The OSBA Final 8 semifinals took place Saturday with some predictable and unpredictable outcomes on day 2 of great basketball action. (2) Crestwood Prep and (5) Niagara Prep advanced to the women’s final on Sunday.
OSBA Women’s Semifinal 1: (1) King’s Christian vs. (5) Niagara Prep
The number one seed King’s Christian were upset 67-61 by fifth seed Niagara Prep in the semi finals of the OSBA women’s final 8 tournament sending Niagara to the championship round.
Niagara Prep set the tone early, taking a four point lead late in the first quarter and limited King’s Christian to just 15 points. It did not end there as Niagara Prep established their effective three-point shooting led by guard Taniesha Clarke and continued to lead at halftime 34-30.
The guard led the way for their team, finishing the game with 25 points and making four three-point field goals demonstrating Niagara Prep’s effective perimeter shooting that was unguardable all game.
King’s Christian star guard Jasmine Bascoe was a force on the offensive end, despite the loss, finishing with a game-high 30 points.
Niagara Prep will play Crestwood Prep in the championship game at Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre at 12:00pm est. on March 5.
Top three scorers for King’s Christian Collegiate
- Jasmine Bascoe – 30 points
- Sumer Lee – 12 points
- Anastasya Veljovic – 8 points
Top three scorers for Niagara Prep
- Taniesha Clarke – 25 points
- Jordyn Wheeler – 14 points
- Fatou Diakite – 10 points
OSBA Women’s Semifinal 2: (2) Crestwood Prep vs. (3) Capital Courts Academy
The number two seed Crestwood Prep fought hard to secure a 67-63 victory over the third seed Capital Courts Academy to advance to the championship game of the OSBA women’s Final 8 tournament.
Crestwood Prep started the game off slowly, only scoring 17 points in the first quarter against last year’s OSBA champs, Capital Courts. Capital Court’s defensive struggles multiplied, allowing Crestwood to utilize their efficient scorers early.
Crestwood’s stellar forward Toby Fournier was dangerous from mid-range, scoring 12 of her 22 points in the first half and leading the way for her team’s 31-25 lead at halftime.
Heading into the third quarter, Capital Courts fought back to level the score and only trailed by 3 heading into the fourth. Even in a losing effort, Courts guard Catrina Garvey was a key factor in keeping her team in the game by scoring 15 points and making three 3-pointers.
Crestwood Prep will take on Niagara Prep in the championship game at Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre at 12:00pm est. on Sunday March 5.
Top three scorers for Crestwood Prep
- Toby Fournier – 22 points
- Maya Anderson – 16 points
- Justiece Miller – 8 points
Top three scorers for Capital Courts
- Catrina Garvey – 15 points
- Nyodleng Ylech – 12 points
- Jessica Wagold – 11 points
The men’s semifinals games went down to the wire, but (1) Royal Crown advanced to Sunday’s championship game vs. (3) Fort Erie RED on Sunday afternoon.
OSBA Men’s Semifinals 1 : (1) Royal Crown vs. (4) J.Addison
The number one seed Royal Crown pulled off the victory after defeating J.Addison 69-65 in a nail-biting finish to advance to the OSBA men’s Final 8 tournament championship.
Royal Crown got off to a rocky start as their quarterfinals top scorer Michael Evbagharu was in foul trouble early despite the team’s four point lead by the end of the first quarter.
It didn’t take long for J. Addison to establish their strong shooting prowess, hitting six 3-pointers in the first two quarters to find themselves only trailing 35-30 by halftime. J. Addison star Ibrahim Sacko was a scoring threat as seven of his 18 points came in the first half.
Royal Crown forward David Simon followed up his solid quarterfinals performance scoring 10 of his 15 points in the fourth quarter to secure the win for his team and reaffirming Royal Crown’s strong defensive game with multiple blocks throughout the second half.
Royal Crown will play Fort Erie RED in the championship final at Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre at 3:00pm est. on March 5.
Top three scorers for Royal Crown
- David Simon – 15 points
- Koat Thomas – 10 points
- Justus Haseley – 9 points
Top three scorers for J.Addison
- Ibrahim Sacko – 18 points
- Nemanja Sarkanovic – 14 points
- Ravjeet Randhawa – 9 points
OSBA Men’s Semifinals 2: (2) United Scholastic Academy vs. (3) Fort Erie RED
The third seed Fort Erie RED upset the second seed United Scholastic Academy (USA) 83-70 in a dominating performance to move onto the OSBA men’s championship final.
Fort Erie started off hot, scoring 21 points to take a seven point lead after the first quarter. Fort Erie guard Ishan Sharma led the way with 8 of his 15 points coming in the first quarter and was a main contributor in Fort Erie’s successful mid-range shooting.
United Scholastic fought back in the second quarter with an exceptional performance from forward Efeosa Oliogu who scored 11 of his 18 points in the first half and was instrumental to his team’s strong defensive effort to help cut the lead to three points by halftime.
The fourth quarter was closely contested, but Fort Erie kept their lead with a dominant showing from the Biosteel All-Canadian guard Felix Kossaras who scored a game-high 20 points. Kossaras was dominant in crunch time, tallying 14 of those points in the fourth to secure the victory for his team.
Fort Erie RED will go on to play Royal Crown in the men’s championship final at Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre at 3:00pm est. on March 5.
Top three scorers for United Scholastic Academy
- Efeosa Oliogu – 18 points
- Yamari Allete – 16 points
- Max Voorpool – 13 points
Top three scorers for Fort Erie RED
- Felix Kossaras – 20 points
- Diego Ramos – 19 points
- Oliver Faubert – 13 points
OSBA Women’s championship finals matchup Sunday March 4th
12pm: (1) Crestwood Prep vs. (5) Niagara Prep
OSBA Men’s championship finals matchup Sunday March 4th
3pm: (1) Royal Crown Academy (3) Fort Erie Red
For livestream link click HERE
