Final regular season standings:
North (8): Lakeland (20-0); NAIT (16-4); Keyano (14-6); Concordia (12-8); Grant MacEwan (9-11); Augustana (5-15); King’s (4-16); Grande Prairie (4-16)
South (6): Mount Royal (15-3); Red Deer (11-7); Medicine Hat (10-8); Lethbridge (6-12); SAIT (5-13); Briercrest (3-15)
Playoff non-qualifiers:
UAlberta-Augustana: David Shantz, Shayn Bruney, Simon Irving, Michael Swampy, Adam Lehners, David Chytracek, Taylor Foreman, Logan Gray, Lee Danderfer, Jamin Lockert, Landon Vaneck, Charles Bouchard
Briercrest: Stephen Ringdal, Kendell Boese, Justin Wolverton, James Wohlgeschaffen, Habib Habib, Caleb Klassen, William Cole, Erik Buddingh, Dillon Pinfold, Fred Fictorie, Brandon Friesen, Jesse Mortensen
Grande Prairie: Jamison Plett, Josh Nicol, Ben Stunden, Travis Hunt, Jordan Kardos, Devin Woodland, Nikolaos Maniatis, Andrew Burston, Tyler Przbylski, Eric Hansen, Dan Francis, Josh Letendre, Jay Francis, Dillion Kramps
King’s University College: Shawn Owen, Ben Battjes, Joel Holmes, Dillon Knoll, Keith Marshall, Mackenzie Andrews Stobart, Jarred Wenzel, Tyler Fournier, Keavin Simes, Phillip Wilson, Craig Batterham, Damian Yeboah, Ethan Wollmann, Spencer Grove, William Belliveau
Lethbridge: Taylor Jetten, Travis Butt, Dario Pasquotti, Bucky Johnson, Graham Brown, Bradee Parrett, Craig McMurray, Tysen Pushor, Brady Richard Adamson, Riel Houle, Khurram Sultan, Jordan Oler, Colin Bird, Nick Demas, Colton Murray, Sean McCormick, Derian Manville, Shane Red Crow
SAIT: Jared McLellan, Justin Makasiar, Joel Caufield, Katt Magak, Ajayveer Sihota, Daniel Kabeya, Paul Ohlinger, Dalton Hackett, Mohamed Mbailelem, Patrick Chea, Tervil Brown, Martin Martyniak, Dejuan Peart, Emile Edward, Brett Pekar, David Lodovica, coach Mike Stevens, assistant Dwight Stewart, assistant Dane Morris, assistant Craig Anderson, therapist Melissa Petryna
In the quarterfinals, the NAIT Ooks dispatched the Medicine Hat Rattlers 83-73; 76-69 (2g-0).
…………………………………………………… In game one, the Ooks prevailed 83-73 after leading 25-16, 46-37 and 62-52 at the quarters. Gamachu Ibrahim paced the Ooks with 28. Kyrie Coleman added 15, Jordan Reiter 14, Brock McMillan 11, Corey Saban 9, Deng Awak 7, Nick Capelli 7 and Dan Perepeluk 2 while Milos Janjic, Lynden Nummi and Kyle Saban were scoreless. David Kohler paced the Rattlers with 19 points and 13 boards. Clay Gibb added 19, Matthew Augustine 14, Mike Farion 10, Matt Warren 6, Jordan Taylor 3 and Marcus Mortlock 2, while Justin Lee, Anthony Merkel and Derek Tymchyna were scoreless. …………………………………………………… In game two, the Ooks prevailed 76-69 after leading 20-12 and 38-20 at the half. The score was knotted at 50 after three quarters. Gamachu Ibrahim paced the Ooks with 18. Kyrie Coleman added 16, along with 18 boards, Brock McMillan 13, Corey Saban 9, Jordan Reiter 7, Nick Capelli 6, Dan Perepeluk 4 and Kyle Saban 3, while Lynden Nummi, Braden Overwater and Deng Awak were scoreless. Clay Gibb paced the Rattlers with 16. Derek Tymchyna added 11, Matthew Augustine 10, David Kohler 9, Mike Farion 8, Matt Warren 8, Jordan Taylor 7 and Marcus Mortlock 2, while Justin Lee, Anthony Merkel and Keir Mohanraj were scoreless. The Rattlers also included Jamar Coke, Branden Daniels, Connor Hall, Anguac Murac and Tyrell Samuels.
The Mount Royal Cougars eliminated the Concordia Thunder 79-65; 88-73.
