Moose Jaw's Dylan Boughen had quite a time with team Saskatchewan's U16 basketball team.

The team played at a tournament at Gonzaga University earlier this summer before hitting the court at the Western Canada Summer Games and earning a silver medal last week.

Boughen enjoyed the experience at the summer games this year.

It was a good preparation leading up into the games, said Boughen.

“It was good to go to Gonzaga and play some skilled players,” he said. “He played some kids from all over the world. It really helped us prepare for all those games. It was a good experience for us and it helped us prepare mentally.”

In the first game, Saskatchewan lost 94-74 to Alberta, a team that has had Saskatchewan’s number over the years. Boughen scored 16 in the loss.

Then, Saskatchewan went on a winning streak. Boughen scored 10 in a 69-51 win over the Northwest Territories. He had another 10 in a 62-59 win over Manitoba, a team that won by 60 over Saskatchewan at the start of the provincial season.

“Saskatchewan’s usually the underdog team coming into these games or nationals or the Western Canada Games,” he said. “It was good for us. We could have ended up with third if we lost to Manitoba. But usually in nationals or other kinds of games Saskatchewan loses to Manitoba, so it was really good for us to get that win.”

In their third win in a row, Saskatchewan won 76-48 over Yukon in the semifinal with Boughen scoring.

But a 90-70 loss to Alberta in the final meant Boughen would earn bronze. Boughen scored seven in the loss.

Boughen is going into Grade 11 at Central Collegiate this fall.