The season for the Crowsnest Consolidated Panthers Junior A Boys basketball team has come to its conclusion. The team finished up the season at the 3J Zone Tournament in Claresholm on March 6 and 7. In the opening game on Friday, March 6, the 8th ranked Panthers faced the powerhouse, No. 1 ranked Claresholm Cobras, a team that had trounced the Panthers in two previous meetings. The overmatched Panthers had their best effort of the season against the Cobras but still fell by a 58-22 final. In their next match-up, the Panthers were up against the #5 ranked Picture Butte Kings early on Saturday morning. The Panthers and Kings battled from opening jump to final buzzer. With only six seconds left on the clock the game was tied at 47-47. Crowsnest called a time-out and set up a play for a final shot. The ball came in to Colton Miskulin, who calmly dropped in a bucket to put the Panthers up by two. After the basket, Picture Butte called a time out with less than two seconds left to set up their own final shot. The ball was passed in and the Picture Butte player was fouled while shooting, given the Kings two foul shots to tie the game. With a complete hush in the gym, the Picture Butte player missed the first shot, giving the game to the Panthers and sending them to the consolation final. Keegan Ryden led the scoring attack for the Panthers against Picture Butte with 19 points, which Colton Miskulin added 15. Justice Stella dropped in five points, with four each to Logan Amos, Connor Gunn and Calvin Duarte-Pedrosa.
In the Zone consolation final, the Panthers matched up against St. Mary’s Storm out of Taber, the strong #3 seed. The game was very competitive throughout, although a dry shooting stretch in the second quarter saw the Panthers start to fall behind. Both teams matched baskets in the second half, but the Panthers could not make up the first-half deficit and eventually fell prey to the Storm by a final of 74-49. Colton Miskulin had the hot hand for the Panthers and dropped in 19 points, while Keegan Ryden added 13. Logan Amos hit some nice shots from the corner to finish with six points and Calvin Duarte Pedrosa added five points. Ethan Flagg, Alex Ewen, Jarrett Kress, Connor Gunn, Justice Stella and Ethan Ballak rounded out the squad and made contributions at both ends of the floor.
In the Lundbreck tournament on February 27-28, the Panthers faced the Claresholm Cobras in their opening match and were soundly thumped. This put the team on the consolation side of the draw and up against the F.P. Walshe Flyers out of Fort Macleod. The Panthers had all they could handle from the Flyers, but did emerge with a 29-25 victory, sending them into the consolation final against St. Mary’s Colts out of Medicine Hat. The Panthers employed as strong team defence against St. Mary’s top scorer and pulled away with a great third quarter shooting exhibition and ended up topping St. Mary’s by a 49-45 final and claiming the consolation plaque. Keegan Ryden was the offense catalyst in the game, notching a season high 25 points. In addition the players who participated in the Zone tournament, Corby Fraser and Nick Manzer were on hand for the Lundbreck Tournament and chipped in with some fine play.
Coaches Joey Ambrosi and Michael-Duarte Pedrosa were both very pleased with the progression of the team and their skills over the course of the season. Coach Ambrosi noted “that there were definite signs that this was a team on the rise. We learned from every game. When we faced Claresholm for the third time this year, we were very much improved, and although the final score may not have showed it, we did put up a good fight in that game. All of the players will be moving up to the senior team next year where they all will be successful. Both Coach Michael and I wish them the best of luck with their basketball future.”