Blue Jags Take Care of Bulldogs in Exhibition

    Photo by Dave Edwards

By: Mike Edwards

David Lee made the most of his opportunity in the starting lineup Tuesday night, scoring 19 points in the SMUS Blue Jags' win over the Belmont Bulldogs. The exhibition game at the SMUS single gym was the Blue Jags' first test this season against a Victoria Tier 1 League opponent.

After a slow first few minutes of the game, SMUS picked it up jumping out to a 21-16 first quarter lead. Jason Scully led the charge offensively, posting an impressive 12 points in the opening quarter.

The Blue Jags took their momentum into the second frame, with two early makes from beyond the arc courtesy of Jake Wilmott. They didn't look back as they went on a 19-0 run that spanned nearly seven minutes. At half time, SMUS had a 50-27 lead over Belmont, capped off by a buzzer-beating layup from Lee. Wilmott had 10 points at the half, with Lee chipping in with 8 and Lucas de Vries adding 7.

It was more of the same to start the third, as the Blue Jags high pressure defence continued to create turnovers leading to fast break buckets at the other end. By the end of the quarter, SMUS had extended the lead to 37 points for a 70-33 advantage.

The Blue Jags finished the game off strongly in the fourth, holding the Bulldogs to only 7 points in the final frame. They were also able to keep their foot on the gas pedal offensively, to close out an emphatic 91-40 win.

In addition to Lee’s 19 point effort, SMUS received sizable contributions from a number of players. Wilmott and de Vries finished with 17 and 13 points, respectively. Meanwhile, Matty McColl put in a great performance of his own, hustling on the offensive glass and passing the ball which led to numerous open looks. Angus Catto also had 9 points off the bench including three triphectas. For the Bulldogs, it was Jackson Leeder leading the way with 17 points, and Nathan Zaragoza put in 12.

“We came out a little slow to start the game but in the second quarter we started playing our brand of hard-nosed basketball and it worked out well for us.”, said Lee of the team’s performance.

The Blue Jags will head off this Friday to the BC Independent School Championships, held November 28 and 29 in Vancouver. This is the first major date on the schedule for the senior boys this season as they aim to defend their titles from 2012 and 2013. Next week, 2014-15 Victoria Tier 1 League play gets underway with a game on December 2 at Claremont.