Close Call: STA Defeats Dover Bay in Boys Quarter-Final

Friday, December 9, 2022

Written by Scott Leigh, Handsworth ‘06

St. Thomas Aquinas v. Dover Bay

Day two of the 2022 No Regrets Tourney is about to kick-off, with STA set to battle the Dover Bay Dolphins. Both squads are coming off opening round wins, and are looking to continue that momentum into game #2! The Dolphins have navigated the stormy seas as they made their way over to the North Shore from Nanaimo and have high hopes of a deep run in the tourney. STA are just a few minutes from home, and will look to take advantage of their relative home court advantage. 

If the first few possessions are an indication of what to expect in this game, STA will be looking to get the ball downlow to big man #15, Declan Cutler, and Dover will look to counter that with a fast pace of play. Dover has started the game in a half court match up zone D, which will certainly test STA’s early season offensive form. The Dolphins have some size to match up against STA, including #10, Frank Linder, who has started this game aggressively on the offensive end giving his team a quick 4 point lead. The big men from both teams aren’t afraid to play on the perimeter, looking comfortable putting up shots from deep. A strong defensive battle in the first quarter has STA up 11-10.

The big man matchup is alive and well, as each team exchanges physical blows and looks to establish their inside presence. Each of these teams are hoping to hit a few more shots in this second quarter, as they are getting good looks but thus far have been inconsistent on converting on those open shots. On a day when Lionel Messi helped his Argentinian team get into the semis of the World Cup, the Dolphins in their baby blue Argentina-like colours are making breakout passes that Messi would be proud of. STA has delivered a consistent set of pressure in this first half, which has given them the slight edge heading into the half: STA up 29-27.

Halftime Facts: Dolphins are very social animals and live in pods of up to a thousand individuals.  St. Thomas Aquinas was a 13th-century priest and philosopher, who was also known as the Doctor Angelicus, or the Angelic Doctor.

Both of these teams are hungry to earn a spot in the semi-final, and it’s showing with the intensity level as they come out of the locker room at half. After a slow start offensively for both teams, they settled into the game, calmed their nerves and started to knock down a few jumpers. STA is breaking down the Dolphins zone D by getting the ball into the high post, then finding Cutler in the low post in a favourable 1 v. 1 match up. It seems Cutler is enjoying the high intensity atmosphere, as he looked to the Dolphins bench asking them to “shhhhhhhh” as he dribbled up the court. STA has extended their lead during this third quarter, up 14 with one quarter remaining.

The Dolphins have come out with a sense of urgency we have not yet seen, knowing this game was heading in the wrong direction. A few quick baskets has the lead down to 8 with 7 minutes to go. At the midway point of this final quarter, Dover has inched their back to within 1 point. That urgency continues for the Dolphins as they apply an impressive amount of pressure on D, forcing turnovers and making STA pay by turning that into points on the other end. The Dover comeback has been impressive as the score is tied at 53; time to see who can execute during the last few minutes of this game and find their way into a semi final matchup. #12 for Dover, Luke Lidner, was not ready to say goodnight quite yet as he nails the 3 and gets fouled with 30 seconds remaining to complete the 4 point play. Ultimately, the slow third quarter by Dover put them in too deep of a hole to win this game, but it certainly was not as a result of a lack of effort. What an incredible battle between two teams vying for a coveted semi-final position!

Final Score: STA 65 - Dover Bay 60.

No Regrets.