It was business as usual for the Handsworth Royals senior boys basketball team at the prestigious Bedford Road Invitational Tournament held last week in Saskatoon.
The Royals won the 50th edition of the BRIT, knocking off the Winnipeg Garden City Gophers 53-32 in the final to resume their rule at the tournament following a long absence. A decade ago Handsworth owned the BRIT – a tournament that features teams from all across the country as well as entries from the United States – winning three straight championships from 2005 to 2007. This year was their first trip back since 2007, and the result was the same.
“The tournament is a special one to Handsworth, going back to the Randy Storey era (a.k.a. the Golden Years) where they won it three times in three years,” Handsworth head coach Cam Mowat told the North Shore News. Storey was the head coach of the dominant Royals teams of the 2000s and still works at Handsworth – he helped arrange the trip back to the BRIT this year and came along as a teacher sponsor.
“(It’s) one of the best run tournaments that I’ve ever been to,” said Mowat. “We played some quality games there and were fortunate enough to win the whole thing. Of course winning the tournament was the highlight of our trip, but we also came together as a team. We played some skilled competition and the refs let us play some tough basketball - which we love - and as a result, we became a better, more cohesive team.”
Blake McLean was named tournament MVP while Ben Grant was a first-team all-star.
