Saskatchewan posts back-to-back wins to wrap up Tim Hortons Brier

Kelly Knapp is returning from his first Tim Hortons Brier as a skip with a .500 record.

The Regina Highland skip and his team won both of their games Thursday, beating Jamie Koe of the Northwest Territories 6-5 in an extra end in the morning and then posting a 5-4 victory over Reid Carruthers’ Wild Card #2 entry in the afternoon.

The Saskatchewan champions finished with a 4-4 round-robin record in their first appearance as a team at the Canadian men’s curling championship in London, Ont. However, they didn’t qualify for the playoffs.

On Thursday morning, Knapp’s team stole its way to victory.

Saskatchewan stole single points in each of the ninth, 10th and 11th ends to beat the Northwest Territories.

After a blank in the first end, Knapp stole one in the second. Koe blanked the third and then took one in the fourth to tie the game.

The veteran Northwest Territories skip stole two in the fifth before Knapp scored one in the sixth. Koe put up a deuce in the seventh to go up 5-2, but Knapp responded with a single in the eighth and steals of one in each of the ninth and 10th ends to force the extra end.

Saskatchewan won when Koe’s last-rock draw in the 11th wrecked on a guard.

In the afternoon, Knapp stole one in the first end, but Carruthers responded with a deuce in the second. The teams traded singles in the third and fourth ends before Knapp scored one in the fifth and the teams went to the break tied 3-3.

After blanks in the sixth and seventh, Knapp stole a point in the eighth before Carruthers scored one in the ninth. Saskatchewan won it with a single in the 10th.

Manitoba’s Matt Dunstone (8-0), Alberta’s Kevin Koe (7-1) and Northern Ontario’s Tanner Horgan (6-2) will advance to the playoffs from Pool A. Brad Gushue’s Team Canada (7-1), the Wild Card #1 team skipped by Brendan Bottcher (7-1) and Ontario’s Mike McEwen (6-2) are moving on from Pool B.