The Ontario University Athletics (OUA) announced the men’s basketball All-Star and All-Rookies teams this past week, with five different Ravens honoured with awards.
Leading the way was fourth-year point guard Kaza Kajami-Keane—a transfer from Cleveland State—who earned a spot on the OUA First Team All-Stars. Kajami-Keane led the OUA this season with 6.6 assists per game, with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.4, good for second in the conference. He also added 14.1 points per game as Carleton’s second leading scorer.
Kajami-Keane was the leader of this Ravens squad, running the offence all season long.
“It feels great to be selected, but I am not one to harp on individual awards,” Kajami-Keane said. “This is a team game and you can’t win individually. I didn’t come to Carleton to win awards or anything of that sort—I came here to learn from the best coaches in North America and to win basketball games.”
Guillaume Payen Boucard, a fifth-year Ravens forward, was selected as an OUA Second Team All-Star in what will be his last year playing university basketball. He was the leading scorer and rebounder for the Ravens, with 14.6 points and 5.5 rebounds per game, and earned his spot with tenacious play on both ends of the floor.
Kajami-Keane had only good things to say about his graduating teammate.
“He gives our team the identity to be tough, there is no one I would want to go to battle with more,” Kajami-Keane said.
Also selected to the OUA Second Team was fourth-year swingman Connor Wood, for the second consecutive season. Wood blossomed as one of the Ravens’ go-to options on offence this season, averaging 13.6 points per game with 4.4 rebounds. His ability to heat up was what got him the spot, with games against Nipissing (27 points) and Brock (37 points) showcasing his talent.
“Connor [Wood] is one of the best scorers I have played with ever, including guys that have played in the NBA and NCAA,” Kajami-Keane said. “He can shoot the ball at an incredibly high rate, can get to the rim with his size, and still guards the best players on the other team.”
First-year guards Stanley Mayambo and Marcus Anderson were selected for the OUA All-Rookie team. Both players got a chance to show their talents this season and neither disappointed.
Mayambo played 12.6 minutes per game with averages of 4.2 points and 2.1 rebounds, including a 16-point outburst against Toronto on Jan 23. Anderson averaged 3.2 points and 2.9 rebounds in 16.8 minutes per game, and also ranked fifth on the team in steals and assists.
“They work harder then any other freshmen in the country and it shows,” Kajami-Keane said. “[They] are really good young guys and are continuously getting better.”
After losing in the OUA Championship game to Ryerson, Carleton will play next in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport Final 8 starting on March 17 in Vancouver, BC.
