The Tantramar Regional High School boy’s basketball Titans are full of good news and bad news this year.
First, the bad news: the team had to sit out this year’s AA conference playoffs after COVID-19 made its rounds on the team just days before they were set to begin. That was especially disappointing, coach Andrew Sharpe told CHMA. “We were quite excited that with eight seniors, this was going to be our year to make some noise in the playoffs,” said Sharpe. “But it didn’t happen and life goes on. Sometimes there’s bigger things than basketball.”
There was also some good news for the team, when captain Luc Swanson was chosen Player of the Year for the NBIAA’s East AA Conference, and also selected for the first all-star team.
Sharpe says Swanson is a natural leader, along with his co-captain, Josh Weinberg Fillmore. “The two of them together are just prototypical captains,” says Sharpe. “Very communicative, energetic, happy kids, and really wonderful basketball players.”
CHMA stopped by a team practice last week and spoke with coach Sharpe, a Monctonian who is wrapping up his first year coaching the Titans, and player Luc Swanson.
The team may have missed their shot at the playoffs in their high school conference this year, but there’s a consolation for the team this weekend, as they take to the courts for Basketball New Brunswick’s provincial U18 tournament, playing as the Sackville Titans.
Sackville is hosting the tournament at the Tantramar Regional High School on Saturday and Sunday.
Swanson says the tournament feels like a possible redemption for the team. “We all thought we could make it to the championship,” says Swanson. “We are a skilled enough team. So getting that taken away from us, even the opportunity to play, was hard. But the provincials is just another way to show what we did have as a team, and that we could still win.”
Swanson has hopes of heading to university next year and continuing his basketball career. “I’ve been in contact with some coaches,” says Swanson. “I’m still looking around, hopefully going to keep playing basketball. But of course, my education is important as well. So we’ll see what happens.”
The Sackville Titans will be competing this weekend in Basketball New Brunswick’s U18 provincial tournament being played at Tantramar Regional High School. The Titans have scheduled games at 9am and 7:30pm on Saturday, and at 10:45am on Sunday. The tournament playoffs start at 12:30pm Sunday.
