OBA U15 Day 1: The Warm Up
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WINDSOR, ON–The U15 Ontario Basketball Association (OBA) club championships tipped off on Friday in Windsor with the top eight teams in the league going head-to-head in their journey for gold. Day one provided a great platform for the players to get their feet wet and feel out the competition. It was also a sound opportunity for NPH to place top performers on the radar for the rest of the championship.
OBA U15 Seeding
- Brampton Warriors
- Toronto Triple Threat
- Mississauga Monarchs
- Ottawa Guardsmen
- St. David Blues
- Etobicoke Thunder
- Blessed Sacrament
- Durham City Central
OVERTIME THRILLER
The day tipped off with an extremely exciting game between the #1-seeded Brampton Warriors and #5 St David Blues.
Brampton trailed virtually the entire game, struggling to make it over the hump, until the perimeter combination of 5’10 Guard Matthew Trpcic and 6’0 Guard, Jalen Poyser caught fire late in the fourth and into overtime.
The Brampton Warriors stole the victory and avoided the upset, heading into day two with confidence.
“It’s all conditioning…that’s what we’ve been working on all last month and it came up big,” explained Matthew Trpcic.
The #1 Brampton Warriors will open day two in the first game once again, matching up against #8 Durham Ciry Central, who came off a big upset victory over #4 Ottawa Guardsmen.
On the other hand, the #5 St David Blues will take the floor against #4 Ottawa Guardsmen.
NPH STANDOUTS:
ST. DAVID–6’2 G DEVONTE CAMPBELL, 5’11 PG CODY JOHN
BRAMPTON–6’0 G JALEN POYSER, 5’10 PG MATTHEW TRPCIC, 5’11 G RAYSHANE CASE
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BRODY CLARKE AND CO. TAKE CARE OF BUSINESS
The #2-ranked Toronto Triple Threat were much more than that on day one of U15 OBA action, as the squad provided production from every angle through various sources including 6’6 Brody Clarke, 6’2, Dewon Williams and Calvin Epistola, to name a few.
The athletic group proved to be far more active and much too deep for the #6-Etobicoke Thunder. Triple Threat ran off to a 10 point lead within the first few minutes and never looked back from that point on. They forced Eobicoke into a flurry of turnovers and forced the opposition to play an uptempo game, a style of play the Thunder could not handle.
Despite the blowout victory, standout 6’6 forward, Brody Clarke and the entire squad will remain hungry for the ultimate goal.
“We stay motivated because we came into this game knowing that we want one thing and that’s to win a gold medal,” explained Brody Clarke, the largest player on the court.
“This win only brings us one step closer, so we still have four games left and we’re ready to go,” continued Clarke.
Brody is the younger brother of NCAA Santa Clara freshman and 2010-2011 OFSAA champion, Julian Clarke.
#2-Toronto Triple Threat will face #7-Blessed Sacrament, while-#6 Etobicoke will match up against #3-Mississauga Monarchs on day two of the U15 OBA championships in Windsor, Ontario.
NPH STANDOUTS:
TORONTO TRIPLE THREAT–6’6 F BRODY CLARKE, 6’2 G DEWON WILLIAMS, 5’9 PG CALVIN EPISTOLA
ETOBICOKE THUNDER–6’0 PG LUCAS ORLITA, 5’8 PG FELIX FRIMPONG
PHOTO COURTESY: OBA
STAY TUNED ON NPH FOR THE REST OF THE U15 CHAMPIONSHIP ACTION!!
