En route to an Ontario University Athletics (OUA) championship, the Carleton Ravens came out on top after battling the Ryerson Rams in a nail-biter of a game that went down to the final seconds.
The win confirmed the Ravens a spot in the CIS (Canadian Interuniversity Sport) Final Eight tournament in Toronto from March 12-15.
With the arena still in shock from watching the Windsor Lancers upset the top-seeded University of Ottawa (U of O) Gee-Gees, both the Ravens and Rams looked to regain focus on their semifinal game.
The two all-star filled squads came in determined to return to the University of Ottawa’s Montpetit Hall on March 7 for the championship game against the Lancers.
In a back-and-forth first half, the game saw OUA defensive player of the year and first team all-star Thomas Scrubb all over the floor.
Thomas Scrubb led the Ravens at the end of the half with 17 points, one steal and four rebounds while his brother Philip Scrubb and other Ravens struggled to find their groove from the field.
Going into the intermission, Ravens’ head coach Dave Smart said he realized they needed to be better. He said he wanted to see more ball movement.
“We were stagnant offensively,” he said. “The big thing was we had to do a better job offensively and get them out of their comfort zone.”
Fifth-year guard and first team all-star Jahmal Jones led the Rams to a 44-38 lead at half with 19 points, two assists, and two rebounds.
The Rams’ smothering defensive pressure, combined with quick transitions pushed the Ravens on their heels, but in no way intimidated the reigning CIS champions.
Thomas Scrubb and OUA second team all-star Connor Wood rallied the Ravens to shorten the Rams’ lead to three, ending the third quarter down 64-61.
“We knew we were still in the game, and once we started to get stops we saw them getting tired,” Scrubb said. “We knew it was a matter of time before we would make a few plays and pull away with the game.”
While several of the Ravens struggled at times, third-year guard Wood had the magic touch from the field by draining a team-best nine for 10 from the field, and three for three from beyond the arc.
“He’s progressed all year and I think his confidence level has increased,” Smart said. “When you play with more confidence, good things happen. We need our guys to play at a high level and he’s been doing that.”
In the fourth, the Ravens were relentless as they pressured and exhausted the Rams defense. With time ticking down, the Ravens gained a small lead that the Rams attempted to pick at.
As Ravens fans sat on the edge of their seats, they witnessed something they may never see again. In a quick transition, Phil Scrubb drove down the middle of the Rams’ key and threw down an emphatic dunk.
With that sight stamped in the memory of everyone in Montpetit Hall, the Ravens held off the Rams to win by four points and lock in a championship match against the Lancers.
Wood and Scrubb said the Ravens remember all too well the loss from earlier this season against the Lancers.
“We have to really box out and get a lot of rebounds,” said Wood of the gameplan going into the championship. “They destroyed us in the fourth last time so I think that should be the key.”
Scrubb echoed Wood’s statement about the Lancers.
“They beat us last time, so it’s not going to take a lot of motivating to get us ready for the game,” Scrubb said. “We know they play confident so we need to fix the mistakes we made today and we’ll be better tomorrow.”
