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Saving their best game for last, the Trafalgar Middle School Thunder took on the province’s best Grade 9 boys’ basketball teams at the 2025 provincials in Abbotsford.

Coached by Jeremy Phelan and Django Radonich-Camp, the Thunder won two of their five games — during the Feb. 27-March 2 weekend — moving from the 24th tournament seed to a 15th place finish in their representation of the Kootenay region.

The highlight of the weekend was a 51-42 win in the last game over the sixth-ranked Vernon Panthers.

The Thunder started the weekend with a 50-44 upset win over the number nine Windermere Warriors in their opening game, but proceeded to drop a 61-36 game to GW Graham Grizzlies (number eight) and were beaten by the 17th-ranked Grandview Heights, 64-27. The third lost for the Thunder came at the hands of the number five Tammanawis Wildcats by a score of 57-45.

In a statement after the provincials, the team “would like to thank the Nelson Leafs Bottle Depot and the Nelson Fisherman’s Market for their collaboration with fundraisers that made this season’s travel possible.”