The second-seeded Dalhousie Tigers beat the third-seeded UBC Thunders 84-55 to advance to the U Sports Basketball championship finals for the first time in program history.
“We’ve worked hard and it’s a testament to the commitment of these kids,” said head coach Rick Plato. “I’m very proud. I’ve coached a long time and I’ve had the pleasure of coaching a lot of great kids and great teams, but I think this is a very special team.”
From the start, the matchup was a physical one with both teams trading fouls early on.
“We preached from day one we want to be aggressive, be physical and on defence, that’s what we try to teach from the start,” said Tigers forward Sascha Kappos.
“Our assistant coaches do a great job at getting us prepared and getting us set for what’s about to come.” Kappos contributed 19 points and a team high seven rebounds.
Alex Carson was very effective for the Tigers, leading them in three point scoring, going four-for-seven, and finishing the game with 19 points.
“[Carson] is a backbreaker. There are a lot of good shooters in the country, we just played against a couple, but if I bet on anybody I’d bet on Alex in the three point shooting contest,” said Plato. “He’s a big time player, he’s a special guy.”
The game remained close until halfway through the second quarter when Dalhousie pulled away, going on a 16-5 run. At halftime the score was 41-29 and, from that point on, Dalhousie held a comfortable lead until the game’s end.
During the regular season UBC averaged 93 points per game, but Dalhousie limited them to a mere 55.
“I think we got some open looks that didn’t fall. We missed some layups,” explained UBC head coach Kevin Hanson.
“The two senior guys certainly gave everything they had and tried to make something happen. When things aren’t going as a team you pass the basketball around and no one seems to be having an effective night offensively it’s tough, so you over try and try to overcompensate.”
In the fourth quarter, the Thunderbirds only managed to score seven points compared to Dalhousie’s 23.
“You get off your game plan when you’re down and that’s obviously a season low for us,” said Hanson.
The gold medal game has the Tigers up against the home-town Carleton Ravens who have won 14 of the last 17 national titles.
“We try and prepare as much as possible. We know the talent in here is eight of the best teams in Canada so we don’t take anything for granted. That’s why in the preseason we try to play the best teams that we can,” said Kappos.
“At least from our end — I know it’s routine for Carleton — but we’re very excited at the opportunity of playing them tomorrow,” said Plato.
The men’s final will take place on March 8 at 8 p.m. at TD place.
Feature image by Tim Austen
