CARLETON AND MCMASTER FINISH REGULAR SEASON ON A HIGH
Fans in St. Catharines saw a potential preview of the West final Saturday as the division champion McMaster Marauders (17-5) had little trouble with the second-place Brock Badgers (14-8), handing the hosts a thorough 86-72 beating. The balanced McMaster attack had five players score in double digits, led by Ben Katz's 15 points, six rebounds and five assists. Veteran Adam Steiner added 14 points and last year's West Defensive Player of the Year Martin Ajayi had 13 points, six boards and a game-high five steals. Brock's second-year forward Jesse Tipping led all players with 21 points, while Kevin Stienstra moved into second place in all-time OUA scoring and rebounding with a big 19-point, 14-rebound effort. Stienstra finishes his regular season career behind former RMC Paladins star Kevin Dulude in both categories. Mac will enjoy a bye before taking on the winner of the Waterloo/Windsor quarter-final match-up. The Badgers hope to regroup as they prepare to face the winner of the Guelph/Laurier quarter-final.
Waterloo (13-9) snapped a three-game skid with an emotional 86-83 win over the Hawks Saturday. Fifth-year seniors Graham Jarman, Gerard Magennis and Chris Edwards powered the Warriors with 54 combined points, including a game-high 35 from Jarman, who hit all 14 of his free throws. Waterloo was 27-of-32 from the line as a team, making up for a tough day in the paint as the bigger Hawks dominated the inside play. The Warriors will meet a hot Lancers team in the quarters. Windsor (12-10) finished the sked winning six of seven games, including a gritty 71-69 victory over the Gryphs Saturday. Chatham, ON native Kevin Kloostra poured in a game-high 25 points, with nine rebounds for the Lancers, while third-year guard Ryan Steer added 18. Veteran John Scott Esposito led Guelph with 20 points and centre J.R. Bailey had 18 and a game-high 11 boards.
Toronto, the third seed in the East, wrapped up the regular season with a decisive 87-69 home win over the Ryerson Rams Friday. Third-year Blues forward Mohammed Safarzadeh led all players with 20 points, to go along with a team-high 12 rebounds, while Dwayne Grant added 18 points and six boards. Rookie Rams centre Joseph Imbrogno gave a sign of things to come as he dominated inside, scoring 16 points and racking up 21 rebounds, 14 on the defensive glass. Toronto's quarter-final opponent Queen's had a tough time with cross-town rival RMC as the Gaels squeaked by the Paladins 76-73 Saturday. Nathan Tucker carried the host Paladins with an incredible 37-point show, which included an 8-for-15 shooting night from three-point range. Tucker, a fourth-year guard from Kitchener, ON, played all 40 minutes in the game. Cameron Eby and Ryan Hairsine had 16 points each for the sixth-seeded Gaels.
Elsewhere around the OUA, the Lakehead Thunderwolves (8-14) finished strong by sweeping a pair of games from the Western Mustangs (3-19). Ryan Marrast scored 19 points for the Wolves in a 75-66 win over the Mustangs Saturday in Thunder Bay. Warren Gilchrist had 24 points and eight rebounds the previous night as Lakehead pulled out a 91-87 win overtime. Matthew Curtis racked up 29 points for Western, hitting four of his eight three-pointers. On Wednesday night, Brock beat Laurier 67-61, Queen's defeated RMC 75-50, McMaster took down Guelph 78-69 and York handled Laurentian 72-61.
(Photo: Carleton All-Canadian Osvaldo Jeanty shows his stroke from the perimeter. The Ravens secured their sixth straight East title with a 69-64 win over rival Ottawa.)