Teenage Dream, a 2010 dance-pop number by Katy Perry, was the anthem last season.
This year, the provincials-bound Westsyde Whundas’ senior boys basketball team jams to a 2012 Carly Rae Jepsen joint.
“Every time we win, we play Call Me Maybe and sing along to it,” Whundas’ shooting guard Jaren Porter said.
Those tracks are similar and of the same era, but distinct with unique qualities — and the same can be said about the two most recent Westsyde hoops offerings.
The 2024-2025 Whundas posted a 28-2 regular-season record, lost in the Okanagan Valley final and placed fourth in the AA Boys B.C. School Sports Provincial Basketball Championship, a defeat in the semifinal round crushing the fourth-ranked team’s title hopes.
“Honestly, it was really hard for me,” Westsyde Grade 12 point guard Calder MacLeod said. “I was sad about it for a couple months. I’ve watched the video back so many times and I still think about it from time to time.”
The 2025–2026 Whundas boast a 30–5 record, won the Okanagan Valley championship and snared the No. 9 seed for the 2026 provincials, which get underway on March 3 at the Langley Events Centre.
“Would I call us a favourite this year? Absolutely not,” said Whundas’ head coach Ryan Porter, whose team is slated to play No. 9 Charles Hays of Prince Rupert in Round 1. “But would I say it’s possible [for us to win gold]? Absolutely. On paper, we’re just not the team last year’s was.”
The most notable difference between the current Whundas and the group last season is the absence of graduated phenom Cason Scott, who joined the TRU WolfPack and earned a spot on the Canada West All-Rookie Team.
“It’s not one guy who can do it all for us,” said Whundas’ shooting guard Jaren Porter, MVP of the Okanagan Valley Championship. “We have a lot of weapons. We’re very versatile and we have a really deep bench. We haven’t been scouted as much this year. They kind of think we’re not what we were last year, so we’re not really someone to worry about.”
Westsyde — more choir than solo act — is not favoured to be singing Call Me Maybe while cutting down nets after the March 7 gold-medal game.
But the bubble-gum-pop-loving Whundas plan to give doubters something to chew on, aiming to top the charts for the first time since 2022, when they won the school’s first senior boys’ hoops title.
“We feel we’re good enough to make some noise, for sure,” Porter said. “Whatever the result is, at the end of the tournament, they’re going to have memories for a lifetime and, honestly, as much as that’s cliché, that is what it’s about.”
THE GIRLS
The Whundas flirted with a Cinderella run at the girls provincial high school basketball championships, which wrapped up on Feb. 28 in Langley.
Westsyde, ranked 14th in the AA tournament, upset No. 4 Notre Dame 75–71 in Round 1 and No. 5 Pacific Christian 78-69 in Round 2.
The Holy Cross Crusaders of Surrey dispatched Westsyde 85–52 in the semifinal round and went on to win gold, throttling the St. Thomas More Collegiate Knights of Burnaby 81–51 in the final.
Westsyde placed fourth after suffering a 94–44 loss to the Credo Christian Kodiaks of Langley in the bronze-medal tilt.
Ryen Scott and Meena Litt of the Whundas were named second team tournament all-stars, thanks in part to tallying 33 points and 21 points, respectively, in the win over Pacific Christian.
In the AAA bracket, the Sa-Hali Sabres and Valleyview Vikes were eliminated from medal contention after second-round losses.
The Kamloops schools clashed on the final day of the tournament to determine fifth and sixth places, with Sa-Hali prevailing 54–43.
Iyin Aina of Sa-Hali and Claire McLoughlin of Valleyview were named second team tournament all-stars.
Aina earned a $1,000 Primetime Player Scholarship, which is given to athletes who demonstrate excellence on and off the court.
The Vernon Panthers claimed the provincial title with a 71–62 triumph over the Langley Christian Lightning in the gold-medal game.