After an upset loss had the Walnut Grove Gators on the brink of elimination, the senior boys basketball team responded with three straight victories.
“We talked a lot about what we wanted to accomplish this post-season,” said Gators coach George Bergen.
“They had some answers and I had an opportunity to offer some of my suggestions.”
The Gators were competing at the Fraser Valley 4A senior boys championships and they entered the 32-team tournament as the second seed.
And after winning their opening game 101-56 over Centennial, the Gators were upset by the No. 10 Lord Tweedsmuir Panthers 75-68.
The Panthers wound up finishing second in the Valley, losing 88-78 to the No. 5 Yale Lions.
In the double elimination tournament — with the top six qualifying for the provincial championships next week at the Langley Events Centre — Walnut Grove stayed alive by winning their next two games, 80-56 over Panorama Ridge and 79-52 over Tamanawis.
And in the fifth/sixth place game, the Gators held off Heritage Woods 79-72 on Saturday afternoon at the LEC.
“I thought we played with a little more intensity on defence, and that was very critical,” Bergen said. “And we took care of the ball a little bit better.
“Those are two difference makers that are very critical.”
Ty Rowell was named a second team Fraser Valley all-star for the Gators.
Walnut Grove is seeded No. 11 for the 16-team tournament and they open against No. 6 Burnaby South on March 11 at 6:45 p.m.