The Carleton Ravens men’s basketball team lost their first game of the season 75-73 in a spectacular matchup to the University of Ottawa (U of O) Gee-Gees.
Showcasing two of the best teams in the country, this matchup was what fans have been waiting for since the season started, and it did not disappoint.
The Ravens came out strong to start the game, going to Guillaume Payen Boucard in the post repeatedly throughout the first quarter. He scored six points in the first three minutes, helping the Ravens jump to a 17-13 lead to close the opening quarter.
U of O found a way to stop Payen Boucard down low to start the second, and Carleton was left looking for another player to run the offence through. The Gee-Gees hit back-to-back threes to even the score. Carleton and U of O traded the lead back and forth to close out the half.
The Gee-Gees looked to their two veterans, point guard Mike L’Africain and athletic forward Caleb Agada. Agada, a fifth-year Canadian Interuniversity Sport player of the year candidate, scored 14 of his 23 points in the first half, including a perfectly-timed steal and slam dunk right as the halftime buzzer went off. The Ravens walked into the changing rooms at halftime leading by a single point, 37-36.
The Ravens went back to Payen Boucard to start the second half, who responded with six straight points to open the quarter.
“Guillaume [Payen Boucard], in my eyes, is one of the best posts in the country, an All-Canadian,” said Ravens point guard Kaza Kajami-Keane.
The Gee-Gees had some trouble with free throws in the third quarter, going one-for-five to start, which allowed Carleton to jump to an eight-point lead. Ryan Ejim also got his midrange shot to fall, scoring 12 of his 14 in the second half, mostly off of short jumpers.
Carleton’s usually balanced offence stagnated as the game went on, they went exclusively to Kajami-Keane, Ejim, and Payen Boucard, with no other players scoring points after halftime. The Ravens kept it going, but Agada and L’Africain made sure the Gee-Gees were right behind them. After a sequence where both Agada and Payen Boucard missed back-to-back alley-oop attempts, the Ravens closed out the quarter with a small 61-58 lead.
Kajami-Keane dictated the offence for the Ravens to close out the game. After a goaltending call put the Ravens up by eight points, it looked as if the Ravens were getting away. Agada kept his team in the game nailing all of his free throws in the half to close the gap. With just under two minutes remaining in the game and the Ravens up by one, a blocking foul was called on Connor Wood. The call was met with disapproval from the Raven-dominated crowd. Agada split the free throws to tie the game, and the Ravens had the ball, game tied, with 1:10 on the clock.
Payen Boucard was unable to get his layup to fall, and on the other end, L’Africain hit a turnaround jumper to put the Gee-Gees up by two. With their last possession of the game, Carleton moved the ball around their scorers, looking for a good shot to tie, or even win, the game.
In front of the sold-out crowd, Kajami-Keane missed the potential game-winning three as the final buzzer sounded. The crowd held their breath as his shot rolled in and out of the rim, giving the Ravens their first loss this season.
“I thought it was going in,” Kajami-Keane said. “I’ve taken that shot a thousand times. I just have to get back in the gym and take it a hundred thousand times.”
Kajami-Keane finished with 24 points and six assists, while Payen-Boucard added 20 points and five rebounds. Agada led the way for the Gee-Gees, contributing 10 rebounds to go with his lofty point total, while L’Africain chipped in 17, including the game-winner.
With a rematch in the near future, Kajami-Keane said he knows what his team must focus on. “We gotta box out, rebound, stick to the fundamentals, just what we do every day,” Kajami-Keane said.
The Ravens face the Gee-Gees at the annual MNBA Capital Hoops Classic on Feb. 5. For now, they will ready themselves for back-to-back games against Ryerson on Jan. 22 and the University of Toronto on Jan. 23.
