The Kermode Kave is quickly turning into a gym that opposing teams fear including the defending Pacwest men's champions.
The Quest Kermodes men's basketball team took down the Langara Falcons 80-77 on Saturday (Nov. 9). It's the first time Quest has defeated the Falcons since Nov. 21, 2009.
The back and forth affair saw the Kermodes deal with foul trouble and ride the back of Shedrick Nelson to victory. Nelson picked up 21 points and six rebounds but it was a big three point shot with 34 seconds left, followed up by several key free throw shots down the stretch that sealed the win.
At the end he took over, said Quest head coach Sean Shook. He's a fiery competitor and after Cartiea [French-Toney] fouled out, he really stepped up.
In the third quarter, it was Quest's Jose Colorado that caught fire. Colorado hit a trio of three point shots to build an eight point lead for the Kermodes. But the Falcons fought back in the fourth and took the lead with just over two minutes to go, only to have Nelson carry the team to the win.
Colorado scored 21 points and grabbed two steals, while French-Toney had 18 points, six assists and five rebounds and was a key player for Quest before fouling out in the fourth quarter.
We came out and battled our asses off, Shook said. I'm super happy for the guys because it proves we can compete with the best Langara was ranked number one in the country coming in. But now we have to focus on VIU next they're ranked fifth.
Shook praised the play of Mohammed Dadfar, who had a team high 11 rebounds and said he liked the energy that Justin Tryon brought off the bench. He said it was a big difference from the team's season opening loss against Capilano on Nov. 1 and Friday's (Nov. 8) 98-85 win over Douglas College.
We didn't come to play last Friday [against Capilano] or in the first half against Douglas, he said. We decided to take a defensive mentality tonight because Langara is a team that can drop 100 points easily. We did a heck of a job on them tonight.
French-Toney had a strong all-around game against Douglas, with 26 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists. Colorado added 26 points, with Nelson also contributing 20.
The win moves Quest's record to 2-1 on the season.
Meanwhile, the Quest women's team continues to roll. The Kermodes remain undefeated on the season after disposing of Douglas 73-61 on Friday and beating Langara 59-40 on Saturday.
Newcomer Miriam Baumann established herself as a force in the Pacwest, with an 18 point and 18 rebound performance on Friday and following that up with 17 points and 10 rebounds on Saturday. She said the team is gelling well.
The team dynamic is really good, she said after Saturday's win. I'm liking the team a lot so far, everyone gets along well and we really played as a team today.
The Montreal native played at John Abbott College previously and said the level of play is similar to the Pacwest. Women's team head coach Dany Charlery said she's fitting in well.
Miriam is a go getter, he said. It's an attitude that the rest of the team should try and pick up.
Charlery said Baumann, along with newcomers Abbey Piazza, Tessa Needham and Aimee Johnston are learning the Kermodes system and should be important players. He said home court will be key for his team.
We want to make it tough at home, he said. We want to build a winning attitude here.
He noted that Langara was missing two of its best players but he liked his team's defense.
They're a driving team so our philosophy was just to stay in front of them and deny the wings, he said. It worked well in the second half and it was a nice weekend for us.
Charlery admitted that three point shooting could become a concern for the team. Quest was a combined four for 30 over the weekend.
We practice it a lot it is a concern but I'm not too worried about it because in our system we should get enough looks we just need to practice it more, he said.
Both teams will head to Vancouver Island next week, with games against VIU on Friday (Nov. 15) and Camosun on Saturday (Nov. 16).
For more information on the teams, visit www.questkermodes.ca.
