They are the champions!
The Humboldt Collegiate Institute (HCI) Mohawks enjoyed the sweet taste of success on Saturday, capturing the first 4A senior girls' provincial basketball title in school history with a 76-54 win over Moose Jaw Peacock.
"It's really exciting," Mohawks head coach Kerri Archibald said. "Going into the weekend, everyone was really nervous about it, because all four teams there were very, very deep. But we played really well. Our defence was great, and we finished well - better than we have in recent weeks. We peaked at the right time."
Hoopla 2011 took place March 25-26 at venues throughout Moose Jaw. Humboldt played both its games at the SIAST gymnasium.
Archibald said Paige Crozon "shot the lights out" in Saturday's final, scoring 29 points to pace HCI to the win. Many of Crozon's baskets came from outside, although she made a few solid inside drives for scores as well.
Lindsey Larson was as dangerous as ever, putting up 19 points, while Kaytlin Hantke pitched in with 10.
Archibald noted that Peacock gave HCI some trouble early in the game, bursting inside and generally wreaking havoc against the Mohawks' man-to-man scheme.
"They were scoring a lot of points inside on us, so we switched to a zone defence at that point," she explained. "That made it easier for us to set up, and harder for them to pass inside. It clogged up the middle, and gave them less room to pass."
That strategy worked well, as did HCI's plan to slow down Peacock's fast-break offence with a full-court press.
"We knew based on their game with P.A. (Carlton, in Friday's other semi-final) that they were pretty deep," Archibald said. "So we knew we had to slow down their running game, and try to force them to play more of a half-court game."
Humboldt advanced to Saturday's final thanks to a 64-49 win last Friday over the North Battleford Comprehensive High School (NBCHS) Vikings. Larson led all Mohawks shooters with 24 points, while Crozon tallied 19. Susanne Skulski chipped in with a solid 16 for the cause.
Defence was the key in that game as well, as HCI used its press to disrupt the Vikings' offence and force numerous turnovers. The Mohawks girls were particularly successful at containing NBCHS' dangerous outside shooters.
"They had one post who was particularly strong, and also some really excellent outside shooters," Archibald said. "So we worked really hard to shut down their outside game."
Archibald noted that the Vikings' coach tends to use quite a short bench, so one of HCI's strategies was to unleash as much speed as possible, use their bench and keep the transition game fast in order to wear the Vikings out.
"By the end of the game, their starters were just exhausted," she said.
The Mohawks got plenty of support in Moose Jaw thanks to a school bus full of Humboldt fans that made the trip down.
"Kids had their faces painted in blue and gold, and our mascot was even doing backflips on the hardwood," Archibald said. "It was just like a carnival atmosphere.
"Even in the final, our fans there were so loud that they took away some of Moose Jaw's home court advantage. We were really thankful to those who made the trip, and for those who supported us all year."
Three Lakes doused
In other Hoopla action, the Three Lakes School Avengers settled for silver after losing a heartbreaking 60-56 decision in double overtime to Central Butte.
The Avengers advanced to the final thanks to another thrilling finish in their semi-final game, beating league rival Lake Lenore 56-51.
The Lake Lenore Lancers senior boys made it all the way to their 1A final. But they were simply outclassed by a stronger Regina Harvest team. Regina drove relentlessly to the net en route to an impressive 108-72 victory.
Cole Bauml led the Lancers' effort with 26 points. Cameron Hertzl scored 15. Lake Lenore beat Sturgis 55-44 in the semi-finals.
