The Carleton Ravens men’s basketball team defeated the Brock Badgers by a score of 89-64 on Mar. 3 in the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) Semifinal at the Ravens’ Nest.
The win clinched a spot at the U SPORTS men’s basketball Final 8 Championship in Halifax, NS from Mar. 9-12.
Before heading to Halifax, the Ravens will host the Ryerson Rams in the OUA Gold Medal game at the Ravens’ Nest on Mar. 4.
The Gold Medal game will be a rematch from last season, which saw the Ravens fall 73-68, but eventually win the national title.
Ravens guards Kaza Kajami-Keane and Marcus Anderson led the Ravens with 25 and 19 points apiece. Brock guard Johneil Simpson led the Badgers with 24 points off the bench.
“It was a good defensive effort by us,” Kajami-Keane said. “We have guys like Marcus Anderson and Ryan Ejim, Eddie Ekiyor, Mitch Wood and guys who come off the bench. They put forth that defensive effort so we put ourselves in a position to win every day.”
The game was close throughout as the teams traded baskets, though both teams struggled offensively as Carleton shot 39.6 per cent while Brock shot 39.4 per cent.
In the first quarter, Anderson had the hot hand as he hit a pair of three-pointers to give the Ravens a 9-7 lead. A three point shot from Ravens guard Connor Wood extended the lead to 14-9 and forced Badgers head coach Charles Kissi to call timeout.
The Badgers responded with five straight points in the second quarter to cut the lead to 21-14 before back-to-back three pointers put the score at 29-16 for the Ravens, and led to another Brock timeout.
Rebounding was a key factor as the Ravens had 47 to the Badgers’ 28.
“If we rebound as well as we can, we can beat anybody,” Anderson said.
The Ravens also held Brock’s First Team All-Star forward Dani Elgadi to seven points.
“We got guys being physical on him and as long as we’re physical and keep him off the boards, we have a good chance of winning,” Anderson said.
Kajami-Keane scored a layup to end the third quarter with Carleton on top 58-45. But the Badgers keep the score close until the final minutes of the fourth quarter.
Ekiyor followed up his block with a slam dunk at the other end to push the lead to 68-45. Three-pointers by Wood and Kajami-Keane put the game out of Brock’s reach with a 76-57 advantage.
Anderson hit five three-pointers for a season-high 19 points.
“My veterans told me to come out and shoot the ball so I spaced and got my shots off,” he said.
“I think it was a very good team we just played,” Kajami-Keane said of Brock. “They’ve won some big games and they’ve had an amazing season . . . it was a good test for us.”
“Hopefully we keep coming and no quit,” Anderson said of his team’s future goals.
“Every quarter we have to keep coming with intensity and intensity is an important thing for us,” he said.
– Photo by Cameron Penney
