The Carleton Ravens men’s basketball team defeated the Dalhousie Tigers 76-66 on March 19 in a semifinal matchup for the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) Final 8 National Championship Tournament.
The number-two-seeded Ravens, looking for their sixth straight national finals appearance, came out of the gate with tremendous energy on defence. Carleton held the number-six-seeded Dalhousie Tigers scoreless in the first 3:46. The first quarter ended with Carleton up 14-8.
“They’re a tough, hard-nosed team,” said Ravens head coach Rob Smart. “They are the way we like to play—just scrappy and fighting for everything.”
Both teams carried their intensity into the second quarter, where the game turned into a battle of effort. The Tigers stopped Carleton’s balanced attack, holding the Ravens to just 10 points in the quarter. Carleton looked for someone to run the offence through, with point guard Kaza Kajami-Keane getting into foul trouble early in the quarter, but no Raven was able to step up.
A steal and slam by the Tigers with just two seconds left in the half put them within one point, and the Ravens walked into halftime leading just 24-23. The Ravens were held scoreless for the last four minutes of the half, shooting just 3-13 in the second quarter.
“At halftime it got ugly, but we knew this was the way it was going to be,” Smart said. “We weren’t being comfortable on offence” said Ravens guard Connor Wood. “We just needed to get things going.”
Ravens forward Ryan Ejim scored the first points of the second half off a dish by Kajami-Keane. The Tigers tied it up briefly two minutes in, off a runner by Aquino-Serjue, but a Ravens guard Gavin Resch pushed the teams lead back up to three. The Tigers again tied it up with a triple of their own, but Wood began to heat up, scoring 12 points in the quarter, including two well-timed threes.
The Ravens used Wood’s contribution to widen their lead, and ended the third quarter in control of the game 54-46. The Ravens scored 30 points in the third quarter, compared to just 24 in the first two combined.
“Everyone wants to step up and prove themselves,” Wood said. “Our main focus is defence and rebounding, and everything else will take care of itself.”
The final quarter began with a layup by Ravens guard Mitchell Wood and a huge block by Resch on the other end. Much like the first, the Ravens held the Tigers scoreless for a stretch to start the quarter—this one lasting over four minutes long. The Tigers finally scored off a layup by Kashrell Lawrence, but Resch was fouled shooting a three on the other end and made all three free throws. Aquino-Serjue scored his third and-one bucket in an effort to keep Dalhousie in the game, and Lawrence added seven points in the quarter. The Ravens closed out the game with double-digit lead.
The most telling stat of the game was the number of assists, with Carleton 23 almost doubling Dalhousie’s 12.
“We don’t get too concerned about touches on our team, the ball has got to move,” Smart said.
Wood was the Raven’s player of the game, with 18 points, 12 of which came from downtown. Ejim had another huge game with 20 points and five rebounds, while Ravens forward Guillaume Payen Boucard adding 13 points and seven boards.
Dalhousie was led by Aquino-Serjue, who finished with 16 points. The player that gave the Ravens the most trouble, however, was Lawrence, who ended the game with 18 points, five rebounds and two steals.
“I’m really proud of our guys,” Tigers coach Rick Plato said. “They left it out there—it wasn’t for a lack of effort. These guys played their hearts out and they have nothing to be ashamed of. When the nationals come to Halifax next year, we’ll be ready.”
With the win, the Ravens will move on to the tournament finals, where they will look for their sixth straight national title in a row.
“No matter who we play, we’re going to look to play our hardest and win that game,” Wood said.
Their opponent will be either the Calgary Dinos or Ryerson Rams, and the game will be held on March 20 at 5:30 p.m., at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre.
