly high number of turnovers. It was too much to overcome in the long haul. Kudos to Ryan Baker, Sean McCormick and Dallin Bachynski who battled against the much bigger opponent all night.

The Jr. Dinos will take the floor again next Tuesday against another Calgary Club team, the Red Jackets. Game time is 8:30 pm at Bert Church.

Finally adapting to the style of eachother and the team, the Jr. Dinos have suddenly found themselves playing great basketball in the Airdrie Elite Spring League. Despite often playing against older and more experienced opponents, the Jr. Dinos find themselves sitting at 2 wins and 1 loss with the lowest points per game allowed in the entire league. With a stagnant 60 points per game, the Jr. Dinos defense seems to have become the team’s best offense.

On April 24, the Jr. Dinos took to the floor against the Old Ghosts, a team comprised of former Bishop Grandin players and several players who have moved on to play College or University Basketball in Canada. In a very tight and scrappy affair, the Jr. Dinos came out flat, and were unable to capitalize agains the much older Ghosts early in the action. However, the defense of the Dinos kept them in the game. By giving up only 30 points in the first half, the Jr. Dinos were able to stay within striking distance trailing 30-23 at the break.

The second half saw a completely different team. Running the floor, making the right decisions, and using their superior depth, the Jr. Dinos finished off the comeback by winning 70-60. The Dinos scored 47 points in the second half to the Ghosts 30, again, keeping up their stellar defense. The Dinos were lead by the inside play of Dom Coward. Dom finished the game with 13 points, 14 rebounds and 3 assists. Other double digit scorers included Ian Tomaszewski with 11, Taylor Norum with 10, and Trevor Debolt with 10. Kudos to both Tomaszewski and Kendell Boese whose defense limited the Ghosts top performer.

In action again on May 1, the Jr. Dinos took the floor agains the host team of Airdrie Elite. Never to be taken lightly, the Airdrie squad prides itself on hard nosed play, and great coaching tactics. Coming out firing, the Jr. Dinos took command early and never relinquished the lead. After a 11-2 run to start the game, the Jr. Dinos finished off the game with a 87-35 victory once again stagnating their opponents defensively. The Jr. Dinos were lead by the play of Sean McCormick. Sean was everywhere and finished the game with 8 points, 10 rebounds, and 8 steals for the near triple double. The versatile forward was the catalyst in the Jr. Dinos press attack. Eric Bakker lead the Dino scoring with 12 points in what was easily his best performance of the Spring. Eric finished the game with 12 points on an efficient 6 for 9 shooting, also recording 3 rebounds and 3 steals. Other double digit scorers included Brett Pekar with 11 points and Dow Coward with 10. 3 Dinos recorded double digit rebounding games. Besides McCormick, Derrick Waldner, the 6′7″ post from Holy Trinity Academy and 6′7″ forward Taylor Norum recorded 11 and 12 rebounds respectively.

The Jr. Dinos next action is on Thursday May 3 against their in-city rivals, the grade 12 Calgary Selects. Game time is at 7:15 at Bert Church High School.

The U-16 Boys opened up the Star Opener Tip-off Tournament with a rematch against the Westside A team, a team that consisting of grade 12’s
and a sprinkle of 11’s and 10’s. The teams played each other last week in a exhibition game with Westside prevailing 84-40. The Jr. Dinos answered with hard play as they competed and outworked the opposition creating a very entertaining game. The final score was a 66-55 win for Westside. The Jr. Dino’s have shown that they can compete with older club teams and their hard work ethic is second to no one. Top scorers for the Dinos were Chris Loubardeas with 11 points and 9 rebounds, 6 steals, while Tyson Kwasney added 10 points, 4 rebounds, Connor Curran with 8 points and 7 rebounds, and Adam Zywotkiewicz had 8 rebounds.

Saturday the U-16 Boys began with a very early morning game against the Foothills Falcons B Team. Right from the opening tip-off the Dino’s were off and running and had their most productive game of the year. Their hard work over the last few weeks has began to show on the court with the Dino’s winning their first game of the year 86-44. The top scorers included 2 players posting double/double’s: Jesse Denscombe with 11 points and 20 rebounds and Connor Curran with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Other top scorers for the team were Fraser Wayne with 12 points, and Ben Bertolami with 11 points.

