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CIS Final 8 daily recap: Friday

Alberta's forward Robert Dewar played big in his side's victory.
Alberta's forward Robert Dewar played big. |Photo by Shauna Brown.

Quarterfinal Game No. 3  :  No. 2 Alberta Golden Bears  81 – 52  No. 7 Ryerson Rams 

The Bears took no time in the CIS Final 8 tournament to show why they are ranked No. 2 nationally.

The Alberta Golden Bears demonstrated their Canada West dominance to over 2,000 fans Friday in the third quarterfinal game of the day, thumping the Ryerson Rams 81 – 52 at the Halifax Metro Centre.

Alberta will move on to face the last remaining Atlantic team St. FX in Saturday’s semifinal match at 8:15 p.m.

The OUA finalist Rams, making their second trip to the nationals tournament since 1999, will face No. 3 Concordia in a consolation match Saturday at 2:15 p.m.

After the tournament’s opening ceremonies, the Bears quickly struck first blood, keeping the baskets coming. Alberta was effective at scattering the Rams’ defence, leaving themselves open for many passing plays and easy baskets. In order to contain the damage, the Rams took two timeouts in the first half, to no avail. Excepting a solid drive in the dying moments of the second quarter by Luke Staniscia, the Rams had almost nothing to show for their efforts. They were down 49 – 25 after the half.

Nimble point guard Daniel Furguson had several drives for the Bears, including an interception late in the second which killed any momentum the Rams had going for them. He led Alberta with six three-point baskets, totalling 21 points. He was assisted inside by Jordan Baker, who added another 20 to the team total.

The Bears also dominated in shots made, shooting 59.4 per cent for field goals and 66.7 per cent when three-pointers are considered. The Rams were half as productive, putting up 29.6 per cent and 26.7 per cent respectively.

Alberta’s success in this match was not necessarily surprising—the Bears are ranked No. 2 nationally, after all, behind only long-time powerhouse Carleton Ravens.

The Rams are a surprise contender after beating defending champion Lakehead to head to the conference finals and secure a nationals berth. The Rams probably should have been ranked as the lowest seed in the tournament but due to a restriction against playing conference rivals in the quarterfinals, they were ranked seventh.

Ryerson’s Jamal Jones had a team-high 15 points.

“After beating Lakehead it seems like if we played the way we played against Lakehead, we should be able to compete against the other teams in nationals. I guess we didn’t show up tonight,” Jones said. “We got the result we deserved.”

Ryerson opened the second half with an 8 – 0 run, but Alberta did not let that last. They took a timeout to regroup and once again began running away with the game. By the beginning of the fourth, Alberta was up 66 – 43. Try as they may, the Rams were unable to close the gap, struggling to stay within 30 points in the fourth quarter.

With a strong final quarter, Baker came out as the team leader with 26 points. He was impressed with his team’s play and refused to look at the game as a gimme, even if they were heavily favoured.

“We don’t want to be playing reactionary basketball. We want to be the ones setting the tone, establishing everything. Right from the opening tip, I think everything did a good job of that.”

The point spread allowed the Bears to give their younger players some floor time. With two minutes to go in the third, the Rams’ offence went silent, unable to score until three minutes into the fourth. In that stretch, the Bears added 15 points.

In the dying minutes the Rams were evidently tired, shown by their sloppy passing and multiple fouls. Even still, the Rams were able to add a few late baskets, but it was certainly a case of too little, too late. The final score was 81 – 52.

— Ben Wedge, Sports Contributor

 

Terry Thomas was in control for St. FX with a team-high 39 points.
Terry Thomas was in control with a team-high 39 pts. | Photo by Shauna Brown.

Quarterfinal Game No. 4  :  No. 3 Concordia Stingers  82 – 96  No. 6 St. FX X-Men 

It took just a few seconds for St. FX to net its first basket, and just a few more for Concordia to tie it up. It was at precisely that moment that X-Men second-year guard Terry Thomas’ explosive 39-point performance became the story of the game. He led drive after drive in the first six minutes, including a two-handed slam dunk and a through-the-legs cross-court pass to Bol Kong, who then returned the ball for an alley-oop dunk. By the end of the sixth minute, X held a 23 – 2 lead, and Concordia had essentially already lost the game.

“I never expected to have that wide a margin initially, but we were just so full of energy,” said St. FX coach Steve Konchalski, before adding that he was worried about the physical game they will face against Alberta Saturday in the semifinals at 8:15 p.m..

X’s win could be tied directly to Thomas’ early efforts. No. 3 ranked Concordia kept the game going back and forth, but couldn’t come within striking distance of Thomas’ early drive, leading X to a 98 – 82 win in the final of four quarterfinal games Friday at the Halifax Metro Centre. Thomas received the player of the game designation for his efforts.

While St. FX moves on to play the Canada West champion in the semis, Concordia has been relegated to a consolation semifinal match against No. 7 Ryerson at 2:15 p.m.

The shining moment for Concordia was a drive in the final five minutes, closing the gap to as few as 11 points. It proved to not be enough, however. Their defence struggled throughout the game to split up drives, conceal the basket, and spoil X’s hometown party.

