Up and down season leaves Coach Gilpin pleased, but far from satisfied.
There is a great sense of calm in Coach Rod Gilpin of the Bishop’s Gaiters. Having this calm transcend onto a basketball court where his group of players compete with urgency, aggressiveness, confidence, and an unbreakable mentality is the most impressive accomplishment. Coming off a 2008-2009 season which landed the Gaiters a 5-11 conference record, BU had a lot to prove.
In a squad filled with weapons, from the flashy, lightening quick Onnex Blackwood to the defensive minded, inside presence of Damon Thomas-Anderson, developing chemistry came naturally. “Our team chemistry was very good all season long,” remarked Coach Gilpin, referencing countless instances of resilience from their overtime thriller over UQAM to their three strong victories over Concordia. In a season which felt to have stretches of momentum, the road to playoffs was a bumpy one for BU.
With early season struggles, finding themselves at 1-4, the team travelled out to Winnipeg for the Wesmen Classic Championship in late December. Perhaps relishing the opportunity, BU made a statement, notching two wins to reach the finals before falling to #10 ranked Lakehead 72-58. Returning back home having been physically and mentally tested, the squad cultivated a three game winning streak to reach .500 for the first time over the course of the season. With first year Onnex Blackwood leading the way in the victories, the Gaiters looked efficient on both sides of the ball, with hard-nosed defense, terrific rebounding, and consistent bench scoring.
Staring down a double-header against McGill and Laval to follow three consecutive victories is a difficult proposition. In two highly contested games, the Gaiters fell short in both affairs, falling to 4-6. Almost plagued by the discouraging losses, BU followed with two duds; first at the hands of UQAM, and then Laval, losing both by double digit scores. “We played two games where we had great chances to win in both of them, and then, unfortunately, followed those up with what I think were our two worst games of the season,” said Coach Gilpin.
Now in the doghouse and the playoffs seemingly a far stretch, the Gaiters needed to take advantage of a home-and-home against McGill and Concordia. Competing in Mitchell Gym with rowdy fans on hand, BU played a terrific 40 minutes, knocking off the Redmen 86-74 before dismantling the Stingers the following night by a six point margin. The two wins staged the Gaiters chance to earn a playoff berth. On their home turf against Concordia again, big man Hermon Tesfaghebriel, in his final season as a Gaiter, turned in possibly his best performance of the season, scoring 23 and pushing BU into the playoffs.
Closing out the season, the Gaiters finished 7-9 in QUBL play, before falling to first seed UQAM in the first round of a forgettable playoff game for BU. But this was a character building season for the team. “We proved that we can compete with anybody in our league,” Gilpin said confidently. With all the talent in store, execution is the next step. When asked the goal for next season, Gilpin said quite bluntly, “We want to win our league.” From covering the team this season, I determined that the pieces are there. It’s just a matter of building the puzzle.
