Vetrie Tournament set to begin

The 2005 edition of the Guy Vetrie Invitational Basketball Tournament is shaping up to be one of the best ever.

Some 22 teams will begin battle on Thursday in hopes of hoisting the championship on Saturday night in what has become one of the provinces' top tournaments.

Several teams will travel into the city to join the six local high school senior boys teams of Korah, Bawating, St. Mary's, St. Basil, Sir James Dunn and White Pines, along with Central Algoma Secondary School.

Joining the field are a pair of high calibre teams from North Carolina in Laurinburg Charter and Laurinburg Institute.

Making the trek from the Toronto area are the highly respected Toronto Area Prep School (T.A.P.S.) Program, Father Henry Carr and Sacred Heart, Robert F. Hall and Chinguacousy.

Other visiting teams include St. Mary's from Hamilton, Thunder Bay's Churchill and Hammarskjold, Timmins, Blind River's W.C. Eaket and Sudbury's LaSalle, Lo-Ellen and Lockerby.

Games will take place throughout the three-day tourney at all local high schools, CASS and Algoma University.

Teams, which will play a three-game round robin, are split into six pools with the pool winners and two second place wild card teams advancing into the championship round on Saturday.

The bronze and gold medal games are scheduled for Saturday evening at Korah at 5:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., respectively.

*** THE TEAMS:

The following is a look at the participating teams in their respective pools:

POOL A

1. Laurinburg Institute (North Carolina) 2. Timmins 3. Korah

POOL B

1. Laurinburg Charter (North Carolina) 2. St. Basil 3. LaSalle (Sudbury)

POOL C

1. T.A.P.S. Program (Toronto) 2. St. Mary's (Sault Ste. Marie) 3. W.C. Eaket (Blind River) 4. Churchill (Thunder Bay)

POOL D

1. Father Henry Carr (Toronto) 2. Robert F. Hall (Toronto) 3. Lo-Ellen (Sudbury) 4. Sir James Dunn

POOL E

1. St. Mary's (Hamilton) 2. Chinguacousy (Toronto) 3. Lockerby (Sudbury) 4. White Pines

POOL F

1. Sacred Heart (Toronto) 2. Bawating 3. Hammarskjold (Thunder Bay) 4. Central Algoma Secondary School

*** SCHEDULE:

THURSDAY:

@ Korah

4:30 p.m. -- St. Basil vs. LaSalle 6:30 p.m. -- Hamilton St. Mary's vs. Chinguacousy 8:30 p.m. -- Korah vs. Laurinburg Charter

@ Bawating

4:30 p.m. -- CASS vs. Bawating 8:30 p.m. -- Bawating vs. Sacred Heart

@ St. Mary's

4:30 p.m. -- St. Mary's (SSM) vs. W.C. Eaket 8:30 p.m. -- Churchill vs. T.A.P.S.

@ Sir James Dunn

6:30 p.m. -- Sir James Dunn vs. Lo-Ellen 8:30 p.m. -- Hammarskjold vs. CASS

@ Algoma University

8:30 p.m. -- Father Henry Carr vs. Robert F. Hall

@ White Pines

6:30 p.m. -- White Pines vs. Lockerby 8:30 p.m. -- Timmins vs. St. Basil

FRIDAY:

@ Korah

11:30 a.m. -- Laurinburg Institute vs. Timmins 2:00 p.m. -- Laurinburg Institute vs. Korah 6:30 p.m. -- Korah vs. Timmins 8:30 p.m. -- LaSalle vs. Laurinburg Institute

@ Bawating

11:30 a.m. -- Lockerby vs. Hamilton St. Mary's 2:00 p.m. -- Bawating vs. Hammarskjold 6:30 p.m. -- Hammarskjold vs. Sacred Heart 8:30 p.m. -- Chinguacousy vs. Lockerby

@ St. Mary's

2:00 p.m. -- St. Mary's vs. Churchill 6:30 p.m. -- Churchill vs. W.C. Eaket 8:30 p.m. -- St. Mary's (SSM) vs. T.A.P.S.

@ Sir James Dunn

2:00 p.m. -- Sir James Dunn vs. Robert F. Hall 6:30 p.m. -- Sir James Dunn vs. Father Henry Carr 8:30 p.m. -- Lo-Ellen vs. Robert F. Hall

@ Algoma University

10 a.m. -- Laurinburg Charter vs. LaSalle 12:00 p.m. -- T.A.P.S. Vs. W.C. Eaket 2:00 p.m. -- Father Henry Carr vs. Lo-Ellen

@ White Pines

2:00 p.m. -- White Pines vs. Chinguacousy 6:30 p.m. -- White Pines vs. Hamilton St. Mary's

@ CASS

2:00 p.m. -- CASS vs. Sacred Heart

@ St. Basil

2:00 p.m. -- Laurinburg Charter vs. St. Basil