Tyson Taylor
sports@pqbnews.com
The BSS Whalers came out looking strong early on as big Steve Martin made his presence felt down low in the paint. KSS big man Connor Haywood wasn’t to be ignored either as he was in the paint, gobbling up rebounds and challenging shots as they came.
Ballenas grabbed a 10–7 lead after the first quarter and then blew it wide open in the second, taking a commanding 26–14 lead into halftime. The Kondors fought back in the third, coming to within a few points but Ballenas managed to fend off the attack and regain control of the game, eventually taking it 46-29.
Point guards Aaron Paetkau of BSS and Daniel Roder of KSS went back and forth, taking turns scoring in the third quarter. But with Roder in foul trouble early on in the fourth quarter, the Whalers took advantage and had a big fourth quarter to close out the game.
Brendan Harstad of Ballenas scored 16 points on the night while Steve Martin and Paetkau pitched in with 12 each. Roder, who collected 14 points, led the Kondors on the score sheet and Rab Hunter pitched in with nine.
Both teams were headed to the district tournament at John Barsby Secondary in Nanaimo last weekend after the long weekend press deadline, looking to advance to the North Island tournament Feb. 13–15.