In the only championship game to take place before the COVID-19 pandemic ended the 2019-2020 season, 30 for 30 defeated Shottas 81-64, becoming back-to-back Div 1 Champions. Jon Wilner put up 20 points for the Shottas and 30 for 30's Xavier Smith took home MVP honours after averaging 26 points per game this season.
Division 1 - 30 for 30: If They Only Knew defeats New Cream Tea (93-70)
30 for 30 takes the best of three series in two games over New Cream Tea. After an unfortunate exit in the Div 1 semifinals last season, 30 for 30 responded in a big way, completing the perfect season (18-0) in 2018-2019 and being the only team in the league to do so. Amrit Basi and Dharmpal Brar each put up 20 points for 30 for 30, while Kurtis Sansregret and Braedon Speers chipped in 19 and 15 points respectively. Jamar Farley responded with a game-high 24 points for New Cream Tea but it wasn't quite enough on Monday night. As our commentator explained, "[30 for 30] just has too many weapons." This was a great rivalry to watch all season long.
Player of the Game: Braedon Speers
Division 1 - Fireballs defeat 204 Swish (67-55)
Game three of the Division 1 series did not disappoint on Sunday night. The Fireballs took game 1 83-79 and 204 Swish responded with a 61-59 victory in Game 2. The Fireballs went up early and had an impressive 16 point lead going into the second quarter, but they were held to only 7 points in the second and were up 7 at half time. 204 Swish closed the gap in the third and the lead changed hands several times until Hall of Famer Anne Smith decided to go on a tear, putting up 14 points in the fourth quarter, sealing it for the Fireballs. Anne is your Playoff MVP with 18 points in Game 3, helped by double digits from Joanne Small and Charmaine Walker. 204 Swish constant Robyn Eyer had 11 points and Amy Barlow had 10 and was tough to stop in the paint. Congratulations to both teams on an impressive series!
Player of the Game: Anne Smith
Division 2A - Smokin Trees & Strokin Threes defeats Soft in the Paint (78-63)
Smokin Trees and Soft in the Paint duked it out for divisional supremacy all season, finishing 1st and 2nd in the regular season and 1st and 2nd in the playoffs. On Thursday night, Drew Dobinsky had an MVP-worthy game, putting up 23 points for Smokin Trees and earning the Booster Juice and Fort Garry Brewing prize pack. Soft in the Paint certainly had the more well-rounded score sheet, with 5 of their 6 players scoring double digits. Smokin Trees are our first repeat champions this season, successfully defending their 2018 championship and adding to their t-shirt collection.
Player of the Game: Drew Dobinsky
Division 2A - Golden defeats Broken Wings (50-43)
The first final of our women's league ended in a narrow victory by the top-seeded Golden. The third-seeded Broken Wings knocked off the number two-ranked Kodiaks by a 12 point margin in the semifinal and were right there all game on Sunday, led by Carole Dupuis and Courtney Engel with 11 and 9 points each and Janessa Siemen's oustanding rebounding. Golden were undefeated in divisional match-ups this season and were led on Sunday by Raquel Klutskow's 12 points and by Sam Breakenridge's 10 points and many defensive stops. Both players put up big numbers for Golden all year. This was an outstanding finish to a highly competitive Division 2 season.
Player of the Game: Sam Breakenridge
Division 2B - Rim Rockers defeat So Smooth (48-45)
The Rim Rockers and So Smooth gave us one of our most exciting finals this season. This back and forth game came down to the final shot, with So Smooth throwing up a three to tie at the buzzer, but it was just off the mark and the Rim Rockers are your Division 2B champions! Christine Chang of So Smooth led both teams in assists and Destiny Seymour was hot from the 3-point line, earning game MVP honours. Elisa Anderson and Liliana Menjivar led the Rim Rockers on the scoresheet, with 11 and 10 points respectively. Congratulations to both teams on an exciting final!
