Some of the best 3A boys basketball teams in the province are coming to Robert Bateman Secondary School starting today (Thursday).
The ninth annual Timberwolves Classic senior boys basketball tournament returns to Abbotsford, with 16 teams set to duke it out for bragging rights.
The host Timberwolves are one of three Abbotsford teams competing at the event. Both the MEI Eagles and Rick Hansen Hurricanes are also tipping off.
Other teams competing at the event include: the Caledonia Kermodes from Terrace, North Vancouver’s Bodwell Bruins, Langley’s Brookswood Bobcats, Burnaby’s Byrne Creek Bulldogs, Chilliwack’s GW Graham Grizzlies, the Maple Ridge Ramblers, Richmond’s McNair Marlins, the North Delta Huskies, the Pitt Meadows Marauders, Vancouver’s Sir Charles Tupper Tigers, the South Kamloops Titans, Richmond’s Steveston-London Sharks and the Wellington Wildcats from Nanaimo.
The Timberwolves Classic has evolved into one of the premier 3A boys basketball tournaments in the province, especially in the past two years since it became a 3A exclusive event.
The 2016 and 2017 tournaments saw three of the final four 3A provincial championship teams compete. Last year’s Timberwolves Classic final saw the McNair edge out the Hansen Hurricanes. Rick Hansen would later go on to capture the 3A provincial crown a few months later.
This year’s event features 13 teams that have been in the top ten for 3A this season.
The tournament kicks off at 8:30 a.m. today, with the championship game occurring at 8:30 p.m. on Saturday. The host Timberwolves open against Steveston-London today at noon. MEI kicks off the event against Wellington today at 7 p.m., and Hansen takes on McNair today at 1:45 p.m.