Ravens Cole Hobin and Stuart Turnbull pitched in for the win ( Photo: Greg Mason )
The Carleton Ravens dominated their cross-town rivals, the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees March 4 at the Raven’s nest. Solid defending and quality passing were the key factors in the 82-61 dominating victory.
Carleton got off to a slow start in the Ontario University Athletics East final and was quickly down 9-2, forcing coach Dave Smart to take a timeout minutes into the game. The timeout seemed to wake up the Ravens as they responded with an 11-2 run to take the lead 13-11.
The referees didn’t let much slide in the first quarter, which significantly slowed down the game. The first quarter also saw many turnovers and missed shots from both teams. The end of the first picked up a bit when fourth-year forward Kevin McCleery hit a jumper with less than a minute left to give Carleton an 18-13 lead.
The second quarter started with the two teams exchanging baskets. Fifth-year guard Rob Saunders hit a layup from underneath the bucket to extend the lead to 20-17. After a turnover, guard Aaron Doornekamp sunk a shot after he caught a great pass underneath from Cole Hobin.
Doornekamp continued to add to the score sheet on the Raven’s next possession after he rebounded and put back his own missed shot for two of his 15 points in the half.
The Ravens were showing their skills on the defensive end as well when Saunders saved a ball from going out of bounds and Doornekamp made an impressive spin move and sunk the fade away on the other end of the floor in a highlight reel moment.
After a Gee-Gees timeout, fifth-year guard Stuart Turnbull made a diving layup and was fouled on the play. The offensive output continued and a three-pointer with 15 seconds left gave the Ravens a 45-29 lead heading into half time.
The second half was more of the same from the Ravens. Continued from the second quarter, the Ravens went on a 26-9 run. The Gee-Gees did, however, crawl back to cut the lead from 20 to 13. But Carleton resumed control once again and they extended the lead back to 20, leading 61-41.
It was a long night for the Gee-Gees, but a night of celebration for the Ravens. Carleton went on to win 82-61, the largest margin of their three meetings this year. However, Rob Saunders, who pitched in 11 points, still insists it wasn’t as effortless as it seemed.
“It definitely wasn’t easy and the score doesn’t tell it all,” said the Kingston native. “Our rebounding was great and we gave them few second chances and our post did a good job. They’re a good team.”
Doornekamp was one rebound shy of a double-double as he tallied 25 points and nine rebounds. The 6’6 forward did not play in the last meeting between the two schools.
“We don’t have to win every game but the main thing is we have to get better every game,” Doornekamp said. “The guys defended well as a unit, when we defend as a unit it takes a lot away from the other team.”