To clinch their first Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Gold Medal in the history of their athletics program, the Keyano Huskies Men's Basketball team had to play a solid 40 minutes against the George Brown College Huskies.
While a full 40-minute effort is always debatable based upon the efforts and runs of the opposition – something the OCAA’s Huskies did do well in their bid for a victory – the ACAC’s Huskies emerged victorious with a 68-55 win.
“I think it’s going to take some time to settle in, but a lot of hard work over the years and this group of guys bought in from the beginning,” Head Coach Jeremy Wielenga said. “We came together at the right time, peaked at the right time.
“We relied on defence; defence is what wins championships. It’s won us two championships in the last three weeks.”
But everyone knows that while the game itself was only 40 minutes of stop and start action, the journey to get there was much longer.
The rosters from previous national bids of 2013 and 2016 had put in their work, come and gone. The 14-10 record in 2017-18 that was the first for Wielenga followed by the years of regular season dominance only to battle to overcome a legendary run by one of the Huskies’ historical rivals.
Despite those heart-breaking defeats, each year Wielenga and the Huskies kept coming back.
Now, in 2024, it’s all come together to immortalize the team in ACAC and CCAA history.
“The last couple years we’ve had heart-breaking defeat; we’ve really been through it,” Wielenga said. “Maybe that’s what built us for this run and gave us the experience that we needed to get through it.
“Any time something ever came up, we stayed calm, we stayed composed and we found a way to get through it. I couldn’t be more proud of the guys. They’re the ones that made all the plays; they did all the work. They’re the guys that got it done. Hats off to our team and hats off to our guys.”
Even following the ACAC Championship win, there was no guarantee of success at nationals. Many ACAC Champions before them had gone and not come away with gold. All three wins had their learning curves for the Huskies to get comfortable, get into their groove, and push ahead at the right time.
Think of the Huskies who more often than not dominated the three-point shooting battle. They had six games of double-digit three-point shots made in the regular season, made 26 across three games in the ACAC Playoffs, and added 14 in the opening quarter-final matchup against the Camosun Chargers.
Saturday, with a CCAA Gold Medal on the line, they made two on 19 attempts. That might understandably rattle any team; but not the Huskies.
There would be time to reflect – and hopefully celebrate - after the final whistle Saturday. Until then, Wielenga and the Huskies kept their foot on the gas.
“They’ve bought in all year in terms of preparation,” Wielenga added. “Between winning on Thursday night and Saturday we had six film sessions, two practices, and I think that made the difference tonight.
“Guys were locked in and ready for everything that George Brown did. They bought in and defence got it done.”
In the end, the stat line followed a familiar blue print for a Huskies win. Four players ended up in double digits, led by an 18-point performance by DJ Haynes. Omeechi Williams, who knocked down those two three-point shots, had a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Evan Meyer was close with 16 points and nine rebounds.
Down five after the first quarter, the Huskies charged ahead in the second with 23 points in an 8:16 span of the second quarter. On the other side of the ball, the Keyano Huskies limited their opponents to five points in the quarter until a three-point shot in the final minute brought the margin to a respectable 10 points at the half.
The OCAA's Huskies did close the gap to six in the second half, only to be responded by a three from Williams seconds later that put a damper on the momentum for the opposition.
As the Huskies from George Brown College attempted a comeback, the Huskies kept it simple. Layup after layup, making good on seven of eight free throw attempts. It all served to widen the gap and run time off the clock; a winning combination that filled Wielenga wide immense pride.
“I’m very proud to be the coach and work at Keyano College,” Wielenga said. “We just work as hard as we can to try and make everybody proud in the community of Fort McMurray.
“We’ve had a lot of great teams in soccer, basketball, volleyball, and for us to do it, it means a lot.”
Save a thought for Keenan Miller as well. He played his way into a starting role in his first season in the ACAC into being named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player, averaging 14.33 points per game over the Huskies’ three-game run.
“Unbelievable weekend,” Wielenga commented of Miller. “He really came on strong for us here down the stretch. His defence has been absolutely essential for us to win a championship.
“In the SAIT game, the St. Mary’s game, we kept giving him bigger and bigger tasks as we went into Camosun, Humber, and George Brown.
“He deserved it. He didn’t get recognition at the ACAC All-Stars, but we knew he is an all-star. Now he’s the MVP of the national tournament.”
The 2025 edition of the national tournament will be hosted in Montreal, Que. by Vanier College.