…………………………………………………… In game one, the Cougars prevailed 79-65 after leading 19-10, 40-28 and 61-48 at the quarters. Steve Trinidad paced the Cougars with 27. Nick Loewen added 22, Awet Abraha 10, Kyle Wilson 7, Kyle Newman 4, James Lefebrve 4, Keville Ollivierre 4 and Josh White 1, while Trent Offreins, Manok Akwl, Ammon Crowfoot and Shayne Stumpf were scoreless. Ethan Sir paced the Thunder with 23. Milos Prijovic added 18, Jon Celeste 7, Steffan Favis 5, Jacob Wojcicki 5, Dallas Wright 4 and Robert Haack 3. …………………………………………………… In game two, the Cougars completed the sweep by dusting Concordia 88-73. The Thunder led 17-13 after one quarter and 36-31 at the half. The Cougars led 59-42 after three quarters. Steve Trinidad paced the Cougars with 24. Nick Loewen added 19, Awet Abraha 10, Josh White 9, Kyle Newman 8, Kyle Wilson 7, Ammon Crowfoot 6, James Lefebvre 2, Keville Ollivierre 2 and Shayne Stumpf 1, while Trent Offreins was scoreless. Ethan Sir paced the Thunder with 36. Steffan Favis added 16, Milos Prijovic 11, Dallas Wright 6, Robert Haack 2 and Jon Celeste 2, while Jacob Wojcicki was scoreless. The Thunder (coached by Paul Sir) also included Mitch Buffie, Michell Jones, Serge Kasinyabo, Aaron Kruse, Richard Kyungu, Filip Vukasin and Nathaniel Wojcicki.
The Red Deer Kings defeated the Keyano Huskies 73-70; 80-71 (2g-0). …………………………………………………… In game one, the Kings prevailed 73-70 after leading 16-12, 36-29 and 49-45 at the quarters. Red Deer took a 67-64 lead on a trey by Tyler Flaherty as the shot clock expired with 1:24 to play. Red Deer’s Lloyd Strickland hit two free throws with 9.2 seconds to play and two more with 1.9 seoncs to play as the Kings pulled out the win. Kings coach Clayton Pottinger told the Red Deer Advocate that “we matched their intensity.” Rob Pierce paced the Kings with 16. Eric Bakker added 13, along with 11 boards, Sarain Soonais 13, Lloyd Strickland 10, Tyler Flaherty 8, Joel Caroll 5, Corrie Thomas 4, Karl Hoehne 2 and Jamal Pryce 2, while Jacob Cusumano was scoreless. Zach Waldher paced Keyano with 31. Louis Barham added 11, Jesse Denscombe 8, Lance Weselowski 7, Demaine Nelson 6, Calvin Christiensen 4, Cam Smith 2 and Reece Gavin 1, while Duane Coutinho was scoreless. …………………………………………………… In game two, Red Deer completed the series sweep with an 80-71 win after leading 24-18, 39-36 and 59-49 at the quarters. Lloyd Strickland paced the Kings with 16. Eric Bakker added 14, along with 12 boards, Joel Caroll 12, Rob Pierce 10, along with 10 boards, Sarain Soonias 10, Jamal Pryce 7, Tyler Flaherty 6 and Jacob Cusumano 5, while Karl Hoehne was scoreless. Kings coach Clayton Pottinger told the Red Deer Advocate that his troops forced Huskie Zach Waldner to pass the ball in the second half instead of shooting. “That was better for us.” Bakker said “the guys did a great job of getting the ball out of his (Waldner’s) hands and forcing someone else to make the play. … Our running game is one of our strengths and we try to push the ball as much as we can, get a turnover and get up-court. They only went seven-deep as they did yesterday and they had some tired legs.” Zach Waldner paced Keyano with 27. Louis Barham added 14, along with 12 boards, Cam Smith 10, Lance Weselowski 9, Jesse Denscombe 7, Demaine Nelson 2 and Calvin Christiensen 2. The Huskies (coached by Mike Connolly, assisted by Jonathan Lambert and Markus Burris) also included Jesse Brave Rock, Kevin Dia, Saleem Farhat, Reece Gavin, Santo Harun, Justin King, Nathan Obrigetwitsch and David Stewart.
In the last quarterfinal, the Grant MacEwan Griffins defeated the Lakeland Rustlers 78-72; 82-78(2g-0).
