Men's Semifinals Recap: Hometown Heroes

(This post is based on the copy on the CCAA website, which I also wrote. Credit to Matt Carter for the edits.)

Not far removed from a riveting quarterfinal victory over Lethbridge, the Mariners returned to the friendly confines of the VIU Gymnasium for a heavyweight bout against the defending CCAA national champion Humber Hawks.

VIU 81, Humber 60

Humber took an early lead off a pair of jumpers from Nathan Savage and Dwayne Burke and led by as much as six after an Isaiah Brady-Clarke jumper, but the home team wasn’t about to go out quietly.

The Mariners pieced together basket after basket, leading by as much as seven after a fadeaway jumper from Kye Kotapski-Tinga, but a response from Adrian Aluyi brought it back within five.

Two free throws from Victoire Ndongo to begin the second quarter got the lead down to three, but that’s as close as it would get for the rest of the game. The Hawks only scored nine first quarter points to VIU’s 21, including a three from Kye Kotapski-Tinga at the buzzer.

The third quarter got off to a slow start for both teams as Humber committed a shot clock violation and VIU struggled to finish at the rim, but a pair of Winston Cole free throws and a straightaway three from Markus Modrovic got the crowd back into it. Benny Kazadi did most of Humber’s damage in the quarter with six points, helping the Hawks climb back into the game.

The fourth quarter turned into a runaway. As VIU hit shot after shot and the hometown crowd got rowdier by the minute, Humber was always one step behind despite consistently making their field goals.

Winston Cole’s three with just over two minutes left in the fourth quarter proved to be the dagger. As Humber slinked off the court to a funeral dirge of cowbells and bam bams, the Mariners rode the wave all the way to the date with Brebeuf in the national title game. It marks the fifth time the Mariners have played for national gold, and the first since 2019.

Winston Cole led all scorers with 19 points while taking a game-high 19 shots. Ryan Bastian added 10 points in the victory, while Kye Kotapski-Tinga added 17 off the bench. Also off the bench came VIU’s Player of the Game, Markus Modrovic, who recorded a 14-10 double-double.

Nathan Savage was named Humber’s Player of the Game, scoring 14 points. Isaiah Brady-Clarke followed close behind with 10 points, while Adrian Aluyi grabbed 12 rebounds.

The Mariners will face the Dynamiques de Brebeuf in the gold match on Saturday night.