South Kam Titans pick Dinos

By GREGG DRINNAN
Daily News Sports Editor
Josh Wolfram has made his decision.
Wolfram, a 6-foot-9 forward from the South Kamloops Titans, has committed to attend the University of Calgary and play basketball for the Dinos.
Wolfram will join South Kam teammate Tyler Jaroszuk, another 6-foot-9 player, with the Dinos. Adam Ballingall, the quarterback for the South Kam football team, also has chosen to attend the U of Calgary.
Wolfram said Monday night that his decision came down to three schools, with TRU and SFU the other two.
“I ruled out SFU about a week ago and, on Sunday, I picked Calgary over TRU,” the 17-year-old Wolfram said.
The difference?
“Just because of the strength of the team,” Wolfram explained. “They made the Final Four this year so that pretty much was it.”
The Dinos went 15-5 to finish atop Canada West’s Prairie Division. Calgary went on to lose 77-63 to the UBC Thunderbirds in a semifinal game at the CIS championship tournament in Ottawa on March 20.
The TRU WolfPack, meanwhile, went 3-15 in the Pacific Division and didn’t make the playoffs.
Still, Wolfram really wasn’t in a hurry to leave Kamloops.
“Life away from home was a negative for me,” he said. “I kind of wanted to stay in the city and play in my hometown, have all my friends to the games and that . . . Calgary just seemed like a better fit, so . . .”
He also said he wants to be pushed to get better and, with that in mind, likes the Dinos’ recruiting class, one that includes 6-foot-7 Matt Letkeman of the B.C. AAA-champion Abbotsford-Yale Lions.
“That was another nice thing,” Wolfram stated. “They had a really good recruiting class for my age, where TRU didn’t. So just for wanting to win a championship and play in the playoffs and stuff like that, Calgary was the right choice.”
The Dinos, who have lost four players, two of them all-stars, to graduation, also have signed 6-foot-8 Brad Clark and 6-foot-5 Nebojsa Kuljic, both of whom are coming off all-star seasons in Calgary’s high school league.
As well, Youri Annisovets, a 6-foot-7 Russian who was red-shirted, will be competing for playing time.
Wolfram will head for Calgary with a lot of memories from his career with the Titans.
“I’ll remember we were 31-0 going into provincials last year and ended up third in the province,” he said. “I’ll also remember this year, when we came seventh.”
He added that the players from last year’s team are “pretty much” friends for life, but said he really didn’t consider Jaroszuk’s decision while pondering the future.
“I just looked at what was best for me,” Wolfram said. “I just looked at what was best for me.
“It’s nice (having him there). It’s not like I’m going and not going to know anybody.”

gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
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