Aaron Doornekamp of Carleton was selected the Moser winner as the Ravens captured the trophy from the third consecutive season. Doornekamp averaged 15.6 points and 8.3 rebounds in 27 minutes of court time per game this season as the five-time defending CIS champion Ravens posted a 22-0 conference record for their third unblemished campaign in five years. The six-foot-seven commerce major, who was also successful on 73.6 percent of his free-throw attempts during the regular schedule, stepped it up a notch in the OUA playoffs as he averaged 18.7 points per contest while capturing game-MVP honours following both the OUA East final and the OUA Wilson Cup title match, an 81-65 victory over Western. He was also named tournament MVP at the 18th House-Laughton Classic back in October after the Ravens won their own tourney for the seventh straight year. A three-time national champion and the gold-medal final and tournament MVP at the 2007 CIS championship, Doornekamp earns a spot on the first all-Canadian team for the first time, after receiving a second-team nod in 2005-06 following his sophomore season. He is a member of the 18-men national team roster and represented Canada at the 2007 Pan-Am Games in Porto Rico. A nephew of Carleton coach Dave Smart, Doornekamp followed in the footsteps of his older brother, Ben, who played two seasons for the Ravens in 2001-02 and 2002-03. The newly crowned CIS MVP joined Carleton out of Ernestown Secondary School where he played for current teammate Stuart Turnbull’s father, Tom. “Aaron is one of the most competitive people I have ever coached and the time he has spent working on his game on his own time during the off season is really starting to show in his play this season,” Smart said. “Aaron is one of the toughest match-ups out there, because of his ability to step out and shoot it and put it on the floor, but also his ability to score in the post.”
The Aberdeen
was awarded to Toronto’s Mike Katz. He became the second University of Toronto coach
to receive the Aberdeen Trophy since it was first awarded in 1972-73. Ken
Olynyk was the recipient in 1994-95. In his fourth campaign at the helm, Katz
led the Varsity Blues to a 17-5 mark in the regular season, their best conference
record since going 10-2 in 1995-96. The Blues took second place behind 22-0
Carleton in the ultra-competitive OUA East, improving from back-to-back third-place
finishes the previous two seasons. Toronto, which went on to drop a
heartbreaking 63-60 decision to Ottawa in the OUA East semifinals, was third on
offence in the 16-team OUA averaging 77.8 points per game and fifth on defence
with 69.1 points allowed per contest. Prior to joining the Varsity Blues, Katz
led Humber College to a 503-175 overall record over 19 seasons, guiding the
Hawks to the Final Four every year, winning seven provincial championships and
five national titles. He is a four-time OCAA coach of the year and a three-time
CCAA coach of the year and was inducted into the Humber Varsity Hall of Fame in
2004. Katz, who played three years for the Blues and graduated in 1972 with a
B. Comm., was also the assistant coach of the Canadian national basketball
squad, and took part in the 2000 Olympic Games and the 2002 and 1993 world
championships. In 1997, he guided Canada’s team to a silver medal at the Summer
Universiade in Sicily.
The Mullins was awarded to Kale
Harrison of Wilfrid Laurier. Harrison, a six-foot-five, 175-pound forward
becomes the second Golden Hawk to claim the Mullins Trophy following Chris
Keith in 2001-02. The business student was Laurier’s go-to player as a
17-year-old in his rookie campaign as he led the team in minutes played (30.3
mpg), scoring (17.3 ppg), rebounding (6.7 rpg) and three-point shooting
(47.9%). He was named to the OUA West second all-star team after finishing 10th
in the OUA in scoring and 13th in rebounding. Harrison was a team MVP and
athlete of the year in high school with the Stratford Sonics. “Kale’s
accomplishments on the court have exceeded everyone’s expectations,” said
Laurier coach Peter Campbell. “He has quietly and consistently led the team in
scoring and rebounding throughout the season. In spite of the defensive
attention, Kale’s ability to remain calm allowed him to be a major contributor.”
The Defensive Player of the Year
was awarded to Brandon’s Yul Michel. The six-foot-one, fifth-year guard was one
of the main reasons Brandon ranked second in the Canada West in team defence
allowing only 71.8 points per game en route to compiling a conference-best 20-2
record and claiming the bronze medal at the conference Final Four. The physical
education student, who helped the Bobcats reached the national final a year ago
when he was named a championship all-star, finished third in the Canada West
with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.53 while averaging 1.8 steals and 3.9
rebounds per contest. The second-most utilized Bobcat with over 31 minutes of
playing time per game, Michel also chipped in on offence with 15.2 points and
5.1 assists per outing. “Yul is one of our most intense players,” said rookie
Brandon coach Mike Raimbault. “He had an outstanding senior season and varsity
career as a Bobcat and we will miss him dearly.”
Joining Doornekamp as 1st team
All-Canadians were: Jean-Philippe Morin (Laval); Alex Steele (Alberta); Leonel
Saintil (Acadia); and Andrew Spragud (Saskatchewan). …………………………………………………… Morin,
from Aylmer, Que., was the QSSF player of the year and a member of the second
CIS team a year ago, led the nation in scoring averaging 24.5 points per game,
while Saintil led the country in rebounding with 13.9 boards per contest. ……………………………………………………
Steele, from Edmonton, Alta., was the Canada West player of the year. ……………………………………………………
Saintil, from Ottawa, Ont., was Atlantic player of the year. ……………………………………………………
Spragud, from Saskatoon, Sask., was CIS rookie of the year in 2003-04, is
selected to the first team for the third time in four years. He was also a
member of the second group in 2005-06.
The 2nd-team All-Canadians were: Greg
Surmacz (Windsor); Erfan Nasajpour (Winnipeg); Damian Buckley (Concordia); Eric
Breland (Cape Breton); and Brad Rootes (Brock). Surmacz, from Peterborough, Ont.
…………………………………………………… Nasajpour, from Winnipeg, Man. …………………………………………………… Buckley,
from Montreal, Que. …………………………………………………… Breland, from Cooksville, Md. ……………………………………………………
Rootes, from Niagara Falls, Ont.
The all-rookie team featured Harrison; Islam Luis de Toledo (St. FX); Tyler Fidler (Calgary); Xavier Baribeau (Laval); and Ryan MacKinnon (Victoria). …………………………………………………… Harrison, from Stratford, Ont. …………………………………………………… de Toledo from Sao Paulo, Brazil. …………………………………………………… Fidler, from Calgary, Alta. …………………………………………………… Baribeau, from Quebec City, Que. …………………………………………………… MacKinnon, from Comox, B.C.