Special Edition: The Greatest U SPORTS MBB Game Ever Played, New WBB National Champions Crowned

Welcome to PRSPECTVES, an interactive monthly digest of all the major news and stories happening across Canadian university sports, accompanied by intentional introductions to tools and resources that can aid student-athletes in excelling professionally, academically, and personally.

In this special edition, we'll highlight the 2023 U SPORTS MBB and WBB Final 8 National Championship tournaments, while also touching on what many are now calling the greatest U SPORTS basketball game ever to be played...

It's our soon-to-be-annual love letter to U SPORTS basketball.

Let's tap in!

"Through the highs and the lows, coming back to Canada was one of the best decisions I ever made"

StFX forward David Muenkat shared these words in a message to the StFX community after he played his final career game with the X-Men in this past weekend's U SPORTS MBB National Championship Tournament. Muenkat, who's from Brampton, Ontario, spent time at Trinidad State Junior College in Colorado and St. Francis College in New York before transferring to StFX in 2021.

???? U SPORTS MBB Final 8: The Greatest Game Ever Played

The quarterfinals: The much-anticipated U SPORTS MBB Final 8 tipped off on Friday, March 11, when UPEI, Victoria, Queen's, UQAM, Carleton, Ottawa, StFX, and Winnipeg all took to the court at the Scotiabank Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

• UPEI's Elijah Miller and Kamari Scott recorded near triple-doubles, but it wasn't enough to get past Victoria in a 93-92 game that saw Vikes guard Diego Maffia score 40 points.
• U SPORTS Defensive Player of the Year David Muenkat scored a game-high 27 points to lead the StFX X-Men to a 107-98 win over the Queen's Gaels.
• In a game that ended up being a near-upset, the defending national champion Carleton Ravens survived, 73-71, against the UQAM Citadins.
• In their first National Championship tournament appearance since 1994, the Winnipeg Wesmen fell to the OUA Champion Ottawa Gee-Gees, in a lopsided 91-70 contest.

The semifinals: After an opening day that didn't disappoint, the madness continued during U SPORTS MBB National Championship Semifinals.

• The StFX X-Men punched their ticket to the National Championship game after a 77-64 victory over the Victoria Vikes.
• The Carleton Ravens advanced to the National Championship game after an 81-75 win over their crosstown rival Ottawa Gee-Gees. This win came just one week after the Gee-Gees defeated the Ravens in the OUA Finals.

The greatest game ever played: The U SPORTS MBB National Championship game saw the 16-time, defending national champion 加拿大卡尔顿大学 Ravens take on the hometown St. Francis Xavier University X-Men in front of a sold-out crowd at the Scotiabank Centre in Halifax.

In a contest that took fans on an emotional rollercoaster, Carleton overcame a 23-point deficit to defeat StFX, 109-104, in double overtime to win the 2022-23 U SPORTS MBB National Championship.

In what many fans are now calling the greatest game ever played, Carleton vs StFX set records for both the longest (2 overtime quarters) and highest-scoring (213 total points) U SPORTS MBB National Championship game.

For the Ravens, this marked their 17th National Championship in program history, which is the most of any U SPORTS MBB program.

???? U SPORTS WBB Final 8: Ravens Soar To Greatness

The quarterfinals: The also much-anticipated U SPORTS WBB Final 8 began on Thursday, March 10, when Queen's, Cape Breton, UQAM, Carleton, Calgary, SMU, Acadia, and Alberta all took to the court at the Sullivan Fieldhouse in Sydney, Nova Scotia.

• In a game that featured a 29-point performance from Alberta's Jenna Harpe, the Pandas overcame a 13-point deficit in the fourth quarter, while preventing Acadia from scoring in the final seven minutes of play to pick up a hard-fought 61-57 win.
• The AUS Champion SMU Huskies squeezed by the Calgary Dinos in a 70-68 nail-bitter.
• Deja vu - In a game that ended up being a near-upset, the Queen's Gaels survived in overtime, 75-72, against the UQAM Citadins.
• The top-seeded Carleton Ravens overcame the hometown Cape Breton Capers, 56-51, in a contest that saw Capers forward and Second Team All-Canadian Kiyara Letlow record an eye-opening 19 rebounds.

The semifinals: The quarterfinals gave us near upsets. But, the statement made in the semifinals was clear. We were on course to get an OUA Finals rematch in the National Championship game that featured two of the nation's top teams.

