Dover Bay Dolphins Defeat Collingwood Cavs in Both Team's Final Game
Collingwood v. Dover Bay
Saturday, December 10, 2022
Written by Scott Leigh, Handsworth ‘06
In the last game of the tourney for these two squads, each are looking to finish off their tournament with an impressive 3-1 record. Both squads are going to be hungry to finish their tournament with a W - speaking of hungry, you know who isn’t hungry? Cavs coach Andy Wong, who made sure to gobble down a teriyaki chicken Edo’s lunch in preparation for his team’s afternoon battle. I was trying to get off the topic of hunger, but Collingwood started this game by calling “slice”, and it would be irresponsible of me not to briefly show appreciation for pizza slices.
#23 for the Cavs, Andersen Stewart, does not seem to be weighed down by whatever he had for lunch as he has started this game flying with a deep high arching 3 and a couple of free throws to give his team an early lead. The Dolphins have crawled, or maybe more appropriately swam, their way back into this through aggressive offensive rebounding and capitalizing on second chance opportunities. The Linder bros, affectionately known as the “Dover Splash Bros”, are using their length to cause problems for the Cavs. At the end of the first quarter we are all squared up at 24.
To start the 2nd Q the Cavs are mixing it up with a 2-3 zone D, and looking to test the long range shooting of the Dolphins. Early in the quarter it has proven to be a fruitful strategy, as Collingwood started with a 6-0 run. The Cavs seem content dropping back into their zone D until the Dolphins find a way to knock down a jumper or two. It’s Saturday, and most progressive banks do have some open hours on the weekend - Stewart has confirmed the same, with the very deep bank 3 to extend his team’s lead by 5 going into the half, 45-40.
Halftime Fact: Dover Bay’s two Linder brothers have made things easy on those of us trying to tell the difference between the two lookalikes. Older brother Luke has chosen number 12, which is the grade he is in, whereas younger brother Frank has chosen number 10, which is the grade he is in. Rumour has it there is a third Linder brother who is in grade 8 - guess his number? Thanks to the Linder family for making my job easier.
Big man Stewart is showing off his game both inside and out, as he no doubt has been given the green light from range. Cavs are looking to their guards, and in particular #5 James Holm to control the pace of play and create opportunities for teammates. The Dolphins are spreading the ball around and looking for a balanced attack, with a number of players contributing offensively. #13 Oyama Crouch for Dover came into the game and immediately made an impact, embracing the harm and still finishing to complete a 3-point play. The Dolphins went on a nice run over the last few minutes of the quarter, getting themselves right back into the game with 10 minutes remaining. Cavs up 61-60.
Luke Linder looked like Lebron with the full court chase down block with a little extra oomph, making sure this whole gym knows the Dolphins aren’t ready to catch an early ferry ride back to Nanaimo. #34 Hudson Trood on Dover has been a burst of energy, getting his hands on every ball within a 10-foot radius. Younger Splash Bro Frank is fired up after finishing inside with the nice spin move, and just like that the Dolphins have a 6-point lead with 4 minutes to go. #10 for the Cavs, Finnegan Murphy, is playing an integral role late in the game making the nice pass leading to an easy bucket and being a vocal leader defensively. A great game on this Saturday afternoon, ultimately ending with the out-of-town Dolphins being victorious. An incredible effort tonight and all tournament long for these two solid squads!
Final score: Dover 85 - Collingwood 77.
P.S. Shout-out to the entire extended Linder family, and most importantly Mr. and Mrs. Linder who are raising 5 boys and one daughter!
No Regrets.