CANORA - If you enjoy basketball with lots of offense, the Canora Composite School gym was the place to be on Feb. 14, as the Cougars senior boys basketball team outgunned the visiting Sacred Heart Saints of Yorkton by the final score of 115-71.
The Cougars roared out to a 14-4 start in the first quarter, and stretched their advantage to 70-37 by halftime. Canora led by as many as 50 points in the third quarter. Cougars Coach Hudson Bailey had high praise for his players.
“They played perfect basketball for the first three quarters, they stuck to the game plan and adjusted to the opponent accordingly,” said Bailey. “There were a few of our guys that got into foul trouble but we are constantly working to improve on playing the cleanest ball we can. Other than that, they played very well.
“The keys to victory tonight start with our pace. They boys played faster, constantly looking to push the ball up the court. Second was our teamwork. The boys played a team game tonight, keeping the ball moving and being unselfish.”
The 115 points was a season high for the Cougars.
“Everyone was on point tonight hitting their shots, boxing out and rebounding, then pushing it up the floor.”
Bailey said the Cougars have enjoyed a good season to this point, with a won/loss record of 15 and seven.
“As far as tournaments go we have played in several, placing first in Norquay’s home tournament, second in Hudson Bay’s home tournament, accompanied by some fourth and fifth-place finishes in our other tournaments, can’t win them all!”
Even with a winning record, Bailey said there is definitely room for improvement, both individually and at the team level.
“I think our number one thing we have to improve on is teamwork and ball movement, and I know that comes with experience and age but I am constantly hammering that into them. On the individual level I think that we have to work on dribbling, we only have a few good ball handlers so having more options would be a big advantage.”
After graduating from CCS in 2022, this is Bailey’s first coaching opportunity.
“I guess I was kind of thrown into the fire since my first coaching opportunity is at the senior boys level, but that is the best way to learn.
“I enjoy many things about coaching. First of all, I’m a pretty competitive person so coaching is the next best thing to being out there on the court. Secondly, I enjoy working with the players and seeing them improve over the course of the season. There are many guys on the team who have improved tremendously since the start of the season. Thirdly, it keeps me in shape! I coach in a very hands on type of way. I’m right in there doing drills and scrimmages with the guys. Lastly I just want to see the game of basketball grow in our area so I’m doing my part to contribute to that.”
Bailey is dealing with a unique challenge in that, a short two years ago, he played for the team that he is now coaching.
“At first it was very weird, as some of the guys had played with me in my Grade 12 year. It was a change for me because I went from being their teammate to being their mentor and coach. But I think it works well because of the age difference as I am 20 years old now, we have a different relationship and camaraderie than if someone older or a teacher were coaching them.”
Another matchup with Sacred Heart is coming up for the Cougars, this time in Yorkton on March 6. That will be followed by a makeup home game against Norquay that got cancelled earlier in the season, date to be determined. Playoffs will start the last week in February.
“We are part of the northern league consisting of Norquay, Preeceville, Kamsack and us,” said Bailey. “Who we play is still undecided. Then it leads into conferences and regionals in the second and third week of March, then hopefully on to provincials.”
Even though the Cougars are having an excellent season, Bailey said there is good reason to expect an even brighter future.
“We have a young team made up of one Grade 12, a few Grade 11s and mostly Grade 10s. We even brought up two Grade 9s from the junior CCS team. That being said, we have a very young and super talented team, and I am very proud to be the coach. We have set our goal of making it to provincials so hopefully we can close out the season strong.”
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