Neepawa, Carberry play instant classic

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Published on Wednesday, December 21, 2016

By Eoin Devereux

The Neepawa Banner/Neepawa Press

If you’re a fan of basketball, mark Monday, Jan. 30 on your calendar, because that’s the day the Neepawa Tigers and Carberry Cougars junior varsity teams will once again play each other. If it’s anything like their first contest on Monday, Dec. 19th, it’ll be one to remember. 

The initial matchup would see Neepawa claim a 82-76 victory, though the game was much closer than the final score indicates as it featured constant momentum swings and a breakneck speed. 

In the first quarter, it appeared as though, it would be a lopsided loss for Neepawa, as the Cougars scored the first eight points of the game and kept the Tigers completely off-balance. NACI regrouped and started to push back though, to slowly climb back into contention. This slow first half rebound would be capped off with a massive last second play in the second quarter by Neepawa’s Rafael Castro. Castro stole the ball from the Carberry player and picked up the basket and a foul with 0.8 seconds left on the clock. He turned it into a three point play, making it 38-38 going into half-time.

In the third quarter, the Tigers got off to a sloppy start, allowing Carberry to reclaim the lead. The exceptional play of Carberry’s Gabe Araya, who had over half of the Cougars’ total points in the game, forced Neepawa back on their heels. The youngster consistently was able to drive into the paint for several well earned layups and high percentage shots from the low post. As the game progressed, however, foul trouble and an inability to out rebound NACI, placed the Cougars at a disadvantage. Slowly, but surely, the Tigers crept back into the game, lead by the scoring prowess of Tanner Mann and Ben Perrett. Another last second basket to end the third quarter, proved Neepawa with the 62-58 lead, heading into the final 10 minutes of regulation.

The final quarter saw both teams dealing with foul troubles, with each side using the freebies to their advantage. As time ran down, it was a fast break and three pointer by Neepawa’s Ben Perrett, off of a Carberry foul shot that turned the tide. That big time play provided the Tigers with a bit of a cushion in the final minute of regulation. Perrett, Mann and Castro lead the way to the win, while Araya and Burke Erickson had huge nights for Carberry. The win improved NACI’s record to 2-0, while Carberry fell to 0-2.  In the JV girls game, Neepawa outpaced Minnedosa 39-19. Kailyn Hanke was the leading scorer for NACI with 11 points.

Correction: The original title to this story was Neepawa, Gladstone play instant classic. The listing of Gladstone in the game was an error. The Neepawa Banner apologises for the mistake.