The Carleton Ravens men’s basketball team advanced to the Wilson Cup semifinals with an 89-50 quarterfinal victory over the McMaster Marauders.
Ravens guards Connor Wood and Kaza Kajami-Keane led Carleton offensively as Wood scored 17 points while Kajami-Keane had 16. Marauders guard David McCulloh led his team with 16 points, the only McMaster player with double-digit points.
“I thought we defended pretty hard,” Ravens head coach Dave Smart said. “We’re still struggling a little bit on offence.”
The Ravens got off to a 7-0 start with baskets by forwards Ryan Ejim, Eddie Ekiyor, and Kajami-Keane.
Carleton scored a majority of their first half points in the paint as Ekiyor and Ejim had 10 points each for the game.
Both teams struggled from beyond the arc in the first half. McMaster was two-for-14 from three-point range while Carleton was three-for-eight.
“When we don’t get out in transition the way we liked to, we don’t get as many open looks,” Smart said. “If they’re going to stay with the three-point shooters, we’re going to get to the rim and get our post scoring.”
The first quarter was back and forth as Carleton ended with a 19-11 lead. But back-to-back three-pointers in the second quarter by Wood and Keane increased the lead to 37-21.
Ekiyor was key on both ends of the court with a steal and a block.
“We force left. We have a rotation,” Ekiyor said of his block. “I was just trying to do my best to stay with the rotation and jump up and get the ball.”
Ekiyor’s slam dunk and Wood’s layup stretched the score to 57-34 midway through the third, forcing McMaster head coach Amos Connolly to call timeout.
Another Wood three pointer and Ravens guard Joe Rocca’s three to end the third pushed the lead to 69-34—and the game out of the Marauders’ reach.
“Most of our game plan is always around defence,” Ekiyor said. “Offence, we just let it come and see what we can get. If we can get threes, we get threes. If not, we can go through me and Ryan [Ejim] and see what we can get.”
“If you can get the tempo where you want to and make them work at both ends of the floor, then obviously fatigue comes into play,” Smart said.
Carleton will host the Wilson Cup semi-finals and finals, being the highest-ranked remaining team.
The Ravens will play the fourth-ranked Brock Badgers on Mar. 3, with the winner advancing to the OUA Gold Medal game the following night at the Ravens’ Nest.
– Photo by Trevor Swann
