Basketball Recap: Chaputnguak Victorious

With a playoff win on the line, Chaputnguak rose to the challenge on Sunday. They secured a 70-66 W over the Nelson Island Islanders. This was a revenge game for the Shaman: when they faced off against the Islanders on Sunday, they had to take a 53-47 loss.

Falesefulu Mau

Points (Career)

02/15/26 @ Nelson Island	37
01/30/26 @ Eek	31
01/21/26 vs Nelson Island	29
01/24/26 vs Kuinerrarmiut Elitnaurviat	25
01/20/26 vs Kwigillingok	23

Falesefulu Mau continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, putting up 37 points. Those 37 points gave him a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Tyler Tirchick, who posted 11 points.

Nelson Island's defeat came despite a true team effort with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Johnny Nicholai, who scored 20 points. The game was Nicholai's 15th in a row with at least 16 points. Gordon Pitka was another key player, earning 15 points.

The win made it two in a row for Chaputnguak and bumps their season record up to 18-4. The victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 82.0 points over those games. As for Nelson Island, their loss ended an eight-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 15-4.

The teams didn't have to wait long for a rematch: Chaputnguak beat the Islanders by a score of 57-56 on Monday.