The team then played in the afternoon against a very strong and quick team out of Cochrane. The opposition ran very well throughout the opening
half, and with continuous fast breaks were able to hold onto the lead throughout the 1st half. Finally the Dino’s were able to match the speed
of their opposition and their overall conditioning seemed to be the difference in the 2nd half as the Cochrane team began to run out of energy. The Final score was in favour of the Jr. Dino’s 73-58. Top performers for the Dino’s were Ben Bertolami with 22 points 12 rebounds, Fraser Wayne with 13 points 7 rebounds and Chris Loubardeas with 11 points. Adam Zywotkiewicz had 8 points and 16 rebounds.

The U-16 boys had 1 more match up for the consolation side final that matched them up with the Falcons A team which consisted of grade 12’s
and 11’s with a couple of 10’s. The Dino’s with their high tempo and hard work ethic through the first 3 games showed that they are human and
the energy level throughout the team was very low and their recovery was not enough as a result the Falcons won the contest 71-51. Top performers for the Dino’s were Tyson Kwasney with 9 points and 6 rebounds, Alex Daum with 8 points and 8 rebounds, Fraser Wayne and Ben
Bertolami each with 8 points.

A very good tournament for the team as their hard work is beginning to show on the court with their next test the Selects Basketball Tournament
which will be run May 19-20.

By Coach Randy Peron

The U-16 boys played a couple of exhibition games this week against 2 teams from the Westside AAA Club Team.

The first game was played against the Westside White that consisted of a few grade 12 players along with a mixture of 11’s and 10’s. The Jr. Dino’s beginning to understand the new offense started off rather tentative which resulted in Westside having numerous runs. Westside was able to capture the 84-42 win. Top scorers for the Dino’s were Chris Loubardeas with 10 points and Noah Sander with 6.

The next night the Jr. Dinos played Westside Black, a team made up of grade 10’s and 11’s. The Dino’s beginning to gel as a team picked up their game big time and competed throughout the entire contest with the final score being 73-63 in favor of Westside. The Jr. Dino’s made up entirely of grade 10’s are showing great signs of team play, hard work and and williness to outwork the opposition. The top scorers for the Dino’s were Fraser Wayne, Tyson Kwasney and Chris Loubardeas each with 10 points along with Jordan Tudor with 8 points. Top rebounder for the Dino’s was Adam Weir with 7.

With players ailing from a long weekend of Provincial Team Try-outs, the Jr. Dinos put a slow start behind them to pull off a 90-68 win against the Blue Devils at Bert Church High School in the Airdrie Elite Spring League. The Blue Devils, Led by SAIT Trojans Jamie McLeod, Adam Lukomski and Brandon Stewart, along with former Trojan Chris James, were not able to keep pace with the Dinos who were able to sprint ahead in the second half outscoring the Blue Devils 46-29. The Blue Devils were led by Jamie McLeod and Chris James who each scored 24 points.

The first half was marked by starting guard Brennen Fule’s two early fouls as the Dinos led 44-39 at the half. However, Jordan Hone and Cam Perry helped to pace the Dino attack while Kendall Boese and Ian Tomaszewski sparked the Dino Defense. After showing some fatigue in the first half, Tyler Fidler picked up his play in the second sparking the Dino run which would put them ahead for good. Along with Fule’s return to the floor, and some timely buckets from Mike Berlando and Cam McFarquhar, the Dinos were able to hold on to the lead for good. The leading Dino scorer was Brennen Fule who finished the game with 15 points including hitting 4 for 5 from 3 point range. Other double digit scorers included Jordan Hone with 14, Cam Perry and Tyler Fidler with 11, and Pierce Anderson with 10. The well balanced attack saw all 13 players in uniform score for the club.

The Jr. Dinos next game will take place on Thursday May 4 against the Pitsnogles which features U of C Dino Josh Feist and former Mt. Royal Cougar Kelly Lundgren. Game time is 8:30pm at Bert Church High school.

Note: Congratulations to all Jr. Dino Players who made the Basketball Alberta Midget and Juvenile Teams:

Jinil Kim, U-15 - Midget
Brett Palmer, U-15 - Midget
Ben Bertolami, U-16 - Midget
Trevor Debolt, U-17 - Midget
Jordan Bachynski, U-17 - Juvenile
Tyler Fidler, U-17 - Juvenile
Ian Tomaszewski, U-17 - Juvenile
Taylor Norum, U-17, Juvenile

In their first game action of the spring, the Jr. Dinos played well in losing to Top of the Hill in the Airdrie Elite Spring League. Top of the Hill, composed of former University and College Stars Ryan Mulholland, Jamie Mulholland, Mike Asmus, Brad Gallup and Scott Gallup, the Jr. Dinos were definetely out experienced by their opposition. The Final Score was 97-85 for Top of the Hill. Top of the Hill was lead by Ryan Mulholland who netted 26 points hitting on 4 3 point buckets and going 10/10 from the free throw line. Brad Gallup scored 21 points, Mike Asmus scored 16, Scott Gallup 13, and Jamie Mulholland rounded out the double figure scorers with 12.

