Hoops powerhouse completes undefeated post season

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It's hard to top a provincial championship but the Eastern Commerce senior girls hoops team found a way to do it.

And that's by winning another one - a level up.

The east Toronto basketball powerhouse won their second straight provincial hoops title - this time at the top quad-A level - with a 44-35 win over Hamilton's St. Thomas More in the Ontario Federation of Schools Athletic Associations (OFSAA) championship game Saturday in Sarnia.

Last year, the Lady Saints won the triple-A OFSAA championship.

The Lady Saints, quite simply, were dominant at all levels this year.

In fact, for the Lady Saints, that gold medal game was about as close a game as they had throughout the entire post season, the only margin of victory that wasn't by double-digits. And that includes, the OFSAA playdowns, city playdowns, and their own south division.

St. Thomas More did hold the top ranked Lady Saints in check for three of the four quarters: The teams were dead even in the first and third quarters (four and 11 points each, respectively) and Eastern Commerce forged a slim 18-16 advantage in the final quarter.

An 11-4 second quarter, however, proved the difference for Eastern Commerce.

Point guard Lee Anna Osei and Jenea Barrett led the Lady Saints with 15 points each.

For Eastern Commerce the road to the OFSAA final also led through another Hamilton school with a 57-37 win over Westdale. Eastern Commerce salted that game away with an 11-1 fourth quarter.

Barrett led the way with 24 points with Ange Mbikay and Lesha Dunn each contributing 13 points.

QUARTERFINAL: Eastern Commerce 62, Notre Dame 46: Jenea Barrett 22, Jody Brown 13.

2nd PRELIM: Eastern Commerce 64, Mount Carmel 36: Jenea Barrett 21.

1st PRELIM: Eastern Commerce 67, Sacred Heart 32: Lee Anna Osei 24, Jenea Barrett 21.

Eastern Commerce won its Toronto District School Board (TDSB) city title 58-43 over Birchmount Park and its city semifinal 54-38 over Etobicoke Collegiate.

The Lady Saints won the south region championship with 73-43 over Jarvis Collegiate, the south semi 59-43 over Lawrence Park and south quarterfinal 64-23 over West Toronto.

During the regular season the Lady Saints went 10-0, outscoring opponents 790-253.