…………………………………………………… In game one, the Griffins prevailed 78-72 after leading 20-12, 39-33 and 58-53 at the quarters. Tommy Watson paced the Griffins with 22. Connor Fairbanks added 16, Ryan May 12, Brett Kallio 6, Janis Assers 6, Adam Boyd 5, Anwar Faza 5, Mitch Lonsberry 4 and Jordan Elgert 2. Kevon Parchment paced the Rustlers with 18 points and 10 boards. Njiguna Waiganjo scored 17, Kadeem Willis 16, Adrian Curtis 7, Aaron McGowan 6, Aloysius Callaghan 3, Nate Brown 2, Wesley Jones 2 and Landry Ndayitwayeko 1, while Colin LaPlante was scoreless. …………………………………………………… In game two, the Griffins completed the sweep with an 82-72 win. The Rustlers led 13-12, 40-32 and 54-51 at the quarters. Brett Kallio paced the Griffins with 25. Anwar Faza added 15, Janis Assers 13, Tommy Watson 11, Connor Fairbanks 11, Ryan May 4 and Mitch Lonsberry 3, while Adam Boyd and Jordan Elgert were scoreless. Njuguna Waiganjo paced the Rustlers with 22. Kevon Parchment added 18, Kadeem Willis 16, along with 10 boards, Landry Ndayitwayeko 8, Trent Bloch Hansen 4, Aaron McGowan 4, Nate Brown 2, Adrian Curtis 2 and Wesley Jones 2, while Aloysius Callaghan was scoreless. The Rustlers also included Daniel Edwards, Richard Orcutte, Awasa Smart, Garrin Bulani and Colin LaPlante.
In the final four semis, the Mount Royal Cougars dusted the NAIT Ooks 88-74 after leading 30-12, 47-23 and 68-32 at the quarters. “We just didn’t shoot the ball well all night,” said Ooks coach Mike Hanson. “When you shoot like that, especially from three-point range you are not going to win any games. … The key coming into the game was that we couldn’t let them get off to a good start in their own gym and we did. Defence has carried us all year long and when they (Cougars) came out and hit their shots a few of our kids got nervous and could not settle down. It was a real disappointment in every facet of the game tonight … We were just outplayed.” Steve Trinidad paced the Cougars with 31 on 9-18 from the floor, 4-9 from the arc, 9-12 from the line, 5 boards, 4 assists and 3 blocks. Nick Loewen added 17 on 6-11 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 10 boards and 2 steals. Keville Ollivierre added 12 on 6-7 from the floor and 20 boards. Trent Offreins notched 10 on 3-10 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 3 boards. Awet Abraha added 9 on 1-5 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 6-10 from the line and 3 boards. Josh White added 5, along with 10 boards, Kyle Newman 2 and Kyle Wilson 2, while Mangk Akwi, Ammon Crowfoot, James Lefebrve and Shayne Stumpf were scoreless. The Cougars hit 28-71 (.394) from the floor, 11-29 (.379) from the arc and 21-34 (.618) from the line, while garnering 59 boards, including 19 on the offensive glass, 20 assists, 21 turnovers, 5 blocks, 11 steals and 24 fouls. Kyrie Coleman paced the Ooks with 20 on 7-15 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 5-7 from the line, 11 boards and 2 steals. Brock McMillan added 17 on 8-16 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 1-1 from the line and 7 boards. Corey Saban notched 13 on 3-15 from the floor, 1-6 from the arc, 6-8 from the line and 5 boards. Deng Awak added 12 on 4-9 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 4-4 from the line and 4 boards. Jordan Reiter notched 6 on 2-10 from the floor, 0-5 from the arc, 2-4 from the line and 4 boards. Nick Capelli added 2, Gamachu Ibraham 2 and Dan Perepeluk 2, while Lynden Nummi and Kyle Saban were scoreless. The Ooks hit 25-80 (.313) from the floor, 2-24 (.083) from the arc and 22-30 (.733) from the line, while garnering 47 boards, including 19 on the offensive glass, 4 assists, 17 turnovers, 2 blocks, 5 steals and 25 fouls.
