Courtesy of host organizing committee (Gianluca Nesci)
OTTAWA (CIS) – No team comes into the CIS men’s Final Eight tournament with hopes of finishing in fifth place – but someone has to. On Sunday morning at Scotiabank Place, the McGill University Redmen and the Victoria Vikes found themselves embroiled in a contest they had no intention of playing in when they arrived in the nation’s capital.
Championship website: http://english.cis-sic.ca/championships/mbkb/index
Had you asked either set of players before the tournament began, they almost certainly would have scoffed at the suggestion of this being a meaningful game.
But once the contest tipped-off, it was anything but meaningless.
Led by 19 points from Nathan Joyal, the Redmen overcame a sluggish start to come away with an 80-68 win, claiming the title as the fifth-best team in Canada this year.
“I’m extremely happy, it’s easy for us to come into these two [consolation] games and feel like they are meaningless, but they’re not and our kids showed that,” Redmen head coach Dave DeAveiro said.
While it may not be the distinction they were hoping for, DeAveiro added that he was happy with his team’s performance over the course of the weekend.
He is hoping this experience will help serve the program well heading into future seasons.
“The first time Carleton made it to nationals they won the consolation championship, so this is part of the building process,” said DeAveiro, who led the Redmen to their first CIS tournament appearance since 1979. “Rome wasn’t built in a day, so we’re laying the foundation right now trying to get to the promised land.”
Aside from Joyal, McGill once again relied on a balanced attack, with four other players hitting double-figures – guard Adrian Hynes-Guery led that group with 16 points.
After only putting up 13 points in the opening quarter – and getting a stern lecture from DeAveiro during a timeout – the Redmen exploded for 28 points in the second frame, and went into the break all square at 41.
“Victoria is a really good team, they run their offence really well and they execute and I don’t think our kids were ready for that, so we had to call a quick timeout and get adjusted,” DeAveiro said.
The RSEQ champions continued that momentum coming out of the locker room, outscoring the Vikes 39-27 in the second half to pick up the victory – after the final buzzer, the Redmen saluted their fans who made the short trip to Ottawa to show their support.
Making only their fourth appearance at the national tournament, the Redmen did a great job representing the Quebec conference, something DeAveiro stressed as being vital all weekend long.
As for the Canada West finalist Vikes, Chris McLaughlin, scored 12 points in the opening half but was held to just four after the break thanks to the improved interior defence of the Redmen.
McLaughlin still managed to finish the game as top-scorer for his eighth-seeded club.
He and his team will return to the west coast still stuck on eight W.P. McGee trophies, having not claimed the national crown since 1997.
STAT LEADERS
McG: 13-28-18-21: 80
VIC: 20-21-15-12: 68
McGill
Points: Nathan Joyal (19), Adrian Hynes-Guery (16), Simon
Bibeau (11)
Rebounds: Winn Clark (8)
Assists: Winn Clark (6), Adrian Hynes-Guery (5)
Player of the game: Nathan Joyal
Victoria
Points: Chris McLaughlin (16), Terrell Evans (10), Kyle
Peterson (10)
Rebounds: Michael Acheampong (7)
Assists: Michael Acheampong (5)
Player of the game: Chris McLaughlin
SCHEDULE & RESULTS (all times EASTERN TIME)
Friday, March 8
12:00 Quarter-final #1: Lakehead 74, Cape Breton 61
14:15 Quarter-final #2: Ottawa 82, McGill 70
18:00 Quarter-final #3: Acadia 89, UBC 80
20:00 Quarter-final #4: Carleton 83, Victoria 46
Saturday, March 9
12:00 Consolation #1: McGill 86, Cape Breton 84 (OT)
14:15 Consolation #2: Victoria 71, UBC 65
17:30 Semifinal #1: Lakehead 66, Ottawa 62
20:15 Semifinal #2: Carleton 84, Acadia 69
Sunday, March 10
11:00 5th place: McGill 80, Victoria 68
13:15 Bronze medal game: Ottawa vs. Acadia (www.CIS-SIC.tv)
15:30 Championship final: Lakehead vs. Carleton (THE SCORE / www.CIS-SIC.tv)
-CIS-