The Oak Bay Bays have set up a home and lived in the B.C. top-10 boys’ high school basketball rankings over the years. They will go into hosting the annual Gary Taylor Classic today through Saturday as the top-ranked Quad-A team in the province.
It’s been a while since No. 5 Spectrum has been at these heady heights in the provincial rankings. But that’s what happens when you are led by the rising Justin Hinrichsen, son of former University of Victoria Vikes national champion and 2000 Sydney Olympian Eric Hinrichsen, and fellow-star Tyler Felt.
Oak Bay and Spectrum headline the 2023 Taylor Classic littered with top-10 teams, including Vancouver College Fighting Irish, Heritage Woods Kodiaks of Port Moody, Yale Lions of Abbotsford and the defending tournament champion Fleetwood Park Dragons of Surrey.
“This is the most talented Gary Taylor Classic we’ve hosted,” said Oak Bay coach Chris Franklin.
“Almost every team is ranked in the top-10.”
So the Bays can take nothing for granted on home court.
“Being ranked No. 1 in December is just guess work,” said Franklin.
Fleetwood Park provides a particularly savoury target for the Bays. The Dragons beat Oak Bay in the Taylor Classic last year and then bested the Bays again in the 2023 B.C. championship semifinals last March at the Langley Events Centre (before losing to the Semiahmoo Thunderbirds in the provincial championship game).
Last season’s Bays were led by current UVic Vikes rookie standout Griffin Arnatt, but were loaded with Grade 11 players. Six-foot-seven forward Owen Lewis and guards Heath Taylor and Thomas Beames are now in Grade 12, but if there’s a grudge angle against Fleetwood Park, these Bays aren’t showing it.
“New teams, new situation,” said Franklin.
What endures is the tournament, now in its 15th year. It is named in honour the Oak Bay coaching legend Gary Taylor. On the host Bays team is his grandson Heath Taylor, while Gary’s son Graham Taylor is co-coach of the Bays along with Franklin.
Heath Taylor will be playing in the main Oak Bay gym, named Gary Taylor Court, in honour of his grandfather and the man who led the Bays to high school glory in the late 1950s and the 1960s with six Island championships and four B.C. championship-game appearances, including two provincial titles, before becoming head coach of the UVic Vikes. Gary’s son Graham Taylor played at Oak Bay before winning three national championships with Ken Shields’ UVic dynasty teams.
There are more than a few teams, however, including Spectrum and Fleetwood Park, looking to upend this family affair this week.
