Team Hurricane has gotten off to a solid 3-1 start in the first leg of its Montreal Hoop Experience. The team played in a doubleheader at Lower Canada College, Team Hurricane suffered a heartbreaking loss to Stanstead Select, 54-53, yet was able to recover and post a convincing 55-35 win over Lower Canada College.
Playing in their first game since arriving in Montreal, Team Hurricane and Stanstead Select played in yet another close affair reminiscent of their battles from the 2013 Thanksgiving Classic held in Bermuda. Trailing by as many as 9 points in the second half, Team Hurricane battled back to take a 54-52 lead with under a minute remaining in the game only to see Stanstead knock down a 3 pointer with less than 20 seconds left on the clock. Darae Smith scored a game high 18 points, while Raushon Tankard and Jahmair Trott added 13 and 12 points respectively. Keith Montero led Stanstead with 16 points.
In Team Hurricane’s second game of the afternoon, they jumped out to an early 18 – 6 lead only to see Lower Canada College go on a 14-0 run and go ahead 20-18. Team Hurricane responded with a run of their own and closed out the half strong and on top, 25 – 20. Behind the strong play of Team Hurricanes talented freshmen, Jorel Smith and Sean Tucker, the Hurricanes dominated the second half of play and pulled off a 55-35 win. Smith finished the game with 20 points while Tucker chipped in 15. Darae Smith played another fine all-around game and posted 16 points.
One of the day’s highlights was having the young ladies of Coach Bullet Basketball find time in their busy game schedule to come out and cheer the team on. It highlights the positive, collaborative spirit of the Team Hurricane & Coach Bullet Basketball programs.
In the second day of action, Team Hurricane picked up 2 more wins. The Hurricanes defeated two Montreal area high schools - Chateauguay Valley Regional High School (CVR) and Massey Vanier Regional (MVR). All of the day’s games were held at the W. John Mackey Gymnasium on the campus of Stanstead College.
Before the day’s games tipped off, Team Hurricane and players from CVR and Stanstead Select were treated to a clinic by Donnie Arey, an NBA clinician and an assistant coach at Warner University.
In their first game, Team Hurricane put on a dominating performance and soundly defeated Chateauguay Valley Regional High School, 84 – 47. Standout freshman Sean Tucker of Warwick Academy poured in 24 points to lead all scorers, while Berkeley Institute’s Darae Smith contributed 18 points in the victory.
The second game of the day was a tightly contested affair, one that saw Team Hurricane trail for much of the game. Late into the 3rd Quarter, Team Hurricane found themselves behind by 8 points. But the team was able to trim MVR’s lead and end the quarter only down by 4, 39-35. Defense reigned supreme in the final quarter, as Team Hurricane’s vaunted 2-3 zone kicked into gear. With Team Hurricane’s length and athleticism, MVR was held to 4 points in the quarter. Captains Darae Smith and Raushon Tankard led the way for Team Hurricane, scoring 20 and 13 points respectively.
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