Race Begins To Be No. 1 in Boys' Basketball

There are some people who think that with one day left until the local high school football season ends, the attention will then switch from the gridiron to the basketball court.

Let's just say, the transition will be smoother. The reality: basketball, the boys' game, has been going for weeks. Maybe not officially with leagues, but the guys have been practicing since the day school opened and tournaments have occurred earlier than ever.

Have to wonder about gender equity in this sport. The girls' season of tournaments, league and playoffs is barely three months in the Fall. The boys', well, some claim twice as long.

No sooner does the ball bounce, than the opinions start rolling about which guys team is the best in this part of Ontario. Also, what schools have benefited the most from the transfer game - players deciding they suddenly had enough of one school and wanted to be at another because the reputation was better, and I mean for basketball. Recruiting, we won't touch that right now.

I remember the days when students went to the school closest to where they live. No more. Now, players from one part of the big city, and even surrounding regions, are choosing schools clearly across town - and somehow the athletes are getting to play rather than sit out a year.

I am no judge on this, but if it's happening, the people who are supposedly monitoring violations need to seriously think twice about enforcing the transfer rule or throwing it away. Treat everyone equally.

The chatter is also heating up about who will win the Ontario gold medal next March when OFSAA waters down the competition, and excitement, to four playoffs: Quad-A in Oshawa, Triple-A in Kingston, Double-A in Windsor and Single-A in Sturgeon Falls.

I guess there is some merit in smaller schools having their own playoff, but I wonder how teams with losing records get to an Ontario final simply because of the population of the school? What was wrong with one Ontario champion or, an idea tossed around for years, where an invitational event is held for the best teams?

Back to the best teams. Websites and discussion boards are flowing with opinions on who is the team to beat this season.

Let's see, Toronto's Father Henry Carr won its own tournament beating Pickering by 11 points. MVP of the tournament was Carr's Raheem Isaac. How about Loyola, led by another MVP in Rohan Boney? All the Oakville school did was knock off traditionally strong Eastern Commerce in the final of the Pinky Lewis tourney in Hamilton.

This has all been going on during the football season.

There's more. For years the Humber College Classic was just that, but not so sure this year. Brampton's St. Edmund Campion walked off as champs beating Martingrove 69-57 in the final. Matthew Wright of Martingrove could be one of the top players this year, but people are also talking about Campion's Jordan Clennon.

Oakwood will be up there. Mother Teresa too. Maybe Vaughan and on and on. Lots of questions and lots of hoops and one way to see who might end up on top is to check out the tournaments. Last count, some 50 are planned - and that's just in the Greater Toronto Area.

Comments

[Mr. Blake]

You are absolutely right. Have girls basketball and boys basketball at the same time of the year - and same lengths too. Enough of this current garbage. And it's OFSAA that is at fault for showing a lack of leadership.

[KP]

One championship is the way it should be. It looks hokey when teams who are Triple-A can go to Quad-A and win a medal. I am told of stories the other way too. Not sure who is right but the current format is a flop. Have a playoff with the best teams.

[Dias]

Does anyone know why Toronto schools do well in basketball?

[schools sports fan]

Holding an event for only the "best" teams in the province is not what OFSAA is about. OFSAA is about inclusion, and giving as many student-athletes as possible access to the "OFSAA Experience". It is different from club sports, where you will only play the elite athletes. For students, making it to OFSAA is a learning and EDUCATIONAL experience.

[Curious]

Wonder if school administrations actually monitor if basketball players not doing well in school are actually forced to not play or do the athletes get away with it because they're good in sports.

[AH]

Carr will win it all this year.

[Danny]

Wow. Just read the comments from SCHOOL SPORTS FAN and I had to chuckle. Yeah, OFSAA is about inclusion. You sound like a teacher. D'ya call inclusion seeing teams with losing records playing in an Ontario championship and teams that can't make it out of their league playoffs but get to go to OFSAA inclusion too? If that's your definition of education, you failed. And take a lesson and learn about club sports which is where many athletes really get their education. Sure hope you're not involved in school sports but then again you might even be one of those OFSAA educators. One final comment, club sports is not entirely for elite athletes. Club sports are also for good coaches which you seem to know very little about.

[Muscleman]

It would be refreshing to see someone other than Carr, Teresa, Eastern Commerce, Oakwood and Pickering win the only OFSSAA basketball final that counts. The other stuff is political correctness stuff by allowing all kinds of teams to compete for the OFFSAA Experience (give me a break man. They need one final. Teams win and keep going and lose and go home. Why have teams competing that could never even win a Walmart trophy if it wasn't for these various levels. The right stuff won't happen until leagues get serious about controlling all the movement of players to the same dominant schools. OFSSAA also needs to check in with reality. Let me ask you what would happen if 10 of the best players all pick a school that has never won and go to it. That would be something to see but it likely won't happen because some female principal would slam the door shut on them.

[Gramps]

The basketball season is far too long for boys and even with the Christmas break.

[Big John]

You neglected to mention St. Mike's as a possible contender.

[Anonymous]

Status quo has to go.
The high school sports system needs a complete overhaul of rules and what this is all about. Some people think everything is just rosy and it's not. No wonder so many teams are in trouble.
Kids aren't interested. And coaches are dropping like flies because the younger teachers are not interested either and there is no pressure for them to coach.
Seems like this is a great time for OFSSA and others to put a plan in place with some fresh ideas.

[bk]

Can you touch on recruitment sometime?

[Anonymous]

Grossman will tell it the way he sees it and people, particularly those who are in the cloudy area, don't like it when he brings awareness to things like this. He's absolutely right and I enjoy his opinions. Maybe the alleged guilty parties need to clean up their act and the entire system will be better off. Recruitment is killing the high school game in the major sports and it's not just the private schools who have mandates to get the best students. Just so happens that many are athletes.

[Mr. Blake]

Oakwood is No. 1 and they got this guy who played at St. Mike's last year.
Interesting how kids can play at private schools one year and then be eligible at public schools.
It happened in football and now in basketball.
And why is everyone leaving St. Mike's?

[Albert]

Looking at the scores from tournaments, I do believe that Loyola from Oakville is No. 1 now and Martingrove can put up a good case with Oakwood to be the best right now in Toronto.
So much for the talk at Father Henry Carr and Eastern Commerce.