A dispiriting semi-final loss at the senior boys AAA basketball provincials in March was not how the Kitislano Blue Demons wanted to end their season. The Demons hadnt lost back to back games all year until they lost two in a row at the championship tournament to finish fourth overall.
But they wouldnt end their season on such a low. Kitsilano put the losses behind them and the next day boarded a flight to China.
Our last game wasnt in Langley, said graduating senior Vibhor Mathur. It was in Shanghai. We won.
The two-week overseas tour was the first time in China for coaches Randy Coutts and Trevor Mills as well as the teams female managers and several parents. It was planned well before the B.C. Championships were decided at the Langley Events Centre March 12 to 16.
It was good we did it after our last loss because, technically we didnt end on a losing note, said Mathur. We had a great time. The trip meant a lot because it was our last trip all of us together.
The Blue Demons travelled to Shanghai, Nanjing and Beijing where they played basketball teams at schools identified only by number. Many schools were identical to each other, said Mathur, and stood more than eight stories tall to accommodate two senor classes of roughly 2,000 students.
Lifelong Vancouver basketball organizer Ken Leung helped plan the trip, relying on the language skills and connections of his mother, Sophia Leung who extended her network during her eight years as an MP for Vancouver-Kingsway. Until 2005 she regularly travelled to China with the prime ministers delegation.
Kitsilano strolled the Great Wall and visited the Forbidden City. Between the sights and unfamiliar dishes of duck and snail that left some of the teenage players without an appetite, the Demons played basketball. And they were treated to an exceptionally warm welcome.
We were treated like rock stars, said Justin Sze. We kind of felt what like NBA players do.
In Nanging the players spent time with students in the classroom, sitting in desks and taking in the days lesson. Sze, along with fellow students Cole Peterson and Mark Van Elk, sat in on a physics class with where they attempted trigonometry problems.
In another unforgettable moment, the Demons went to a thermal pool and spa where a strict dress code meant their swimming attire was more revealing than was comfortable. But tiny, brightly coloured swim trunks are always good for a laugh.
Sze, whose parents immigrated to Canada from Hong Kong, received a slightly different reception than his Kitsilano teammates.
It was really funny everywhere I went, they came up to me speaking Chinese, expecting Id understand, he said. Id be standing there with this look on my face and theyd be staring back looking confused.
The Demons won each of their games, playing one game on an outdoor court in front of hundreds of spectators. They were careful not to run up the score in consideration of their hosts.
I thought their basketball I.Q. was on a high level, just about equal or less than players in B.C., said Mathur, who was accepted on academic merit to Queens University but is also considering a U.S. prep school to play basketball for a year.
They were all tall and knew the game very well. I think a lot of the world underestimates them. They were strong and fast and can shoot the ball, lights out.
After the Blue Demons won their last game of the season on a court in China and played the last high school basketball game for many, including Mathur, Sze, Luka Zaharijevic and Noah de Rappard, the boys gathered close.
We were in a huddle and I remember I said, Im going to miss you guys, said Mathur. I was getting kind of emotional because were never going to play together again.
Were all moving on but a lot of us are still playing basketball. Were all going to do what we want in our life and were all going to give back to basketball. Whenever we have the opportunity to referee, coach or play, were going to give back to the game.
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