The Carleton Ravens men’s basketball team snapped their two-game losing streak against the Brock Badgers 69-63 in their season home debut Nov. 17 at the Raven’s Nest.
Following another win the next day over the Lakehead Thunderwolves, the Ravens are now 3-2 after a rocky 1-2 start to the season.
The intensity from the Ravens women’s basketball OT thriller that ended with a last-second putback by Carleton’s Zerina Duvnjak carried into the men’s game.
The Ravens set the tone early in the first quarter with their defence and didn’t allow the Badgers any easy baskets. Brock responded with their own brand of air-tight defence, full-court pressing the Ravens early on.
It was an all-out war between the two teams that resulted in little to no offence.
The Badgers shot an abysmal 15.4 per cent from the field, going 0-for-5 from three. The Ravens didn’t fare any better, going 5-for-16 from the field, while only shooting 5-for-10 from the free-throw line.
The Ravens mustered a 7-0 run toward the minute-and-a-half mark spearheaded by newcomer Xavier Spencer who was able to draw two fouls and convert all four free throws.
Veteran guard Wazir Lattif capped off the run with a late three, putting the Ravens up 16-10 at the end of the first quarter.
Carleton picked up where they left off to start the second quarter, extending their lead to as much as 10 points.
But the Badgers were able to regroup and go on a 11-2 run to go up 24-23, gaining their first lead of the game.
With every attempt the Badgers made to fully take over the game, they were met with resistance from the Ravens, most notably by guard Marjok Okado, who hit back-to-back threes to keep the game within arm’s reach.
This, alongside a late shot by forward Noah Horobetz Simpson, tied the game at 31 apiece. Simpson finished the game with 13 points and a game-high 12 rebounds.
By the third quarter, the Badgers found their footing and took over. It was a dominant quarter for the Badgers as they collectively shot an efficient 54.5 per cent from the field and nabbed seven steals.
Brock’s defence was a key factor in the quarter as they held Carleton to a measly nine points on an inefficient 22.2 per cent from the field.
The Ravens also committed eight turnovers in the quarter, many of which the Badgers capitalized on.
This was punctuated by a fastbreak dunk by Jevon Brown, who ended the game with a game-high 26 points, four rebounds and shooting 9-for-12 from the field. This allowed the Badgers to establish a comfortable eight-point cushion going into the final quarter.
The Badgers’ offensive surge in the third quarter didn’t deter Carleton, as Okado put up seven unanswered points to rejuvenate the Ravens. Okado finished with a team-high 22 points along with six threes on an efficient 75 per cent clip.
However, Brock was able to respond with a pair of fastbreak layups, extending their lead to five. That didn’t disrupt the Ravens’ momentum as they took back the lead 54-53 near the five-minute mark.
Carleton never looked back as they firmly held the lead.
This time, the Badgers had no answers as they fell to the Ravens 69-63.
The Ravens have undergone significant changes this season, due in large part to key contributors such as Aiden Warnholtz and Grant Shephard leaving the program.
Head coach Taffe Charles said post-game there is much room for improvement for this inexperienced team.
“Honestly, it’s just about defending. We haven’t been defending very well at all,” Charles said. “The bottom line is we gotta defend. If we can defend better, then we can be in good shape.”
In spite of the criticism, Charles said he was happier with his team’s offence than previous games.
“We got the scores in the 60s which we wanted to get to. So that’s really positive for us.”
For the season ahead, Charles said he is focused on the development of his young core as opposed to any aspirations for championships.
“We’re not going to win this year. I’ve been doing this for a long time, I’ve seen all those championships up there, I know what it takes; we’re just too young.” Charles said. “Our expectation levels are to get better each and every day, and if we get better each and every day, we will be fine.”
Charles said he communicated the same message to the team.
For the time being, the messaging seems to be working, as the team pulled out an 88-78 victory the next night over Lakehead.
When asked about Charles’ statement, Okado remains confident that this year’s team can still win the championship.
“Right now, we are just focusing on day by day, how we can improve and get better. We will focus about the championship when it gets there,” Okado said.
The Ravens will tip off again Nov. 24 against the Laurentian Voyageurs in Sudbury at 8 p.m.
Featured image by Charles Fortin.
