Raven Kyle Smendziuk goes up strong to the rim ( Photo: Adam Dietrich )
After a long summer break, the Ravens have finally landed back in the Nest.
The Carleton University Ravens varsity men’s basketball team jumpstarted their preseason, defeating the NCAA’s Towson University Tigers 95-83 at the Ravens Nest on Aug.18.
It was the Ravens first game of the year. Fans had a chance to check out the new lineup, including newcomers Tyson Hinz, Greg Faulkner and Scott Ring.
Carleton played strong early in the first half, grabbing a 16-2 lead over Towson. The Tigers fought back; however, cutting the Ravens lead to four points by the end of the first half with the score 36-32.
The Ravens gained a 22-point lead over the Tigers in the second half, but a late push from Towson kept the game close.
“They scored 83 points, so we obviously could have done a way better job defensively,” said Ravens guard Elliot Thompson.
“We did some good things, but right now it’s so early in the season – we have so much stuff to work on,” he added.
Ravens head coach Dave Smart said he was pleased with the team’s performance. He said the team played harder than they have in practice.
“We’re a long way away,” he said. “We’ve got to bring it every day. I think we did some positive things, but up until now we haven’t played nearly that hard.”
Cole Hobin led the Ravens in points with a total of 23. Rookie forward Tyson Hinz was the second-highest scorer, netting 18 points.
But the team has some big shoes to fill. Last year’s lineup included two all-Canadian players, Stuart Turnbull and Aaron Dornekamp, as well as last year’s CIS defensive player of the year, Robert Saunders. None of these players are returning.
“We lost a lot of talent last year,” said Thompson. “We’ve got to make it up, and try to fill in some gaps there. I think coming together as one will be a step in the right direction.”
Carleton has won six out of the last seven Canadian Interuniversity Sports (CIS) men’s basketball championships, but the team knows it’s a long road to the finals.
“We’re not even close where we have to be,” said Thompson. “Sure, we got the win, but we can’t really settle for that.
We have to come in and focus on things we did bad and correct those for the game we have coming up in a couple weeks.”
The Ravens continue the preseason with another NCAA challenge against the St. John’s University (New York) Red Storm on Sept. 6 at the Nest as part of the Ravenspooloza festivities. Tip-off is at 1 p.m.