1968-69 Waterloo – uSports men

	Loyola	72
	Alberta	62	Loyola	63
			Wilfrid Laurier	71	Wilfrid Laurier	63
			Windsor	79	Windsor	76	—–WINDSOR
			Acadia	76

Windsor defeated defending champion Wilfrid Laurier to capture their 5th crown in seven years. But unlike earlier squads, the Lancers were a predominately Canadian-born squad, featuring only three Americans, Bunce and Connelly from Rochester and Wydrzynski from Detroit.

       In the quarterfinals, held In Waterloo, Loyola, the Ottawa-St.Lawrence champs, defeated the Western champs, Alberta 72-62 as John McAuliffe scored 26, Peter Phipps 19, Profenno 9, Lewis 9, Ivy 6 and Jack Contos 3, while Burke, Hoffman, Walsh and Zaganczyk were scorelees. Dick DeKlerk scored 20 (also reported as 23) to lead Alberta. Bob Morris added 11, Walker 8, Nowak 7, Skujins 4, Al Melnychuk 4, Champion 4 and Swan 3, while Turner and Rakoz were scoreless. The Bears rallied to within 35-33 at the half after trailing by double digits early. Loyola broke up a close game in the fourth quarter and finished 25-60 from the floor and 22-30 from the line. Alberta hit 17-27 from the line. Warriors guard Jim Ivy told the Montreal Gazette that “we’re playing together now. And that’s the difference with this team.” Loyola led 60-53 and went into a staff, forcing Alberta to foul. Peter Phipps said “the turning point came when we threw the freeze on them. It really worked and we came through. That was the only team in the tournament that’s bigger than use and we beat them.” Loyola coach Doug Daigneault told Canadian Press that “we have good foul shooters. They’re always good on the line, especially Phipps.”

       In the semis, Windsor defeated Acadia by three after taking a slim 22-21 lead at the quarter and a 39-35 lead at the half. Windsor was ahead by 15, 59-45 with 12 minutes to go when Brian Heaney rallied Acadia to within 74-72 with 1:30 to play. Sante Salvador missed a free throw with 1:28 to play but Chris Wydrzynski hit a free throw and Mike Crowe two free throws to give the Lancers a 77-72 lead. Heaney missed the front end of a one-and-one with 28 seconds to go but Rick Eaton got the rebound and laid it in. Windsor responded with a long pass to Andy Auch under the Acadia basket and he hit a layup. Heaney scored at the buzzer to narrow the final margin. Windsor coach Eddie Chittaro noted that Heaney “has got to be the best player we’ve faced on a Canadian team this winter. …He does everything well.” Chittaro noted that hit team stopped playing aggressively and tried to sit on its lead, thereby allowing Acadia back into the contest. Axemen coach Gib Chapman noted that “we didn’t play too well” and shot poorly from the line. “They took the game away from us early in the second half. The scoring by Windsor starters was paced by Wydrzynski’s 17 points, Auch’s 12, Crowe’s 12, Salvador 10, Jerry Bunce 10. From the bench, they go 8 from Tino Lenti, 6 from Jack Orange, 2 from Ed Lanktree, 2 from Tony Grant and 1 from William Tonelli. Starting guard Brian Heaney paced Acadia with 37, including 18-28 from the floor, forward Ritchie Eaton 15, forward Condon 13 and guard Steve Pound 9. Starting centre Zolonin was held scoreless and Acadia received only two points from its bench by Curley, while Will, Lewis, Zanolin and Coolidge were scoreless. Windsor shot 35-75 from the floor and 9-16 (also reported as 9-15) from the line, while Acadia shot 34-67 from the floor and 8-19 (also reported as 8-18 from the line.

       In the other semi, Wilfrid Laurier defeated Loyola 71-63 after leading 18-13 at the quarter, 36-29 at the half and 52-42 at the three-quarter mark. But with a large lead, the Hawks went into a stall and almost lost the contest. Sandy Nixon and Wally Escott fouled out for the Hawks in the first seven minutes of the second half. Loyola lost Tom Profenno, Peter Phipps and Earl Lewis to fouls yet still rallied to tie the score at 59 with 2:40 to go. Hawks Doug Bain and Chris Coulthard countered with field goals. Jim Ivy replied with a bucket for Loyola but Jerry Walsh missed a field goal which would have tied it. Doug Bain hit four free throws and Bob Bain two free throws for the Hawks to seal the victory. The Hawks were paced by Chris Coulthard 21, centre Doug Bain 15, guard Bob Bain 14, Wally Escott 2 and Mike Reed 4, while Moffat, Shaver, Kilpatrick and Rodobenko were scoreless. Laurier coach Howard Lockhart, a native of San Antonio, Texas, told the Kitchener-Waterloo Record that “we proved beyond a doubt that Canadian boys can play ball with Americans. This is the second year in a row that the Hawks have beaten American Canadian-based teams.”  Earl Lewis led Loyola with 18, John McAuliffe 18, centre John Contos 7, Peter Phipps 6, Tom Profenno 2 and Jim Ivy 11. Warriors coach Doug Daigneault told the Montreal Gazette that “we didn’t deserve to win.” The Golden Hawks were whistled for a phenomenal 50 fouls, primarily by Bert Kerrigan. The Golden Hawks hit 21-33 from the line, while Loyola hit 21-28 from the line.

