The Foothills Falcons went on a Boxing Day extravaganza when they had the opportunity to play against a pair of top ranked teams at an elite Senior boys basketball tournament in Raymond.
Foothills won the consolation final at the Sugar Bowl by downing the Magrath Zenith 100-69 Dec. 26. The Falcons had a big test to get to the consolation game, knocking off the Ross Sheppard Thunderbirds, 77-65 in the semifinal. The Thunderbirds are the ninth ranked 4A (more than 800 students) team in the province.
“We haven’t beaten a top 10 team for a couple of years now,” Falcons coach Amron Gwilliam said. “So that was a big win for us.”
The quick hands and sharpshooting of marksman Hunter Karl led the Falcons to the victory over Ross Sheppard with 22 points and had five steals.
Falcons power forward Taylor Armsworthy remained the Foothills chairman of the boards.
“Taylor continues to clear the glass for us,” Gwilliam said. “He was dominant on the boards.”
Armsworthy finished with 10 rebounds and 13 points against Ross Sheppard. Tanner Parrington contributed 15 points and six rebounds and point guard Jamie Derochie chipped in 12 points and also dished off six assists.
The Falcons, who have a honourable mention in the provincial rankings, were on the verge of knocking off a ranked 4A opponent in their tournament opener against the Cardston Cougars.
The third-ranked Cougars got a scare when the Falcons lost by a 94-81 margin. The Falcons had a 10-point lead at halftime and a slim one-point lead going into the fourth quarter.
“I think the biggest thing was they have more depth than us,” Gwilliam said. “We just ran out of gas.”
Gwilliam said his squad started to collapse on defence and the Cougars took full advantage, pulling out the 12-point victory.
Prior to the tournament, Parrington said he was looking forward to playing the Cougs again, who also knocked off Foothills earlier in the year.
His excitement showed on the court.
Parrington had one of his best games of the year, finishing with 29 points and seven rebounds.
Karl had 20 points to go with his six assists and five steals. Derochie also finished in double digits with 11 points.
The Falcons were able to waltz to the consolation final victory over the Zenith and Gwilliam used his entire roster in the win. Austin Smutko had an impressive game with 16 points and six rebounds. Armsworthy snared 15 rebounds to go with his 12 points.
The Falcons will resume Foothills Athletic Council play tonight (Jan. 9) when they host the Highwood Mustangs from High River at 7:15 p.m.
The girls will take the court prior to the game at 5:30 p.m.
Both the Falcons boys and girls teams are in first-place in league play with 3-0 records.
