Head coach Logan Stutz and the Sudbury Five passed the final exam with flying colours.

Through five different seasons, two leagues and a pair of stints in Sudbury, Kansas City native Logan Stutz went to school. As a very young coach who was equally as new to the role of general manager, the affable former NBL MVP (2015-2016) tinkered with finding the ultimate winning recipe.

Since their inception to what was then the NBLC (National Basketball League of Canada), the Five have been more than competitive – not to mention highly entertaining, more often than not.

In more recent years, fans have clamoured for more.

The 2024-2025 campaign of what is now the BSL (Basketball Super League) delivered in spades in a northern Ontario community starving to celebrate a championship.

With a regular season record of 20-9 and first place secured, the Five entered the playoffs in very good shape this spring. Where Stutz and company had so often been chasing the leaders, this year would see those roles reversed.

“I think we could afford to sit back and see what everybody else was doing to try and catch us – and then see how we could sustain and build,” said Stutz.

By its nature, the BSL is often a springboard league. Logan Stutz knew that coming in and appreciates it even more now.

“When I talk to guys about coming here, I always talk about their goals: where they want to go, where do they see themselves,” he said. “It really comes down to just doing what’s best for the athlete. That is what I am always going to do as a coach.”

“You don’t ever want to hold anyone back from a good situation.”

Understandably, that can render the process of piecing together a winning puzzle, both in-season and beyond, a tad difficult. “Your mid-season acquisitions are really important because you have to find the right pieces,” said Stutz.

In Jermaine Haley, Stephen Hurt and Nervens Demosthene, Stutz and staff felt they had it right.

“I really believed this year that we could win a championship,” said Stutz. “I really felt that all of the pieces were there for us to win this year.” In a league known for its parity, however, the journey would not be easy.

Both semi-finals would come down to a fifth and deciding game, with Sudbury eking out a 103-100 win over a resilient Jamestown Jackals crew in their finale.

“The playoffs were very challenging and looking back, I’m grateful they were challenging,” coach added. “I think it makes it that much more memorable.”

The championship final teetered back and forth, with many sensing the inevitability that the Sudbury Five and Windsor Express would return to the nickel city on April 29th, the series tied at 2-2 and with a winner take all classic awaiting the largest crowd the locals would boast all year (2638).

“If you look at our whole season, we took first place probably on the basis of five to ten key possessions over the course of the year,” suggested Stutz.

“In game five against Jamestown, it came down to two or three possessions. We preached to not let that happen again; to take care of business early, get a lead and stay on top of it.”

The Five had often displayed the ability to get the early jump – although a 32-13 advantage after 12 minutes of play undoubtedly went well beyond their wildest dreams. Still, no one who has seen this movie before was sitting comfortably in their seat.

“We’ve back from 20 and we’ve given up 20 point leads,” said Stutz, an entire fan base nodding in unison in the background (metaphorically speaking). This time would be different.

With the gap never shrinking below eight points, the Five had an answer for each and every Windsor run. “Any time they would throw a serious punch, we would call a timeout,” explained Stutz. “We had a plan to punch back – and our plan worked out very, very well that game.”

“I have to give credit to the guys because they were razor-focused.”

Yet for a man who very much prides himself on pre-game preparation, the end product was evident – a 103-91 victory that might go down as the most complete game the Sudbury Five have ever played.

All that was learned since his arrival in Sudbury had been put to go use – and because of that, Logan Stutz and the Sudbury Five can now proudly proclaim themselves as league champions.