Player of the Game: Destiny Seymour
Division 2B - TKO defeats Love Me Sexy (85-71)
TKO has been steadily moving up divisions every season and are now your Division 2B champions. Love Me Sexy had to play in the 4 vs 5 qualifier just to get into the Semifinals, then knocked off the top seeded Veterans Minimum and seemed to be poised for the upset but TKO's Kushinga Manyangadze had other plans on Monday night. The MCAC standout had 27 points, helped by double digits from Ryan Pilon and Jordan Ankrah. Caelin Reid's 25 point performance for Love Me Sexy was enough for a Subway Player of the Week award. This was a hard-fought but extremely sportsmanlike battle to close out the Division 2 season.
Player of the Game: Kushinga Manyangadze
Division 3 - Anishinabe Pride defeats Charlie's Angels (59-55)
In front of by far the largest turnout of fans this post-season, the Pride and the Angels put on a show to decide the Division 3 championship. Tied after 10 minutes, Anishinabe Pride went off in the second quarter, going into half time with a 12 point lead. Charlie's Angels responded in the second half and Pride foul trouble in the fourth quarter almost tipped the decision for the Angels, but they couldn't quite close the gap. Five 3-pointers from Angels' Jill Overby helped her reach a game high 23 points. Elisa Anderson led the Pride with 17 points, joined by Skylar Boulanger with 16 points. Congratulations to both teams!
Player of the Game: Elisa Anderson.
Division 3 - Brita Bros defeat Supreme Team (73-57)
Brita Bros keeps climbing the division ladder and are now your Division 3 champions. Supreme Team, who upset the 2nd seeded Shottas by a big margin in the semifinal, held the top seed to a close game in the first half, but Brita Bros' deep bench and team chemistry could not be matched on Tuesday night. Sherwin Vasallo and Jonar Huertas led the Brita Bros in points, helped by big rebounding numbers from Mark Ridd. Sean Rudolph and Joseph Jabbie responded for Supreme Team with 15 and a game-high 16 points respectively.
Player of the Game; Sherwin Vasallo
Division 4 - NL Net Gains defeat Trust the Process (59-54)
Arguably our most exciting final so far, the NL Net Gains are the only team (ever?) to finish last in the regular season and go on to win the Championship. They completed their improbable playoff run with a 5 point win over Trust the Process Wednesday night. Trailing throughout the first half, the Gains came back in a big way, managing the last few minutes well and hitting six key free throws late in the game. Matt Bedard led the Gains in points with 15, helped by double digits from Acero, Ho, and Oakley. Kalvin Ramos had a game high 18 points and Ryan Griffiths had 3 highlight reel blocks for the Process. Congratulations to both teams on their outstanding seasons!
Player of the Game: Matt Bedard
Division 4 - Lil Ballerz defeat Gong Show (49-35)
The Ballerz and Gong Show finished tied for first at the end the regular season and were destined to meet in the Division 4 final. A defensive battle, this low-scoring affair featured lots of blocks, steals, and great defensive rebounding. Rachael Holod had a game high 13 points and several nice assists for Gong Show. Meaghann Buitinga and Princess Acero led the Lil Ballerz with 10 and 9 points respectively. Princess' tough defensive play and many steals earned her a Booster Juice Player of the Game Award. With only a handful of fouls called, this was a hard-fought but sportsmanslike final to close out our Division 4 season.
Player of the Game: Princess Acero
Division 5 - Nasty defeats AMG (73-66)
1 and 2 in the regular season and 1 and 2 in the playoffs. With a short bench on Tuesday night, AMG left it all on the court in a heated battle with Nasty but couldn't quite close the gap in the second half. Four late 3-pointers by AMG's Nico Anania and Corbin Warnock brought the game within 6 with just over a minute to play, but AMG foul trouble and calm free throws from Nasty's Jaired Garing kept the game just out of reach. Garing led both teams in scoring, with 20 points, helped by Chris Benevides' 18 points. Warnock, Anania, Nick Evans, and Mark Riediger all hit double digits for AMG. Nasty becomes our third team of 2019 to successfully defend their 2018 title.