In the other semi, the Red Deer Kings clocked the Grant MacEwan Griffins 93-77 after leading 18-16, 40-29 and 63-54 at the quarters. Lloyd Strickland paced the Kings with 25 on 8-19 from the floor, 5-14 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 4 boards and 6 assists. Rob Pierce added 23 on 7-13 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 8-10 from the line and 8 boards. Eric Bakker notched 15 on 5-8 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 3-4 from the line and 7 boards. Sarain Soonias added 12 on 5-9 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 5 boards. Joel Caroll scored 11 on 4-5 from the floor, 3-7 from the line and 6 boards. Tyler Flaherty added 6 and Pedro Porto Alegre 1, while Jacob Cusumano, Karl Hoehne, Taylor Kolonic, Corrie Thomas and Jamal Pryce were scoreless. The Kings hit 32-67 (.478) from the floor, 8-25 (.320) from the arc and 21-29 (.724) from the line, while garnering 49 boards, including 19 on the offensive glass, 10 assists, 17 turnovers, 4 steals and 28 fouls. Kings coach Clayton Pottinger told the Red Deer Advocate that “Lloyd (Strickland) kept us in the game early when some of the other guys we usually count on started a bit late. But that was a testament to our teamwork. When some guys aren’t going, some one else steps up.” Anwar Faza paced the Griffins with 25 on 10-18 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 4-4 from the line and 7 boards. Mitch Lonsberry added 13 on 4-5 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 4-4 from the line and 2 boards. Brett Kallio scored 10 on 1-10 from the floor, 1-9 from the arc and 7-8 from the line. Tommy Watson added 9 on 4-17 from the floor, 1-8 from the arc and 4 boards. Janis Assers added 7, along with 7 boards, Connor Fairbanks 6, Brett Whervin 4 and Adam Boyd 3, while Conner Bradley, Jordan Elgert and Ryan May were scoreless. The Griffins hit 25-70 (.357) from the floor, 4-28 (.143) from the arc and 23-28 (.821) from the line, while garnering 36 boards, including 16 on the offensive glass, 3 assists, 14 turnovers, 3 blocks, 7 steals and 23 fouls.
In the bronze medal match, the NAIT Ooks smacked the Grant MacEwan Griffins 97-67. The Griffins led 15-11 after one quarter. The Ooks led 39-34 at the half and 58-50 after three quarters. They led 62-57 with 7:37 to play and exploded with a 35-9 run to close out the contest. “The whole time we were talking about tempo and our defence churned up some turnovers and we got to the tempo where we wanted to be,” said Ooks’ coach Mike Hansen. “MacEwan got caught up in a bad rotation and they tried to run with us. It was the best quarter for us all year and a good way to end the season. Finally, after 90 practices and 30 games, they did what we asked them to do and went out and just played basketball and played hard not worrying about the small things.” Griffins coach Pete Guarasci called the season educational. “The transition from player to coach has been a learning experience. There is a part of me that has to check out emotionally as I used my emotions as a player. As coach now, I have to start to use my brain more.” Gamachu Ibrahim paced the Ooks with 23 on 8-15 from the floor, 2-7 from the arc, 5-7 from the line and 6 boards. Kyrie Coleman added 15 on 7-13 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 1-1 from the line, 13 boards, 3 blocks and 2 steals. Jordan Reiter scored 13 on 4-9 from the floor, 4-6 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 6 boards and 3 assists. Corey Saban added 11 on 3-10 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 10 boards and 3 assists. Lynden Nummi added 11 on 4-8 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 5 boards and 4 steals. Deng Awak notched 9 on 4-9 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc and 2 boards. Brock McMillan scored 7, Nick Capelli 3, Kyle Saban 3 and Dan Perepeluk 2, while Braden Overwater and Brandley Payne were scoreless. The Ooks hit 35-79 (.443) from the floor, 11-28 (.393) from the arc and 16-24 (.667) from the line, while garnering 56 boards, including 17 on the offensive glass, 16 assists, 17 turnovers, 3 blocks, 10 steals and 21 fouls. Connor Fairbanks paced the Griffins with 16 on 7-11 from the floor, 4-9 from the line and 6 boards. Anwar Faza added 13 on 5-17 from the floor, 2-8 from the arc, 1-5 from the line, 6 boards and 3 assists. Tommy Watson added 8, along with 6 boards, Janis Assers 6, along with 7 boards, Ryan May 6, Mitch Lonsberry 5, Jordan Elgert 4, Brett Whervin 2, Conner Bradley 2, Brett Kallio 2 and Matthew Kaup 1, while Adam Boyd and Nick Hobson were scoreless. The Griffins hit 26-75 (.347) from the floor, 5-28 (.179) from the arc and 10-24 (.417) from the line, while garnering 49 boards, including 17 on the offensive glass, 7 assists, 20 turnovers, 3 blocks, 13 steals and 20 fouls. The Griffins also included Sander Lekas, Anwar Faza and Shaquille Bedminister.
