Top-seeded Ravens reach 13th straight national semifinal

(Photo: Greg Campbell)

TORONTO (CIS) – The No. 1-seeded Carleton University Ravens are headed back to the national semifinal for the 13th consecutive year after a dominating 90-50 win over the No. 8 Saskatchewan Huskies in the opening game at the 2015 ArcelorMittal Dofasco CIS Final 8 Men's Basketball Championship at Ryerson's Mattamy Athletic Centre, Thursday afternoon.

Ravens standout guard Phil Scrubb (Richmond, B.C.) poured in 31 points in 23 minutes of action and was named Carleton's player of the game. Scrubb, the only three-time player of the year in CIS men's basketball history (2012-2014), set the tone early, scoring 28 of his 31 points in the first half, and was efficient all game, shooting 64.7% including 6-for-8 from three-point territory.

Carleton's defence stymied Saskatchewan early, limiting the Huskies' offence to just 18 first half points while scoring 48 of their own.

"I think we did some good things defensively in the first half that really helped calm us down," said Ravens head coach Dave Smart following the game. "We were fortunate that the game plan in terms of what we wanted to do worked out... our help defence was good and we forced (Dadrian) Collins out of the game which made a big difference in their ability to score on a consistent basis."

Saskatchewan's leading scorer in the regular season, Collins (Williamsburg, Va.) found himself in early foul trouble and netted just three points in the contest, down from his season average of 15.2 points per game. Huskies forward Matthew Forbes (Regina Beach, Sask.) had a team-high 14 points in the loss.

Ben Baker (Saskatoon, Sask.) was named the Huskies' player of the game with 11 points, seven rebounds and six assists.

After three quarters of play the Ravens had extended their lead to 33 points at 72-39 before finishing the forty-point spread at 90-50.

Saskatchewan shot just 28.8% from the floor throughout the game and the Huskies were never able to play in transition against the country's top ranked defensive unit.

"They were simply the better team out there," said Saskatchewan coach Barry Rawlyk. "They've built such a good program. Their preparation is outstanding, and not just for this championship, year round, from day one of the season."

Carleton advances to the first semifinal on Saturday at 6 p.m. and will face the winner of Thursday's second quarter-final between No. 4 Victoria and No. 5 Dalhousie. Semifinal action will be available live on Sportsnet 360.

STAT LEADERS

CAR: 28-20-24-18: 90
SSK: 10-8-21-11: 50

Carleton
Points: Philip Scrubb (31), Thomas Scrubb (18), Connor Wood (11)
Rebounds: Thomas Scrubb (9), Guillaume Boucard (5), Mitchell Wood (5)
Assists: Gavin Resch (3)

Player of the game: Philip Scrubb

Saskatchewan
Points: Matthew Forbes (14), Ben Baker (11)
Rebounds: Matthew Forbes (7), Ben Baker (7)
Assists: Ben Baker (6)

Player of the game: Ben Baker

CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE & RESULTS

Thursday, March 12
11:00 Quarter-final 1: No. 1 Carleton 90, No. 8 Saskatchewan 50
13:00 Quarter-final 2: No. 5 Dalhousie vs. No. 4 Victoria (Rogers TV / www.CIS-SIC.tv) * 
18:00 Quarter-final 3: No. 7 Ryerson vs. No. 2 Windsor (Rogers TV / www.CIS-SIC.tv) * 
20:00 Quarter-final 4: No. 6 Bishop's vs. No. 3 Ottawa (Rogers TV / www.CIS-SIC.tv) * 

Friday, March 13
14:00 Consolation 1: Saskatchewan vs. Loser QF 2 (Rogers TV / www.CIS-SIC.tv) * 
16:00 Consolation 2: Loser QF 3 vs. Loser QF 4 (Rogers TV / www.CIS-SIC.tv) * 

Saturday, March 14
14:00 5th-place game (Rogers TV / www.CIS-SIC.tv) * 
18:00 Semifinal 1: Carleton vs. Winner QF 2 (Sportsnet 360 / www.CIS-SIC.tv) ** 
20:30 Semifinal 2: Winner QF 3 vs. Winner QF 4 (Sportsnet 360 / www.CIS-SIC.tv) ** 

Sunday, March 15
11:30 Bronze (Rogers TV / www.CIS-SIC.tv) *  
15:00 Final (Sportsnet 360 & ONE / www.CIS-SIC.tv) ** 

* Rogers TV, Rogers TV Sports +, Super Sports Pak.
** The webcast of the semifinals & final are on pay-per-view basis.