Player of the Game: Chris Benevides
Division 6 - Supafly defeats Team Mayhem (83-70)
The late game on Monday night did not disappoint, with the up-and-coming Mayhem challenging the veteran Supafly team. Division 6 was especially competitive this year, with no clear favorite going into the playoffs. After the first three rounds, 5th and 7th place were left standing for the finals as the top 4 seeds all fell in playoff upsets. Supafly's Dustin Robson-Flatt and Paul Lichauco both had tremendous performances, evenly matched by young stars Evan Abram and Enriq Barra from Team Mayhem. Paul Lichauco's 17 points and many assists earned him the Booster Juice and Fort Garry Brewing Player of the Game award. Congratulations to both teams on a hard fought final!
Player of the Game: Paul Lichauco
Division 7 - Rich Gang defeats ThundaDownUnda (74-53)
ThundaDownUnda pulled off not one, but two upsets on their way to the final, taking out the 2nd-ranked Roblin Park Raiders and 3rd-ranked Duke Blue Devils in the first two rounds. However, Rich Gang was the top seed for a reason (13-3 during regular season play) and came up with a big win on Wednesday night. With ThundaDownUnda missing a couple key starters, Rich Gang took the lead early and never looked back. Tyler Stewart and Scott Kolotylo each had 15 points on the game and Kevin Booy responded with a game-high 16 points for ThundaDownUnda. Both teams are to be congratulated on a great season and for their excellent sportsmanship in the final.
Player of the Game: Tyler Stewart
Division 8 - Sydicates defeat Skoolz Out (65-59)
The last game of our men's league season was a barn burner on Thursday night. Skoolz Out were a bit short staffed but a late arrival by Alvin Salonga gave them some fresh legs and they pushed the Syndicates to the limit in the last two minutes of play. Mike Riddell had a game high 18 points for Skoolz Out, and Chad Sauerborn added 15 points. The Syndicates had a well-rounded score sheet with 10 of their 11 players players getting points. Dennis Ochoa had 10 points but his assist game earned him the MVP award, setting his teammates up for easy baskets all game. This was one of our most entertaining finals (at one point a Syndicate player called his own technical foul) and both teams left it all on the court.
Player of the Game: Dennis Ochoa
Recreational Division - Midlife Crisis defeats peGCIty (59-56)
Our friendliest division put on quite a show on Thursday night, with a physical battle that came down to the final 20 seconds. peGCIty saved their best games for late in the season, winning 7 of their last 8 games and knocking off the top-seeded River Rats on their way to the final. But the veterans of Midlife Crisis showed that experience wins playoff games, managing both the game and their emotions well. TJ Johnson and Garry Militere kept the peGCIty defense busy all game, while Jeff Laninga challenged the Crisis. We always seem to list the Rec Division at the bottom, but there is a ton of skill and veteran savvy in this division. Congratulations to both teams!
Player of the Game: TJ Johnson
Division 1: New Cream Tea defeated IRTC Elite 64-60
Player of the Game – Daman Morrissette of IRTC Elite
Division 2: The Chandler Parsons defeated Kaman 74-63 in overtime.
Player of the Game – Damon Esposito of The Chandler Parsons
Division 3: Smokin Trees & Strokin Threes defeated the Tenacious Turtles 78-68
Player of the Game – Drew Dobinsky of Smokin Trees & Strokin Threes
Division 4: Pounders defeated Just the Tip 77-62
Player of the Game – Robel Reshasion of Just the Tip
Division 5: Hoodie Melo defeated Brookelegends 84-68
Player of the Game – Kris Santamaria of Hoodie Melo
Division 6: Shottas defeated TKO 73-67
Player of the Game – Nick Fletcher of Shottas
Division 7: The Drizzle Bro’s defeated The SB’s 51-49
Player of the Game – Josh Van Walleghem of The Drizzle Bro’s
Division 8: Hoop Migos defeated Evolution 70-64
Player of the Game – Rodrigo Dalmacio of Evolution
Division 9: Nasty defeated Trust the Process 71-66
Player of the Game – Kalvin Ramos of Trust the Process
Division 10: Miami Heat Cheques defeated the Ankle Bullies 57-54
Player of the Game – Khalid Ali of Miami Heat Cheques
Division 11: N.W.O. defeated Senpai Squad 64-57
Player of the Game – Judd Eusebio of Senpai Squad
Division 12: ThundaDownUnda defeated Flyer Squad 63-43
Player of the Game – Alex Cavallin of Flyer Squad