The Camosun Chargers have a bad taste in their mouth after finishing as the second seed last season and leaving the PACWEST championship tournament without a win or a medal.
They finished last season with a 13-5 record and had their best seeding in school history shooting 44.5% from the field and entered the playoffs winning seven of their final eight games. However they ran into a great defensive game plan by the Capilano Blues in the semis and lost, then fell in the bronze medal game in an exciting double overtime contest with the Langara Falcons.
They have retooled with plenty of local talent and a brand-new head coach for this season looking to do some damage when the schedule opens on November 4th.
Key Returners:
Takeshi Croke – arguably their best player returns as point guard after averaging 14.1 points a game last season, shooting 48.7% from the field. He was named an All-Canadian last year and will look to lead his club again.
Noah Helman – named to the PACWEST All-Rookie team last season he tallied 9.2 points a game, had over five rebounds and shot 56% from the field.
Key Additions:
Isaiah Romanow has returned to the club after a two-year hiatus, one of those seasons was the COVID cancelled year. In the 2019-2020 season he primarily came off the bench to give the Chargers a spark both offensively and defensively.
Lucas Sheets is a local product and Belmont Secondary grad who will be a rookie this season as is Argyle grad David Finch. They are both expected to play important roles this season.
Key Grads:
Jake Wilmott was a PACWEST All-Star last season and the leader of the Chargers. He graduated and has moved onto play professionally in Europe.
The Chargers also graduated three other offensive weapons including Riley Botting (10.9 points a game), Mat Hampton (7.6 points a game in 13 games) and Madhu McConnell (9.8 points a game).
New head coach Geoff Pippus takes over the Chargers and has a wealth of experience as a former player. He most recently was an assistant coach with Oak Bay high school that won the Island championship last season and placed ninth at the provincials. He’ll be joined on the sidelines by former Charger Dylan Marsden who enters his fourth year as an assistant and former VIU and UVic star Chris Marsh who is leading player development.
Their roster for this season is made up of 16 players, 11 of which attended high school in Victoria, which is a testament to the strength of the basketball culture in the city.
The Chargers open play on Friday November 4th when they welcome the defending champion and Island rival the VIU Mariners.