CALGARY — The Laval Rouge et Or men’s basketball team secured the national fifth-best title Sunday afternoon, defeating the Acadia Axemen 85-76 in the final game of the U SPORTS championship consolation bracket.
Acadia found themselves in foul trouble early and were eventually worn down by the Rouge et Or. Laval pulled away in the third quarter and came away with something on the national stage after capturing the RSEQ championship last weekend.
“I feel good to finish the season with a win,” said Laval forward Chakib Sedoud. ”I think the group is satisfied now. We didn’t take the championship, but we are building for next year.”
The first quarter was tightly contested, with neither team establishing control early.
The Rouge et Or struggled inside, managing just six points in the paint by halftime compared to Acadia’s 14.
Laval held a seven-point lead after the first six minutes, but Acadia battled back to take a one-point edge, leading 15-14 at the end of the opening quarter.
“Obviously, not the outcome we wanted,” said Acadia guard Briawne Wilson. “I felt like in the first half we played hard. (In) the second half, we kind of got gassed, as we’ve played three games this weekend.”
Acadia guard Robbie Grant opened the second quarter with a three-pointer, giving the Axemen an early boost in the period.
Laval point guard Chris Tshibola, who played a key role in the Rouge et Or’s consolation semifinal win over the UBC Thunderbirds, came out strong again in the battle for fifth place.
With a three-pointer early in the second quarter, Tshibola put Laval back in front, 29-28.
Acadia answered with a jump shot and a three-pointer from guard Kyle Munro to regain a four-point lead, prompting Laval to call a timeout with two minutes left in the quarter.
“It’s good to be out there,” Munro said. “We always enjoy it — every game is a blessing. So just excited to be here, win or loss. We enjoyed it together.”
The teams traded chances down the stretch, with Acadia heading into halftime up 35-33. Laval stayed within striking distance, forcing seven turnovers and drawing 14 fouls in the first half to stay in the fight.
“It’s been a problem for us,” Munro said of the fouls. “Their free throws led to a lot of points for them, which hurt us throughout the whole game. So, definitely needed to clean that up. I think we could have had a better shot at it.”
Foul trouble kept hurting the Axemen early in the third quarter, as Tshibola regained the lead for Laval at the free-throw line. Chakib Sedoud followed with a three-pointer.
Acadia tied things up again at 38-38. The teams traded the lead three more times before Laval finally broke through with an 11-point run to create the first substantial cushion of the game.
The Rouge et Or kept pace with the lead, putting up 25 points in the third quarter to head into the final frame ahead 58-49.
Laval didn’t ease up in the fourth, quickly scoring 12 points in the first three minutes to reach the 70-point mark and extend their lead to 16.
With five minutes remaining, the Rouge et Or stretched the gap to 20, leading 79–59.
“I feel like nationals is a very big experience for us,” Wilson said. “We’re a young group, and it’s all of our first times being at nationals. So I feel like now we know what other conferences are like and we know for next year how to adjust for nationals again.”
Although Acadia managed to score 27 points in the fourth — their best offensive stretch of the game — it wasn’t enough to close the gap. Laval matched them with 27 of their own, turning a close contest into an insurmountable lead.
“We have more talent to go and just play defense,” Sedoud said. “If they can’t score, we just keep the lead.”
Featured image by Zoe Pierce/the Charlatan
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