The Jr. Dinos were lead by the scoring of Brennen Fule who finished the night with 20 points with 4 three pointers. Jordan Hone was the only other Jr. Dino in double figures scoring 10 points off the bench, while Joe Theriault added 9, Tyler Fidler, Pierce Anderson and Taylor Norum all finished with 8. Trevor Debolt did a great job running the team and leading the fast break, while Ian Tomaszewski hustled, and did a great job on the defensive end of the floor.

The Jr. Dinos will continue their game action on Tuesday May 2 at 6:00pm against the Blue Devils.

Amidst the terrible weather that has plagued southern Alberta over the past few weeks, and despite the flood warnings on their trip to Cranbrook B.C., the Jr. Dinos are the 2005 Sam Steele Invitational Tournament Champions.

Making easy work of the competition, the Jr. Dinos disposed of Nelson, B.C., the Lethbridge Cougars U-17 and U-16 teams, and the Jr. Trojans of Calgary in the Final. The Jr. Dinos average margin of victory was an amazing 63 points over the 4 game tournament including a 47 point victory over the Jr. Trojans in the Championship game.

The Jr. Dinos began the tournament a little weary after a day of travel against Nelson B.C. After trailing 14-13 early in the game, the Dinos quickness and tenacity propelled them into the lead to stay winning the game 97-34. The Dinos were lead by the hot hand of Cam Perry who scored 30 points on 6 three pointers including hitting his first 5 in the opening half. The Dinos defense stifled Nelson in the second half as they were only able to score 12 points.

After a good night’s rest in Kimberley, the Dinos returned to action on Saturday morning against the Lethbridge Cougars. The Dinos prevailed in another dominating win, 107-42. The key to the Dinos victory was the staggering defense played by Dave Ness and Mike Haggarty on the Cougars top scorer. Forcing him out of his game, the Dinos capitilized and put the Cougars away early. The Dinos attack was lead by Brennen Fule who scored 24 points including 5 three pointers. Strong performances were also had by Logan Armstrong, and Adam Lonseth.

The next game saw the Dinos playing the Lethbridge Cougars U-16 team. In a game which featured 6 players in double figures, the Cougars were simply no match for the Dinos. The final score was 115-36. The Dinos were lead by Jared Laird, a newcomer to the squad after spending some time with the Alberta Provincial team. The 6′6″ center scored 16 points, and added 7 rebounds in the Dinos Route.

The Sam Steele Championship game saw the Jr. Dinos take on their in Calgary rival, the Jr. Trojans. After starting slow, including some sloppy play and turnovers, the Dinos lead 49-39 at the half. The second half was a completely different story. The Jr. Dinos exploded with their relentless effort, outscoring the Trojans 67-20, finishing the tournament up with a 116-69 win. The Dinos were lead by 6 players in double figures. Adam Lonseth led the way with 21 points, Logan Armstrong added 17, and Matt Urbanowski, who had an outstanding all around tournament at the point guard position, added 17 points and 13 assists. Mike Haggarty and Dave Ness once again played outstanding perimeter defense on the Trojans best player holding him to 14 points and limiting his play.

The Jr. Dinos will resume action at the Stampede Shootout in Calgary on the July 1 weekend. A special thanks goes out to all of the parents who braved the bad weather to drive to Cranbrook. Your support and committment to the team and program do not go unnoticed!

In their first tournament against competitors their own age, the Calgary Jr. Dinos won the Sheep River Shootout in Okotoks, AB this past weekend. In a dominating performance, the Jr. Dinos captured the U-17 A division in style defeating the powerhouse club team out of Saskatchewan, the Jr. Huskies, 94-75 in the finals.

