The Carleton Ravens men’s basketball team went undefeated at the 26th annual House-Laughton Tournament, held over the course of Oct. 16-18 in the Ravens’ Nest.
The pre-season tournament saw the Ravens face off against the Acadia Axemen, the University of Toronto (U of T) Varsity Blues, and the Bishop’s Gaiters.
The Ravens began their tournament on Friday night with a victory against the Axemen.
Carleton started the game off strong, allowing Acadia to score just 14 points and ending the first quarter with a 17-point lead.
The Axemen came back during the second quarter, scoring 27 points, and went into halftime trailing the Ravens by seven.
However, the Ravens regained control of the game in the final two quarters, with third-year guard Kaza Kajami-Keane contributing several important baskets.
After that, the Ravens would not let off, shooting 50 per cent from the field as they beat the Axemen by a final score of 91-69.
Next up for the Ravens were the Varsity Blues, who came into the game having suffered a loss at the hands of the Gaiters the night before.
The Ravens came out strong, ending the first quarter with 25 points while limiting U of T to 13 points.
Fourth-year Ravens guard Connor Wood contributed 11 points to the Ravens’ first quarter total, hitting three of five attempts from beyond the arc.
In the first two quarters, the Ravens shot 43.9 per cent from the field, with the Varsity Blues shooting 35.7 per cent.
At the half, the Ravens had a convincing 46-30 lead and showed no signs of stopping. Carleton would go on to score 32 points in the third, allowing just 17 points against.
Offensively, the Ravens dominated U of T, out-rebounding them 17-6, with Ravens guard Guillaume Boucard and starting forward Cameron Smythe contributing seven rebounds each.
During the fourth, Ravens head coach Rob Smart Jr. took the chance to give the six first-year members of the team some floor time. In total, every member of the Ravens roster picked up some playing time against U of T.
As the final quarter of the game ticked down to an end, the Ravens didn’t ease up. First-year forward Taj Lall hit a two-point jumper in the final seconds of the game to carry the Ravens to a 101-56 victory over the Varsity Blues.
Going into the final game of the tournament on Sunday afternoon, Carleton faced off against the only other undefeated team left, the Gaiters.
While the Gaiters grabbed an early lead, Carleton soon narrowed the gap, with second-year forward Ryan Ejim coming off the bench to score eight points in eight minutes.
The Ravens slowly pulled away, ending the first quarter with a 24-17 lead.
Fifth-year veteran player Gavin Resch proved crucial for the Ravens in the second, as he contributed 11 points to help extend the Ravens’ lead to 49-31 heading into the half.
Bishop’s was playing a physical game, fouling often and sending the Ravens to the free throw line 14 times in the final two quarters. The Ravens were rock solid from the line, hitting 12 of 14 attempts.
“They were kind of a pretty physical team and that gave us a little bit of trouble early on, but in the end I think we matched their physicality,” Resch said.
In the last two quarters, the Ravens maintained a solid handle on the game, scoring 39 points while allowing only 29 against them.
Their 88-60 win over the Gaiters propelled the Ravens to their 15th consecutive House-Laughton tournament victory.
According to Resch, coming off of a tough 82-80 loss against the University of Saskatchewan Huskies on Oct. 4 helped push the team this weekend.
“We were kind of looking to have three good games and I think we played good in those three games,” Resch said. “We have some things we need to work on, but which team doesn’t?”
Boucard was selected as the tournament’s most valuable player, and was named to the all-star team, along with teammate Ryan Ejim.
Smart said he was pleased with the way the first-year members of the team played against U of T, while admitting they’d had some trouble against the more physical Bishop’s Gaiters.
“I think tonight they saw what the weight room can do for them. I think the team tonight was very physical and tough and they couldn’t do the things that they could do maybe in high school,” Smart said. “I felt like today they struggled, which is good . . . hopefully it lights a fire in them.”
With their three wins this weekend, Carleton extended their record to 7-4 in exhibition play.
The Ravens will kick off their regular season at home at 8 p.m. on Nov. 6 against the Laurentian Voyageurs.