Throughout the game, St. FX showed discipline and ball control. They passed effectively and kept the ball moving, slowing the pace when necessary. Tyrell Vernon was instrumental in maintaining the game’s pace. His leadership and ball control kept the team from blowing their energy away early on.

Thomas said he was “in the zone, running, trying to make baskets” and added  he really felt the energy of the AUS-friendly crowd behind him. Teammates Kong and Jeremy Dunn played a large role in getting the ball to Thomas, and were really the other story of the game.

St. FX was shooting just 48 per cent, which could make things difficult against Alberta, who were scoring in the mid-60s.

The X-Men outplayed Concordia at every point and in every category. Better shooting, fewer turnovers, harder drives and more teamwork are just part of the story. They simply played like a team who wanted to be here, whereas No. 3 Concordia was all over the place, committing 19 turnovers through the first three quarters.

The Stingers had difficulty making things work. Nobody emerged as a clear leader on the floor, and there were few notable drives; playing against a hostile crowd could not have helped either.

With over 5,000 boisterous fans packing the Halifax Metro Centre, Terry Thomas’ dunks, alley-oops, and constant drives to the net kept them cheering for the entire 40 minutes.

— Ben Wedge, Sports Contributor

 

 

Quarterfinal Game No. 1  :  No. 5 Fraser Valley Cascades  83 – 71  No. 4 Lakehead Thunderwolves

HALIFAX (CIS) – In their first-ever Final 8 appearance, the fifth-seeded University of the Fraser Valley Cascades defeated the No. 4 Lakehead Thunderwolves 83 – 71 on Friday afternoon in the opening game of the 50th CIS men’s basketball championship.

With the quarterfinal win at the Metro Centre, the Cascades, Canada West finalists in only their sixth CIS season, advance to Saturday’s first national semifinal at 6 p.m., where they will face top-seeded Carleton.

Lakehead, which received the at-large entry for the CIS tournament after being upset by Ryerson in the OUA semis, moves to the consolation side of the draw and will take on Acadia Saturday at noon. It marked the third first-round exit in as many years for the Thunderwolves at the Final 8.

Fourth-year guard Sheldon Bjorgaard of Abbotsford, B.C., paced the winners with 19 points, including 15 on 5-of-6 shooting from three-point range.

Kyle Grewal of Surrey, B.C., with 17 points, Joel Friesen of Abbotsford, with 13, and Mike James of Winnipeg, with 10, also scored in double figures for Fraser Valley. Six-foot-seven post Jasper Moedt of Abbotsford was a monster under the basket and grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds.

The Cascades led 17-13 after the opening quarter, 34-29 at halftime and 58-51 after 30 minutes.

“There were definitely some nerves early on. Everybody was a little excited since this is our first time at Nationals,” said Bjorgaard, who was named player of the match for Fraser Valley. “But we settled in pretty quickly and did a good job following the game plan. We’re used to the pressure. We had so many close games in the Canada West playoffs.”

Fraser Valley beat Lethbridge at the buzzer in Game 3 of a best-of-three Canada West quarter-final series and edged Victoria by a single point in the conference semifinal to qualify for the Final 8.

“Sheldon is a fantastic shooter. Small guy with a big heart. He’s the heart and soul of our program,” said head coach Barnaby Craddock of his 5-foot-10 senior, the smallest player on the court in the tourney opener. “I’m really proud of the guys. They managed to step up in the first CIS championship game. Lakehead was a very good first-round opponent and the guys pulled it off.”

A pair of American-born players, Venzal Russell, an all-Canadian from Detroit, and Joseph Jones of Washington, scored 20 points apiece for Lakehead. Russell was voted the T-Wolves game-MVP, while Jones completed a double-double with 10 rebounds.

“It was still close with a few minutes left. I think we were down by only seven points. But we just couldn’t get the key stop in the final minutes, and we had trouble finishing all day offensively,” said Lakehead head coach Scott Morrison.

The two teams got off to a tentative start in opening quarter of the championship. The score was tied at 6 – 6, 8 – 8 and 11 – 11 before Fraser Valley closed the period with back-to-back three pointers by Jordan Blackman and Bjorgaard to take a 17-13 lead after 10 minutes of play.

The second quarter was as closely contested and featured seven lead changes. Down 28 – 27 with 2:33 left, the Cascades ended the half on a 7 – 1 run to head into the locker room with a 34 – 29 advantage.

Lakehead attempted a whopping 21 three-pointers in the half, making six of them, while Fraser Valley was 4-of-11 from beyond the arc after 20 minutes. Bjorgaard led all players at the break with nine points.

The Canada West silver medallists opened the second half with a 4 – 0 run to widen the gap to nine points and never looked back.

Bjorgaard pushed the lead to double digits with a pair of free throws that made it 51 – 41 with two minutes to go in the third frame. A James York basket one minute into the fourth made it a 12-point affair at 63 – 51, and Fraser Valley had its biggest lead of the afternoon with 3:33 remaining in the game, at 76 – 63, when Mike James scored on a layup.