In the first round, the Dinos were matched-up against the Edmonton Grads Basketball Club based out of Edmonton, AB. After waiting an extra 10 minutes due to traffic problems by the Grads, the Jr. Dinos started slow, but quickly jumped out to an insormountable lead. The Dinos balanced attack was way too much for the Grads to handle, with the final score being 113-58. The Jr. Dinos were led by the unbelievable play of Andrew Wytsma. Andy racked up 32 points, 15 rebounds, including 10 offensive boards to pace the Jr. Dinos attack. Cam Perry was also tremendous scoring 25 points including 6 three point field goals, and 2 dunks. Strong play was also put up by Brennen Fule, and point guards Mike Laffin, Doron Nand, and Matt Urbanowski who pushed the play for the entire game creating the pace the Dinos wanted to play. Defensively, the Dinos had over 15 steals using the full court pressure to totally halt the Grads attack.

In the Semi-final game, the Jr. Dinos played the Bert Church Chargers out of Airdrie. A familiar foe, the Jr. Dinos knew that the Chargers would give a huge effort against them. However, using a stifling defense and spurting out to a 28–1 lead, the Jr. Dinos left the Chargers in the dust winning 84-46. The Jr. Dinos were led by the outstanding effort of post Adam Lonseth who scored 23 points, and grabbed 13 rebounds all on terrific hustle. Adam Shaw out of Grande Prairie, AB, who had a terrific all around tournament for the Jr. Dinos scored 16 points including 4 steals and 4 rebounds. Logan Armstrong out of Youngstown, AB had a great game as well scoring 13 points and playing terrific defense. This win set up the match-up against the Jr. Huskies in the final.

Outsized upfront, the Jr. Dinos looked to be outmatched by the much bigger Jr. Huskies. However, the work of starting post players Andrew Wytsma and Adam Lonseth was the difference in the game. Both standing at around 6′3″, Andy and Adam used their superior athleticism, hustle, and outside/inside game to stop their opponent and led the Dinos to the 94-75 victory. Andy and Adam both scored 25 points in the final game, and both had at least 10 rebounds to seal the victory.

Leading 37-31 at half, the Dinos exploded in one portion of the second half going on a 15-0 run in a 2 minute span leaving the Huskies in their wake. Superb defense, and superb depth helped the Dinos capture their first tournament victory of the summer. Strong games were also had by Cam Perry who scored 15 points in just over 15 minutes of action due to foul trouble, and Adam Shaw who scored 11. Outstanding defensive efforts were put up by Dave Ness, who guarded the most athletic player in the tournament for most of the game, and Logan Armstrong who did a terrific job on the glass.

Next up for the Jr. Dinos is playoff action against the Old Chargers in the Airdrie Spring League on Monday June 6 at 7:15. Congratulations Jr. Dinos!

After a disappointing loss to the Jr. Trojans just the night before, the Jr. Dinos balanced attack, passing and sharp shooting secured the victory over Elite East of Airdrie, 69-51. In a game which saw all 13 members of the Jr. Dinos roster play, the game also marked the first game for G Chris Giles who had missed previous games for personal reasons.

The Jr. Dinos athleticism and endurance was just too much for the Elite East of Airdrie to handle, which also features players from grade 9-11. The Jr. Dinos attack was lead by Reed Sieminiuk who socred 10 points. Other scorers fore the Dinos were Doron Nand, 9, Adam Lonseth, 8, Andrew Wytsma, Cam Perry and Logan Armstrong, 7, Brennen Fule and Michael Laffin, 6, Cam MacFarquar, 4, Chris Giles, 3, David Ness, 2, and Matt Urbanowski with 1.

The Jr. Dinos next game will be on Tuesday May 10 against the Old Chargers at 7:15pm at Bert Church High School in Airdrie.

With their intimidating style and clutch and grab defense, the Jr. Dinos fell victim to a much older and much more athletic Jr. Trojans team 100-73. The Jr. Trojans were lead by Calgary Dino signee Robbie Sihota, who will join the Dino Varsity squad next season.

Despite the loss, the game was a valuable learning experience for the Jr. Dinos facing a in-you-face press, as well as some very intense defense for the first time all summer. In the loss, Brennen Fule was terrific for the Jr. Dinos. The grade 10 student out of Strathmore stood up to all comers, pouring in 8 three pointers and finishing the night with 31 points for the Jr. Dinos. Strong performances were also had by Logan Armstrong who added 14 points, and 9 rebounds.

The Jr. Dinos will face Elite East in their next game on May 3, 2005 at Meadowvale Middle School in Airdrie at 6:00pm.