The Salmon Arm Secondary (SAS) Golds basketball team hit the hardwood in their first game of the season at a tournament hosted by South Kamloops Secondary on the weekend.
The Golds started brightly as they took on Pitt Meadows, defeating the Marauders 57-51. Grade 12 guard, Dawson Mayes, scored a team-high 16 points and Rowan McDonald chipped in with 13 points. McDonald led the Golds defensively as he recorded five steals in the contest.
In the second game of the tournament SAS fell 72-57 to Handsworth. Once again Mayes and McDonald led the team, each scoring 12 points and Trajan Boyd added nine points of his own, including seven steals. The Golds did not fare well against the host Titans as they were defeated 88-47.
“Round-robin format tournaments are a great experience for everyone to play and practise what we’ve spent November working on,” said Golds head coach Rhys Waters. This year the 12-man roster features seven Grade 12s, three Grade 11s and a pair of students from Grade 10.
“We are really undersized this year, and as a team struggle defending the post and rebounding – hard work can help neutralize this advantage most teams will have over us,” Waters said.
“Scoring needs to be a priority. Our defence, while it has room to be improved upon, is there.” The Golds open their regular season against Kelowna Secondary on Tuesday evening, after the Observer’s deadline. On Thursday they head to North Vancouver for a weekend tournament.