The Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) national championships are less than one month away, and it’s tough to say that the Carleton Ravens men’s basketball team won’t perform well when they descend upon Halifax to defend their title.
That doesn’t mean it’s going to be an easy task, and the past few weeks have proven that. Head coach Dave Smart has been largely unimpressed with the team’s recent play, and if anyone knows what has to be done to win a national championship, it’s him.
Despite Smart’s sentiments, on paper the Ravens have proved to be as strong as ever. Carleton went 5-6 in this year’s NCAA cross-border battle which pitted the Ravens against NCAA division I teams, proving that this edition of the Ravens can hold its own against strong American competition.
The regular season has proven to be a relatively easy ride for the Ravens so far, as they’ve gone undefeated to date (20-0). They’re also atop the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) in scoring, field goal percentage, three-point percentage and rebounding.
The only “hiccup” they’ve experienced this season is a near-loss to the Lakehead Thunderwolves Nov. 26. The Ravens beat the Thunderwolves by a score of 88-85, after a late free throw by sophomore guard Phillip Scrubb saved the day. The Ravens put up an impressive 52.5 per cent from the field in that game, but were out-rebounded by the Thunderwolves 28-19.
Fast-forward to Jan. 28 against the Laurentian Voyageurs, the Ravens hit 61.9 per cent of their field goals and knocked down half of their three-point attempts. They beat the Voyageurs by a 35-point margin and out-rebounded them 27-20. It’s safe to say they systematically crushed Laurentian.
But Smart wasn’t happy.
And with the result of the Lakehead game in mind, it’s easy to see why.
When the Ravens don’t rebound well, they don’t dominate teams the way fans have come to expect. Smart dubbed the Ravens’ incredible shooting percentage Jan. 28 as “fool’s gold,” and he said teams win basketball games with rebounding, defence, and toughness. Anybody who has been following this team knows that’s Smart’s mantra. Players most often cite rebounding as the team’s number one problem following games, noting that there’s lots of work to be done.
It’s a message that is engrained into players as soon as they step foot in the Ravens’ Nest.
Unfortunately for the Ravens, it seems the Thunderwolves will be around to keep the Ravens in check in the OUA post-season. For the first two weeks of the regular season, the Thunderwolves were ranked fourth in the CIS. By the third week, they had crept up to third, and since Jan. 17 they have leapfrogged the St. Francis-Xavier X-Men as the second best team in the nation.
Although they haven’t beaten the Ravens this season, the Thunderwolves have proven in the past that they’re certainly capable. In last year’s OUA final, Lakehead beat Carleton 77-62. Carleton had a higher field-goal percentage in that game, but only had three more rebounds than the Thunderwolves.
The Ravens are still the best university team in the country, and arguably have been for the past decade. They are an elite team, and likely will continue to be an elite CIS basketball team for years to come. They’ve proven they can win national championships consistently, and it’s very possible that this year will be no different.
Smart’s recent unhappiness is a promising sign for the team, as it shows his ability to keep the men focused and fresh. There’s no room for complacency if you play for Smart, who said he’s going to be taking a different approach in practice ahead of the final games of the regular season.
However, it’s clear that there are teams out there that can give the Ravens a run for their money. Given the amount of times these teams have had their dreams snatched from them at the last second, they’ll likely be hungering for wins when it will hurt the Ravens the most.
— Callum Micucci and Gianluca Nesci will be blogging about the Carleton Ravens men’s basketball team in the weeks leading up to the CIS national championship March 9-11 in Halifax. They will also be providing exclusive coverage that weekend from Halifax as the Ravens vie for their eighth title in the last 10 years.
