Nate Darling scores astounding 50 points at basketball championships

The thrill of Saturday night's gold medal win for Nova Scotia's under-17 boys basketball team has given the sport a big boost in the province.

The team won the Canada Basketball Championships beating Ontario 116-109 in overtime in front of a home crowd at Saint Mary's University in Halifax.

The astounding performance of Nate Darling of Dartmouth, who scored an astounding 50 points in the final match, is a huge part of the buzz that still hasn't died down.

Coach Jarret Timmons says people will be talking about Darling's shots for years.

"In my experience coaching and playing, I've never seen a performance like that. He put the team on his back."

He's modest about his achievement, saying "we needed a win. I wasn't going to let Ontario come into our hometown and beat us."

Darling says he hasn't scored that many points since he was in junior high. He says he had no idea how well he was playing until it was all over. 

'Emotional roller-coaster'

"At the end of the game, my dad told me how many points I had, and I didn't believe him at first. All that really matters is that we won the national championship."

Many considered the team to be underdogs for the gold medal. The tournament started off on a tough note, with a 20-point loss to Ontario — the team they eventually beat in the final. 

"I knew we had a special group here," said Timmons. "I knew that we had the talent to do it. It's just so hard at a national tournament."

Timmons says with the team's spirits down, he pushed them to leave everything on the floor. With the help of the hometown crowd, they built momentum through the week. 

"It was an emotional roller-coaster."

For Alex Carson, the first team all-star, it's all still a blur.

"As we started winning, I started thinking, 'We could really do it,'" he said. "It's a dream to end it this way. I thought this team could do it, and to actually have it happen, everyone's been so excited. It's the greatest time in my life."

The team started practising for the tournament in May. The close-knit group knew they were a unique bunch, and decided to get the word 'family' printed on the back of their shirts.

"All I can say is, there's ups, there's downs, but in the end Saturday night, there was no better feeling," said Timmons.

Future of the sport

The win breaks a nearly 30-year drought for basketball in the province. The last time a team clinched a national championship was 1987.

"Finally, everybody realizes that Nova Scotia basketball is legit," said Darling.

Carson agrees. 

"The other provinces are taking us seriously now," he said. "The younger guys coming up are seeing us, and they're seeing they can do the same thing if they put the work into it."

While many players on the team will be too old to play next year, they're not giving up the sport they love.

Darling is heading back to Maryland to complete his last year of high school. He's hoping to stay in the United States to play throughout college.

"It's my whole life right now. I love every step of it," he said.