The third day of the Canadian Interuniversity Sport men’s basketball Final 8 kicked off on March 19, where the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees lost to the host University of British Columbia (UBC) Thunderbirds, 93-76 in the consolation final of the tournament.
The game was scheduled for 12 p.m. at the at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Center, but was postponed due to a fire alarm a minute before tip-off. After a quick evacuation, the athletes and fans returned inside to start the first game of the day.
Mike L’Africain—this year’s Mike Moser Memorial Trophy and CIS Player of the Year winner—was sidelined for the game due to a knee injury.
The Thunderbirds and Gee-Gees both came out of the gate strong with both teams shooting over 50 per cent in the opening quarter. Forward David Wagner took control of the Thunderbird offence in the first, scoring nine points on 4-5 shooting. Gee-Gees forward Nathan McCarthy responded in turn with eight points, making all four of his attempts to start the game. The first quarter ended with the Thunderbirds leading by just two points.
The game stayed close in the second, but the Thunderbirds began to take control with forward Conor Morgan leading the way.
Morgan scored 13 points in just the second quarter, and gave the Thunderbirds a 45-39 lead heading into halftime. Caleb Agada, the CIS defensive player of the year and U of O’s first option with L’Africain sidelined, struggled to take control of the offence in his teammates absence, with seven turnovers in the first half.
The third quarter was when UBC took control of the game, with forward Will Ondrik scoring 14 points in the quarter on 6-7 shooting. U of O struggled to create opportunities for themselves without their starting point guard, and ultimately fell behind to the Thunderbirds.
“In a tournament like this, they expose your weaknesses,” said Gee-Gees forward Matt Plunkett.
UBC continued their strong play into the final quarter extending the lead to 20 points. Both coaches opted to close out the game with their bench players. The Thunderbirds headed to the dressing room with a standing ovation in front of their home crowd.
“We did the best we could, but UBC is a really good team,” Plunkett said. “It’s alway tough to lose, especially at nationals—we’ve come up short three years now.”
Conor Morgan was the Thunderbirds’ player of the game, finishing with 25 points along with eight rebounds. Jalalpoor added 19 points, eight of which came in the final quarter, along with six assists.
“They did a phenomenal job,” said Gee-Gees head coach James Derouin.
The Gee-Gees, on the other hand, struggled without L’Africain leading the team. Agada, whom the Gee-Gees looked to in L’Africain’s absence, scored 18 points, but had a season-high 10 turnovers in the process.
“We relied heavily on Caleb, that’s why he had 10 turnovers,” Plunkett said. “The ball was in his hands the entire game.”
Gee-Gees forward Matt Plunkett also scored 18 points on six triples, but U of O was unable to score consistently all game.
“[Plunkett] is one of, if not the best shooters in the country,” Derouin said. “He’s lights out—11-20 from three in his last two games—and I’d like to see him take even more.”
With the win, UBC became the consolation champions of the CIS Final 8, while U of O walked home medal-less for the first time since 2012.
Plunkett said his team is already looking toward next season.
“It hurts, but we just have to use that motivation to keep going,” he said.
The Carleton Ravens, Dalhousie Tigers, Ryerson Rams and Calgary Dinos will continue on in the tournament, with the finals scheduled for March 20.