In the final, the Mount Royal Cougars smacked the Red Deer Kings 101-77 to capture their 12th ACAC crown in their final season of CCAA competition. The CIS-bound Cougars led 28-17, 46-32 and 78-46 at the quarters. “The win feels great…it is an awesome accomplishment to do what we have done in our final year,” said Cougars coach Marc Dobell. “We shot the ball better than normal but we played to our strength and we did well.” Steve Trinidad paced the Cougars with 33 on 13-17 from the floor, 5-7 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 2 steals. Trent Offreins added 14 on 5-8 from the floor, 3-5 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 3 boards. Nick Loewen notched 11 on 5-10 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 0-2 from the line, 6 boards and 5 assists. Kyle Newman added 11 on 4-10 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, and 1-2 from the line. Mangk Akwi added 10 on 4-6 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 2 boards and 3 assists. Awet Abraha notched 6 on 3-9 from the floor and 3 boards. Keville Ollivierre added 5 on 2-4 from the floor, 1-4 from the line and 13 boards. Ammon Crowfoot added 4, James Lefebvre 4 and Shayne Stumpf 3, while Josh White and Kyle Wilson were scoreless. The Cougars hit 41-80 (.513) from the floor, 11-28 (.393) from the arc and 8-20 (.400) from the line, while garnering 48 boards, including 19 on the offensive glass, 23 assists, 15 turnovers, 3 blocks, 12 steals and 13 fouls. Jamal Pryce paced the Kings with 21 on 8-17 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc, 3-6 from the line and 2 boards. Rob Pierce added 14 on 6-13 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 7 boards. Eric Bakker notched 13 on 5-10 from the floor, 3-4 from the arc and 4 boards. Lloyd Strickland scored 8 on 3-11 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc, 2 boards and 2 assists. Tyler Flaherty added 7 on 3-3 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc and 3 assists. Karl Hoehne added 4, Sarain Soonias 4, Jacob Cusumano 3 and Corrie Thomas 2, while Pedro Porto Alegre and Joel Caroll were scoreless. The Kings hit 30-67 (.448) from the floor, 10-23 (.435) from the arc and 7-11 (.636) from the line, while garnering 36 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 9 assists, 22 turnovers, 4 steals and 22 fouls. Kings coach Clayton Pottinger told the Red Deer Advocate that “we didn’t execute our plays well because they defended tougher than any team we’ve faced in the last little while. That definitely threw us off. Plus we were scrambling and on our heels defensively. Our transition defence was really poor. We could hardly turn around and get out defence set before the ball was down our throats.” Dobell said “we had a good defensive plan coming in and executed it to a T. We’re a three-point shooting team and this weekend, we were shooting the ball really well.”
The bronze medalist NAIT Ooks: Gamachu Ibrahim; Kyrie Coleman; Jordan Reiter; Corey Saban; Lynden Nummi; Deng Awak; Brock McMillan; Nick Capelli; Kyle Saban; Dan Perepeluk; Braden Overwater; Brandley Payne; Clayton Crelin; Jon Garisabo; Milos Janjic; Ronald Perepeluk; Brayden Torrensen; coach Mike Hansen
The silver medalist Red Deer Kings: Jamal Pryce; Rob Pierce; Eric Bakker; Lloyd Strickland; Tyler Flaherty; Karl Hoehne; Sarain Soonias; Jacob Cusumano; Corrie Thomas; Pedro Porto Alegre; Joel Caroll; Kek Beil; Myles Hansen; Joe Jennings; Taylor Kolonic; Larry McEwen; Troy McPherson; Braden O’Toole, Eduardo Sanchez-Caba; Richard Wells; coach Clayton Pottinger; assistant Ken Smith; assistant Dawn Smyth; athletic director Keith Hansen
The silver medalist Mount Royal Cougars: Nick Loewen; Trent Offreins; Steve Trinidad; Awet Abraha; Keville Ollivierre; Josh White; Ammon Crowfoot; Kyle Newman; Kyle Wilson; Mangk Akwl; James Lefebvre; Shayne Stumpf; Chase Rickaby; coach Mark Dobell; assistant Tyler McVicar; assistant Craig Jantzen; assistant Cam Dodd; therapist Brennan Mahon; athletic director Karla Karch