       In the bronze medal qualifier, Alberta defeated Acadia 73-56. The Golden Bears broke to a 14-5 lead and extended the margin to 37-27 at the half. Warren Champion paced the Golden Bears with 27. Dave Swann added 10, Larry Nowak 10, Bobby Morris 10, Dave Swann 10, Skujins 8, Melnychuk 5, DeKlerk 2 and Rakoz 1, while Walker and DeLeeuw were scoreless. Alberta hit 11-19 from the line, while Acadia hit 8-16 from the line. Brian Heaney led the Axemen with 16. Rich Eaton added 15, Steve Pound 11, Condon 7, Zanolin 6 and Lewis 1, while Forsythe, Curley, Coolidge and Mill were scoreless.

       In the bronze medal match, Loyola defeated Alberta 76-62 as Peter Phipps scored 27, John McAuliffe 13, Earl Lewis 15, Profenno 6, Contos 4 and Ivy 1, while Kesler, Mullins, McAllister and Zaganczyk were scoreless. The Warriors led 44-31 at the half. Dick DeKlerk paced Alberta with 27. Warren Champion added 8, Skujins 7, Nowak 6, Morris 5, Swann 4, Rakoz 4 and Melnychuk 1, while Turner and Walker were scoreless. Alberta shot 26-87 (.300) from the floor, while Loyola hit 27-63 (.420).

       In the final, Windsor dispatched Wilfrid Laurier 76-63. The Lancers led 13-12 after one quarter and stretched their lead to 21-14 before seeing it dwindle to 32-30 at the half. Coach Eddie Chittaro, a rookie in his first year as a “replacement’ at the Lancers helm, abandoned man-to-man defence in favor of a 2-1-2 zone to open the second half, which opened up the game for his squad. They hit 9-16 from the floor, while the Hawks were shooting 2-16 as they proved incapable of handling the zone, and charged ahead 53-39 at the three-quarter mark. Wilfrid Laurier cut the lead to 58-51 with six and half minutes to go but Chris Wydrzynski and Mike Crowe field goals restored the margin at 64-51. When Sandy Nixon, with 5:30 to go, and Wally Escott fouled out for the Hawks, it was game over. Windsor had started the season beating Laurier, but who’d lost to the Hawks in mid-season had come full circle with the victory. Chittaro told the Windsor Star “it was a game which proved what a lot of hard work and plenty of desire can accomplish.” After the season, Chittaro was offered a position as assistant to newly appointed Windsor coach Paul Thomas but balked, saying “there are many things I must take into consideration.” Chittaro soon became the first national champion coach to lose his job after the season. Chris Wydrzynski paced Windsor with 20 points. Jerry Bunce added 17, Andy Auch 10, Mike Crowe 9, Ed Lanktree 8, Tino Lenti 5, Jack Orange 4, Tony Grant 2, Sante Salvador 1 and William Tonelli 0. Windsor shot 32-73 from the floor and 12-24 from the line, while committing 20 fouls. Sandy Nixon led Laurier with 22 points. Bob Bain added 15, Chris Coulthard 9, Wally Escott 9, Doug Bain 4 and Shaver 4, while Kilpatrick, Radobvenko and Moffatt were scoreless. Laurier shot 23-75 from the floor and 17-23 from the line while committing 19 fouls. Laurier coach Howard Lockhart said “they’re a top-notch ball club. … I’m pleased that we stayed with them for a half but then zone press, coupled with the loss of Nixon through foul disqualification, turned the game around in their favour.” Lockhart told the Kitchener-Waterloo Record that “when you look out there with 22 seconds left in the game and see those guys still trying to figure out how they’re going to win – what more can you ask?” Windsor’s superior depth played a major role in the outcome, as did foul trouble for the Golden Hawks, who saw starters Nixon and Wally Escott foul out. The Lancers played without injured starter Guy Delaire. Windsor outrebounded Laurier 49-41.

       The all-tourney team featured: MVP Chris Wydrzynski (Windsor); Sante Salvador (Windsor); Brian Heaney (Acadia); Sandy Nixon (Wilfrid Laurier) and John McAuliffe (Loyola)

       The bronze medalist Loyola Warriors: John McAuliffe; Peter Phipps; Tom Profenno; Earl Lewis; Jim Ivy; John Contos; Burke; Kessler; Zaganczyk; Hoffman; McAllister; Jerry Walsh; Pete Mullins; coach Doug Daigneault

       The silver medalist Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks: Chris Coulthard; Mike Moffatt; Clyde Ingram; Bob Bain; Sandy Nixon; Wally Escott; Mike Reed; Rod Radebenko; Mike Kilpatrick; Doug Bain; Steve Shaver; Jim Axford; Dave Baird; Darryl Blackie; Jim Fletcher; Carl Goring; Doug Lundy; Pete Misikowetz; coach Howard Lockhart; manager John Daugavietis; assistant manager Jim Rife

       The champion Windsor Lancers: Chris Wydryzynski; Andy Auch; Sante Salvador; Guy Delaire; Ed Lanktree; Jerry Bunce; William Tonelli; Mike Crowe; Jack Orange; Tony Grant; Tino Lenti; Joe Connelly; Jack Bolzan; Gary Schoen; John Elcombe; coach Eddi Chittaro; assistant Nick Grabowski; statistician Abe Shapiro; manager Gerry Flynn