When Basketball Gods Are Smilin'

The Morrison family from Morell, PEI, is a family steeped in faith. They are also a family that believes that achievement arrives through effort.

Like their communal ancestors (known as ‘The Shell Fish Eaters’), who built and then rebuilt the village of St. Peter’s Harbour (present day Morell) after it was burnt to the ground  in 1738, George and Scott Morrison, father and son, have been builders and rebuilders in the realm of basketball. They have kept the faith and, in the last two weeks, have made Canadian Basketball history.

Never before have a father and son been at the zenith of College and University basketball simultaneously, until now.

By the grace of the Basketball gods, Scott has brought his Lakehead Thunderwolves team back from the hellish inferno that was his 2006-07 season, in which his team went 1-31. George, who previously coached 20+ years at UPEI (yes, including Scott’s 5 years there), had an equally infernal year in 2006-07 with the Holland College Hurricanes, going 0-21.

This year however, is much different. Scott has pushed his team to the absolute brink of CIS (Canadian Inter-University Sport) greatness, while his father has reaped for his team the exact same opportunity at the College level. Both father and son will have played in their respective league championship games, in the same year, in the same month, and even had huge wins on the same day.

Call it destiny, call it coincidence or better yet, call it divine intervention. But what these two basketball gurus from a village of 336 permanent residents on the Isle of Prince Edward have achieved in unfathomable unison, while operating completely independent of one another, has been a remarkable, if not miraculous feat to behold.

As many Canadian basketball fans know, the Lakehead Thunderwolves rose to the occasion against all odds last week at the CIS Final 8 in Ottawa to become the first Lakehead team in 36 years in a Gold medal basketball game.

In what was a defiant snub of all the Thunderwolves’ doubters, they harnessed the luck of #7 (their seeding), and upon the shoulders of a St. Patrick’s Irish HS grad (Ottawa son Greg Carter, whose shoulder was actually dislocated in their semi-final game), made it all the way to the final game of the CIS basketball season, accepted the Silver medal, and bowed out shamelessly to the most prolific basketball program in Canadian history.

But the drama that unfolded at the ACAA (Atlantic Collegiate Athletic Association) playoffs for Scott’s father George and his Holland College Hurricanes would leave even the “Hardy-est” of fortune tellers scratching their head.

On Saturday evening, 3/02/13, the Lakehead Thunderwolves punched their ticket to the CIS Final 8 with an impressive Ontario Bronze medal win against their divisional rival in Maple Leaf Gardens.

On the very same evening, the Holland College Hurricanes pulled off a miraculous 58-57 semi-final win over Mount St Vincent to extend their season at the ACAA playoffs in Fredericton, courtesy of a straight-away bank-shot 3-pointer with 13 seconds left, followed by a steal and a glancing 70-degree bank-shot 3-pointer, all of which combined to erase a preceding 5-point deficit.

The desperation shot from Summerside, PEI’s Steve Hardy touched the top-right corner of the backboard before rolling around the rim and through, much to the elation of Lord Beaverbrook’s congregation.

What a treat for the fans, and for those who were not there in attendance or watching online, so as to reference St Thomas, the Doubter: Blessed are those [including Scott] who have not seen and yet have Believed.

Scott, of course, had been winning a game of his own whilst the Hurricanes had surged a tide in New Brunswick more powerful than any other on the Bay of Fundy. The Hurricane force in Fredericton converted all doubters the next day as George Morrison and his Hurricanes captured their first ever ACAA championship with a 70-61 win over the St Thomas Tommies. Basketball irony was re-defined, and the ‘Canes weren’t done yet.

It’s worth noting that both George and Scott now share a knack for school firsts, with Scott capturing Lakehead’s first Ontario basketball championship, the Wilson Cup, in 2011. As for Holland College, this was their first ACAA basketball championship, ever.

Fast forward two weeks, after the CIS Final 8 and Scott’s Silver medal, to the national college  championships in Sainte Anne de Bellevue, hosted by John Abbott College. The Hurricanes (seeded #5) began the tournament knocking off the Quebec champions from Champlain College (72-61), advancing next to the semi finals against the #1 seeded Langara Falcons.

Let us pray - there’s a Higher Power at work here.

In what was one of the most exciting and unlikely finishes this writer has ever seen, the Hurricanes pulled off an astonishing 87-86 win over the heavily favored Falcons.

But they didn’t do it with two incredulous bank shot 3-pointers 3 seconds apart this time. Admittedly, they did get one bank shot three from Alvin Parker to put the ‘Canes within 3 points in the final minute. Instead, they won that game with a 100-ton ship-load o’ guts.

They battled point for point, shot for shot, man for man for 40 minutes, the final 8 minutes being a 1-point ball game. In those final 8 minutes, Mike Hardy (Steve’s brother) had a huge blocked shot that he pinned on the glass, and 2 clutch defensive rebounds that held the fort with the enemy at the gate.

Add to that, the incredible courage and grit that got the Hurricanes four, yes FOUR offensive rebounds off missed shots and free throws in the last 4 minutes of the game. The last of which being a free throw missed by Mike Hardy with 7 seconds left to tie the game, as he was attempting to complete the old-fashioned three-point-play. His shot barely grazed the rim, and a swift Hurricane scooped up the rebound and laid it in for a 87-86 Hurricanes win.

They showed incredible guts, so let the Glory Be theirs.

Despite the Falcons’ intimidating exterior and size, the Hurricanes exposed a soft interior presence in the lane and picked up all the turnovers they could against a Falcons team that was blown away by the ‘Canes.

Or maybe it was that the ‘Canes had just worked Harder than the Falcons all year, and in those final 4 minutes they got the breaks they deserved. When a Basketball god smiles upon you, don’t question, just do. And the Hurricanes did just that.

Prior to Scott’s CIS gold medal game last week in Ottawa, George fed him a Billy Donovan quote:

“To win the big games, you need to get a couple breaks. But don’t worry about it if you don’t get ‘em.” Wise words from the prolific NCAA Florida Gators’ coach.

Scott builds on that notion, saying, “You gotta keep the faith through it all, and believe that one time, it’s gonna work out.”

“We came close,” adds Scott, speaking of himself and his Silver bearing Thunderwolves, “Maybe it’s Dad’s time now.”

As Anne Morrison, George’s devoted wife and Scott’s steadfast mother firmly states, “Do your best and let God do the rest.”

After 31 years of effort together, the Morrisons have achieved greatness and given their best to Canadian basketball in one fell swoop. Perhaps the Higher Power that has smiled upon George and Scott during Canadian March Madness can reveal itself once more, before the three of them, Father, Son and Holy Ghost, take a well deserved rest on Sunday, and honor St Patrick.

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Post-Script

The Holland Hurricanes would battle with the Vancouver Island U Mariners down to the very last minute, which strangely featured an identical play to the first score of the game for the VIU Mariners. During the play, an errant ball in the air went off a Hurricane hand and was mysteriously re-directed off the glass and into the basket. It was with such a fluke play that the first, and last scoring play at that basket occurred.

After unconsciously shadowing one another, game for game, win for win, in near unison, George and Scott Morrison have together etched their names in the annals of basketball history, with shining silver around their necks. No pot ‘o gold required.