The Dauphin Clippers varsity boys basketball team punched its ticket to AAA provincials, this past weekend as they finished second in a AAA provincial qualifying tournament on their homecourt.

The Clippers opened the eight-team tournament with a 79-51 win over the St. Maurice Patriots, Friday evening.

Dauphin then defeated the Elmwood Giants, 86-54 in the semifinals to clinch a berth at provincials as the top three teams advance to championship tournament.

In the final, the Clippers dropped an 85-66 decision to the Neelin Spartans. Elmwood went on to beat the St. James Jimmies, 120-72, to claim the third spot at provincials.

Clippers coach Steven Hudyma was pleased with the team’s play over the course of the weekend.

“We came together and showed a lot of grit. We really played well as a team and our attitude was spot on,” he said.

The team entered the tournament confident they would qualify for provincials, which was a key to their success.

“We had some work we’ve been putting in at practices and it translated to the court,” Hudyma said.

Hudyma expects to be ranked in the top four entering provincials, which will lead to high expectations entering the championship.

“Expectation is that we’re going to work hard these next two weeks so that we can be very successful at provincials,” he said, adding the team appreciates the support of their fans during the tournament.

The provincial championships will be held, Mar. 20 to 22, in Winnipeg, hosted by Westwood Collegiate.