Two games down, one to go for the Carleton Ravens.
The Ravens men’s basketball team clinched their spot in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) championship game and a shot at the record for most championship titles in CIS history, with their decisive win over the Acadia University Axemen Saturday evening.
The No. 1-seeded Ravens will be heading to the final to fight for their third CIS gold medal in a row, and a record ninth title overall. Currently, they are tied with the University of Victoria Vikes at eight titles.
“We just want to win one. This is the first time that this team has been together so we just want to win one for this team,” Ravens third-year guard Phillip Scrubb said.
The game opened with both teams playing very strong defensively, which they are both known for. Neither team could get many good shots off and they battled to a 14-12 lead for the Ravens at the end of the quarter.
In the second quarter, both teams stayed quite even, getting 17 points each as the offensive game opened up a little more on both sides. At halftime, the Ravens led by two, 31-29.
In the second half, the Ravens, led by the Scrubb brothers, took control of the game. They solved the defensive puzzle of the Axemen and on the other end they were able to control Acadia’s Owen Klassen and the Axemen offence. They outscored the Axemen 20-12 in the quarter, to take a 10-point lead heading into the final frame.
With the Ravens fans cheering loudly for their team, the Ravens brought home the game in the fourth quarter to clinch their date with history. The final score was 84-69.
“That’s a tough team and they defend very well, it shows in their numbers throughout the year,” Ravens head coach Dave Smart said. “We settled down a little bit on offence in the second half, even though we fouled a little too much and put them on a line, we continued to defend pretty well and offensively we just found a way to get a little more settled.”
In the game, the Ravens were led offensively by none other than the two Scrubb brothers. Phillip Scrubb, the 2012-13 CIS Player of the Year, had 26 points and Thomas had 20 points and five rebounds. Second-year guard Sean Stoqua led the Axemen with 20 points.
The Ravens will be playing fellow Ontario University Athletics (OUA) member, the Lakehead University Thunderwolves, in the championship final.
“They’re a really tough team, and defence is their focus and they are going to try and shut us down and rebound. So we know it is going to be a tough match-up for us and we need to focus on defending and rebounding as well,” Phillip Scrubb said.
The Ravens faced the Thunderwolves in the OUA Wilson Cup semi-final March 1, and beat them handily 72-51. The 51 points scored in that game for Lakehead was their lowest point total of the season.
No doubt the Ravens will be the favourite going in, but so was every other team that played Lakehead so far in the tournament.
“They’re the toughest team in the country. Mentally, physically, what they’ve done the last three games is incredible. My guys and I have the utmost respect and concern over having to play that team,” Smart said.
The bronze medal game between the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees and the Acadia Axemen will be on March 10 at 1:15 p.m. at Scotiabank Place.
The championship game between the Ravens and Thunderwolves is scheduled for tip-off at 3:30 p.m.
“We just have a shot at one,” Smart said. “These kids only get one; I mean they don’t get a lot of shots.
“As much as the school would want to make it about the school and the program, and people want to make it about the coach—it’s not about the school, it’s not about the coach. It’s about the individuals playing, and this is just one. It’s one for them, it’s one for the Lakehead kids. Everyone is fighting for one championship.”
