Brébeuf crowned CCAA champions
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“And this one will last a lifetime!” For the first time ever, the Dynamiques de Brébeuf are national champions Dynamiques de Brébeuf 62, VIU Mariners 61 To say that this game had stakes would be a massive understatement. The Dynamiques de Brébeuf were playing for their first national title in program history. The VIU Mariners wanted to end the Matt Kuzminski era with a title on their home court. In a clash of the two hottest teams in the country, only one could plant their flag on the slopes of Mount Benson. The first quarter couldn’t have started any better for the Dynamiques. They hit shot after shot and silenced a hostile home crowd with a 16-2 run to open the game. After an early timeout, the Mariners got back into the contest, ending the quarter on a 12-3 run. They carried that momentum into the second quarter, nearly doubling up the Dynamiques in points. On the back of a nine-point explosion from Winston Cole, the Mariners took a 39-32 lead into halftime as the home crowd roared. In the third, the Dynamiques recaptured their shooting form from the first quarter. The comeback began with a Julius Ferguson floater, but it was quickly silenced by a pair of shots from Keyonte Beals to give VIU an 11-point lead, their highest of the night. A crucial element of VIU’s strategy was a wall of rowdy fans in the northernmost bleachers. Brébeuf’s free throw shooters had to adjust to their chants to find their rhythm, and it showed with them converting all of their free throws in the fourth quarter. The fourth quarter saw the Dynamiques chip away at VIU’s once mighty lead, getting it down to a basket on a corner three from Aven Allana, then to a single point on a layup from Malek Alphonse. The Mariners fought valiantly to maintain their lead, getting the lead back up to six on an and-one layup from Keyonte Beals, but the Dynamiques would not be denied. They continued to rally, coming back within one and taking the lead on a Malek Alphonse corner three and subsequent tip-in. With mere seconds left in their season, Matt Kuzminski called a timeout. The plan was obvious: VIU was looking for a layup immediately off of an inbound. The Dynamiques were ready for it and held strong, but time was called with 0.3 seconds left. One last chance for the Mariners. Off of the inbound pass, the ball came up inches short. The Dynamiques de Brebeuf, for the first time in program history, stand atop the country. Aven Allana had an incredible game and scored a game-high 24 points on 8-14 shooting. He was named Brebeuf’s 4Imprint Player of the Game and the tournament’s Most Valuable Player. Julius Ferguson and Malek Alphonse were named First Team All-Stars, scoring 13 and 11 points respectively. VIU’s leading scorer was Keyonte Beals with 18 points. He also added eight rebounds, three assists, and two steals, and was named a First Team All-Star alongside Winston Cole and Markus Modrovic, who scored 15 and 13 points respectively. Kai Leighton pulled down 13 rebounds in his final collegiate game while adding seven points. |
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A Moment Frozen in Time Chargers win national bronze medal Camosun Chargers 48, Mohawk Mountaineers 44 Going into this matchup, neither team had won a national bronze medal. Camosun entered in pursuit of their first national medal in program history, while Mohawk fought for their first national medal since winning it all in 2012. As expected between two of the top defensive teams in the tournament, the first quarter was a low scoring affair. The Chargers, galvanized by a raucous crowd, took a 10-8 lead into the second quarter, staving off a tie thanks to a late jumper from Cormick Brown. The second was similarly tense, as the Mountaineers quickly tied it, then took the lead on a pair of shots from Marko Dosen. The Chargers quickly responded with a corner three from Owen Jones and pirouette layup from Aidan Walsh and went into halftime up 17-16. The Mountaineers rallied and outscored the Chargers 16-12 in the third quarter. A vicious dunk from Jailen Jackson followed immediately by a layup from Iverson Chong looked to provide Mohawk a large enough cushion, but Owen Jones hit a three at the buzzer to cut the deficit to three with ten minutes to play. Chong hit a three in retaliation to get it back up to six, but the Mountaineers would see their lead disintegrate into ash. Their stout defense buckled under a superhuman effort from Camosun’s backcourt. Even as Kazim Raza hit a jumper after diving after a loose ball into the Chargers bench, David Finch scored nine points in the quarter, going out in a blaze of glory in his final game with the Chargers. The Chargers took the lead for good on a baseline layup from Finch, forcing the Mountaineers to foul twice. Owen Jones, who grew up in Victoria, hit both of his free throws to ice the game. For the first time in program history, the Chargers are taking home a piece of national hardware. David Finch deservedly won Camosun’s 4Imprint Player of the Game Award, scoring all of his game-high 16 points in the second half. He also added nine rebounds and recorded two massive blocks. Owen Jones added 10 points off the bench, including the game-winning free throws Iverson Chong was the lone player to conquer Camosun’s relentless defense, scoring nine points. Kazim Raza and Scott Jenkins each scored six, while Jerry Jr. Mercury added nine rebounds. This marked the final game for several players on both teams. Mohawk honoured Scott Jenkins, while Camosun bid farewell to Cormick Brown, Cole Belton, Marc Parma, David Featherston Jr., and David Finch. While Mohawk’s season ends without a medal in tow, they have reason to be excited for 2027 as the host team for that year’s national championship in Hamilton. Both of those teams are expected to be contenders for a national title next season. |
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Tournament MVP CCAA Exemplary Leadership Award All-Star First Team Keyonte Beals, VIU Mariners All-Star Second Team Thomas Beames, Camosun Chargers |
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Championship Information |
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