Overall, the Cascades out-rebounded their rivals 56 – 48 and maintained a 44.6 field goal percentage, compared to 32.4 for Lakehead.

— Article by CIS

 

CIS player of the year Philip Scrubb contributed with 25 points.
CIS player of the year Philip Scrubb contributed with 25 points. Photo by Shauna Brown.

Quarterfinal Game No. 2  :  No. 1 Carleton Ravens 82 – 68  No. 8 Acadia Axemen

HALIFAX (CIS) – The top-seeded and defending champion Carleton University Ravens survived a scare in their tournament opener on Friday afternoon but finally outscored the No. 8 Acadia Axemen 82 – 68 in the second quarterfinal match of the CIS men’s basketball championship.

The OUA champion Ravens, now 32 – 0 overall on the season against CIS competition, advance to Saturday’s first national semifinal at 6 p.m., where they will face the No. 5 Fraser Valley Cascades.

The AUS champion Axemen will resume play on the consolation side of the draw and are set to take on No. 4 Lakehead Saturday at noon. Acadia was eliminated in the first round for the second straight year.

The 14-point margin of victory is the second lowest of the campaign for Carleton against CIS opponents. Only Lakehead had fared better this year against the powerhouse from Ottawa, losing 88 – 85 in conference play.

The win was the 21st in a row for Carleton in CIS championship games played at the Metro Centre. The Ravens, who have claimed seven of the last nine national banners and are looking for a record-tying W.P. McGee title, haven’t lost at the Halifax arena since a 78 – 77 first-round setback against McMaster in 2001.

The final score on Friday doesn’t reflect how close the duel was, especially in the second half. After jumping to a 27 – 11 first-quarter advantage and leading 45 – 30 after 20 minutes, the Ravens were outscored 22 – 11 in the third frame and were holding on to a slim 56 – 52 lead heading into the final quarter.

Acadia was still trailing by only five points, 65 – 60, with seven minutes left before Carleton started to pull away, ending the contest on a 17 – 8 run.

“We’re not surprised by how tough they played us. They’re a very good team,” said Carleton head coach Dave Smart, who was named CIS coach of the year for a record fifth time prior to the tournament. “The way they played last week to beat StFX in the AUS final, I thought they were coming in here playing as well as any team in the country.”

“I’m really proud of my guys,” said Acadia sideline boss Stephen Baur. “We just found ourselves in too big a hole early on. Carleton is too good a team to give them such a lead.”

It is said that big players have to make big plays in big games, and it was certainly true for Carleton on the day.

Named the CIS player of the year on Thursday night, Phil Scrubb, a sophomore guard from Richmond, B.C., earned player-of-the-game honours for the winning side thanks to his match-high 25 points, including 21 on 7-of-12 shooting from three-point range. Scrubb led the country this season with a remarkable 57 per cent success rate from beyond the arc.

Tyson Hinz of Ottawa, named to the first all-Canadian team this season after being voted the CIS MVP a year ago, had a 22-point, 10-rebound double-double, while fifth-year veteran Elliot Thompson of Fredericton scored 16, including 12 on three-pointers in the fourth quarter.

“I think it was great for us to be tested like that in our first game,” Scrubb said. “We found ourselves outside of our comfort zone for a while. But the important thing is we played well when the pressure was on.”

Tyler Scott, a freshman from Halifax, was named game MVP for Acadia after scoring 13 points. Anthony Ashe of Stittsville, Ont., also netted 13, while Jonathan Bull of Ajax, Ont., and Anthony Sears of Riverview, N.B., contributed 10 points apiece.

“We didn’t consider ourselves a number eight seed. We knew we’d have to play Carleton eventually if we were to win the championship, so why not face them right off the bat,” said rookie guard Sean Stoqua of Ottawa, who led the AUS champs with five assists. “To be honest, I think we could have played even better. But hats off to them. They’re a great team.

Early on, the Ravens looked like the team that had outscored CIS opponents by an average of 37.6 points this season. Hinz scored eight of his team’s first 12 points as Carleton built an early 12 – 5 lead. He added four more points before the end of the opening quarter to guide his troops to the commanding 27 – 11 advantage after 10 minutes.

In the second, it was the Phil Scrubb Show, with the player of the year netting 14 points, including 12 from long distance.

Tull reduced the Acadia deficit to single digit for the first time in the second half with four minutes remaining in the third, when his two free throws made it a 49 – 41 affair. Sears scored on a layup with just over two minutes left in the period to cap off an 8 – 0 run for the Axemen and cut the Carleton lead to 56 – 52.

In the fourth, Tull once again went 2-for-2 from the charity stripe to make it 65 – 60 with 6:50 left on the clock, but that’s as close as Acadia would come to the improbable upset.

Thompson took over from there and nailed a mind-boggling four three-pointers in a span of 2:07 to put the game out of reach.

Overall, Carleton out-rebounded its rivals 45 – 38 and was successful on 42.9 per cent of its field goal attempts, including a 30.6 success rate from beyond the arc. Acadia was 37.1 per cent from the floor, including 27.3 per cent from long distance.

— Article by CIS

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