This weekend, an impressive array of talented USport teams gathered at the University of Saskatchewan to kick off the 2024/25 preseason and commence their journey towards Nationals in March. "We want to bring in the best teams in the country to Saskatoon. I have been fortunate to have established good relationships with coaches and programs across the country, and it's exciting for our program to have them come out and compete," explained Huskies Head Coach Jamie Campbell.
Carleton Coach Taffe Charles expressed his excitement about coming out, saying, "Jamie and I go way back, and the opportunity to support him and check out his team was a welcome one. He has done a great job with the program, and we enjoyed the competition this weekend."
With each of the 4 teams playing against each other over 3 days, here's an overview of what I observed and the respective coaches' thoughts about their teams:
University of British Columbia Thunderbirds
After a successful 2023/24 season where coach Kevin Hanson's team went 18-7 (14-6 in Canada West play), finishing 4th in league play but unexpectedly exiting the Canada West play-in game, they are gearing up to host the 2025 USport National Championship. The team has bolstered its ranks with experienced transfers in the hopes of clinching victory on their home court in March. This team is known for its tough, paint-focused basketball style. Forward Nikola Guzina put up impressive numbers over the weekend, scoring 18 points against MacEwan, 14 against Carleton, and 21 against Sask. His frontcourt teammates, Fareed Shittu and Victor Radocaj, also displayed remarkable toughness and experience. Although sharpshooter Adam Olsen struggled with his shooting, he managed to get many good open looks, which bodes well for the team's offensive capabilities as the season progresses.
Coach Hanson reflected on the weekend, expressing satisfaction with the early-season performance on the road. He acknowledged that the players were still finding their rhythm and that there were areas for improvement. However, he highlighted the significance of securing wins on the road or on neutral ground.
The team finished the weekend with an impressive 3-0 record, defeating MacEwan 84-69, Carleton 85-68, and Saskatchewan 75-5.
Carleton University Ravens
The USport champion for 17 of the last 21 years finished 13-9 last season. This year's team appears to be young again with only one 5th-year player and no 4th-year players on the roster. The young squad competed extremely well all weekend, and Augustas Brazdeikis emerged as their go-to scorer throughout the weekend (16 points vs. Sask, 16 vs. UBC, and 14 vs. MacEwan). Nelson Cilien was strong on the boards (10 rebounds vs. Sask, 11 vs. UBC, and 5 vs. MacEwan) all weekend, and To Randriasalama was a threat from behind the arc (6/16 on the weekend) in their games.
Coach Taffe Charles stated, "We learned a lot from this weekend. Yesterday [Friday vs. UBC] we didn't play as well as I would have liked, but overall, we have a lot of good film to watch and get a really good assessment of our team at this point."
Carleton finished 2-1 with wins over MacEwan (84-66) and Saskatchewan (73-67), and a loss to UBC (68-85).
University of Saskatchewan Huskies
The Huskies had a record of 11 wins and 10 losses in the 2023/24 season. They were eliminated by the Brandon Bobcats in the Canada West Play-in Game. The team is currently in a rebuilding phase after graduating 8 players. They are primarily led by veteran players, with the majority of the roster consisting of 1st and 2nd year players. Guard Emmanuel Bonsu was consistent throughout all 3 games, scoring 16 points against Carleton, 12 against MacEwan, and 7 against UBC. Easton Thimm, the reigning Canada West rookie of the year, made significant contributions in the paint before sustaining an unfortunate injury that sidelined him for the Saturday game.
Each game saw a different guard stepping up as the top scorer: rookie Owen Murphy Weibe scored 17 points with 3 out of 5 from 3-point range on Thursday, 5th year Griffin Sharkey scored 28 points with 5 out of 9 from 3-point range on Friday, and another rookie, Dillyn Morin, scored 17 points with 5 out of 12 from 3-point range on Saturday.
Coach Jamie Campbell reflected on the weekend, stating, "It was a good weekend with lots of promising things. The competitor in me doesn't like finishing 1 and 2, but after graduating 8 players, we have a brand new young team. We have to focus on the positives, and our guys competed for 3 straight games, and I am happy about that."
As the coach mentioned, the team finished 1-2 with a win over MacEwan 77-61 and losses to UBC 59-75 and Carleton 67-73.
MacEwan University Griffins
After a challenging 2023/24 season where the Griffins did not win any of their 20 games, Coach Connolly managed to recruit some new players from other schools and high school. These additions have given him hope for the upcoming season. Job Janda (scoring 21 points against UBC, 7 points against Sask, and 14 points against Carleton) and Hugo Alsonso (scoring 8 points against UBC, 14 points against Sask, and 18 points against Carleton) were standout performers over the weekend, putting pressure on the opposing defenses.
One area the team needs to improve on is rebounding, as a few of the team's key players were not able to travel with the team. Coach Connolly is hopeful they will be able to address this issue with a full lineup.
After the games, I spoke with Coach Connolly, who was optimistic about the weekend's results. He emphasized that the weekend served its purpose by demonstrating the level of competition they need to match in order to compete with stronger teams. He highlighted the need for hard work and toughness to progress as a team, and expressed confidence that they can reach those standards.
MacEwan had a tough weekend, losing all three games: 69-84 to UBC, 61-77 to Saskatchewan, and 66-84 to Carleton.
I am excited to see how USports unfolds in the coming weeks as more preseason results come in. This tournament could have a significant impact on rankings in March, especially with UBC preparing to host nationals and Carleton aiming for an 18th national championship. I also believe that both Saskatchewan and MacEwan will show improvement and have the potential to upset teams that underestimate them.
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