• After a quarterfinal scare, the Queen's Gaels cruised to a decisive 72-62 win over the Alberta Pandas to earn a spot in the National Championship game for the first time in program history.
• Just a week removed from capturing the OUA Championship, Carleton advanced to the National Championship game after a 65-46 win over the SMU Huskies.

The championship game: The U SPORTS WBB National Championship game was headlined by the 加拿大女王大学 Gaels seeking their first National Championship against the only team that had managed to beat them all season, the 加拿大卡尔顿大学 Ravens.

Ravens guard Kali Pocrnic scored a team-high 20 points to lead Carleton to a 71-59 win over the Queen's Gaels to win the 2022-23 U SPORTS WBB National Championship.

For the Ravens, this marked their 2nd National Championship in program history.

?? MBB Final 8 Broke a Coaching Barrier

The 2023 U SPORTS MBB Final 8 was the first Final 8 in U SPORTS history where 50% of the teams (4 teams) were led by Black head coaches. These head coaches were:

• Taffe Charles , Carleton
• Darrell Glenn , UPEI
• Mario Joseph, UQAM
• Tyrell Vernon , StFX

?? MBB Final 8 Broke a Broadcasting Barrier

The 2023 U SPORTS MBB Final 8 was the first Final 8 in U SPORTS history where both members of the English broadcast team were Black. The broadcast team included current Atlantic University Sport commentator Vincent M.Williams doing play-by-play, along with former 加拿大约克大学 and UQAM basketball coach Nate Philippe as the colour analyst.

?? Shoot For The Cure

U SPORTS announced last Sunday that their 16th annual Shoot For The Cure campaign, held this year from January 18-29, raised $115,062.70!

• Launched in 2007, the U SPORTS WBB initiative raises awareness and funds for breast cancer research.
• Since launching in 2007, the initiative has raised an overall total of $1,865,657.17.

?? Men's Final 8 Broke Attendance Record

With an attendance of 40,092, the 2023 U SPORTS MBB Final 8 in Halifax set a new all-time attendance record.

• The previous record of 39,490 was set in 2001, also in Halifax.

?? Who's Building a Powerhouse

The Carleton Ravens became the first program to win the U SPORTS MBB and WBB National Championships in the same year since the Victoria Vikes in 1985.

?? Who's Winning League MVPs

Sarah Gates of the 加拿大麦克马斯特大学 Marauders and Thomas Kennedy of the University of Windsor Lancers were named the 2022-23 U SPORTS WBB and MBB Players of the Year.

• In her final season as a Marauder, Gates averaged a nation-leading 27.3 points per game. Gates also became McMaster Women's basketball's all-time leading scorer. She was also named a First Team OUA All-Star, the OUA's Most Valuable Player, and a First Team All-Canadian.
• In his final season as a Lancer, Kennedy averaged 20.8 points per game and a nation-leading 13.5 rebounds per game. Kennedy also became Windsor Men's basketball's all-time leading scorer and all-time leader in career blocks. He was also named a First Team OUA All-Star, the OUA's Most Valuable Player, and a First Team All-Canadian.

?? Who's Drafting U SPORTS Basketball Players

The Canadian Elite Basketball League will hold their annual U SPORTS draft in April 2023. It is still to be announced how many players will be selected.

• Players selected in the CEBL's draft must be current U SPORTS MBB players with remaining U SPORTS eligibility.
• Acting more as a developmental program for U SPORTS players, the salary earned during their seasons gets applied directly to their tuition in the following school year.
• The opportunity allows U SPORTS MBB players to spend their offseasons gaining valuable experience, playing professionally against some of the world's top athletes while working with the world's top coaches, trainers, and basketball minds.

?? What To Watch

After spending all this time talking about U SPORTS basketball, it would be a travesty if we didn't tell you where you can watch. All games from this past weekend's MBB and WBB Final 8 National Championship tournaments are available on YouTube.

• The MBB double overtime National Championship game between StFX and Carleton can be found here .
• The WBB National Championship game between Queen's and Carleton can be found here .

?? What To Listen To

In the second part of the Ballin' Up Podcast's season finale, Daniel Noel and Dashawn Stephens recap both the 2023 U SPORTS MBB and WBB National Championship games and dive deeper into the legacy of the 2023 U SPORTS MBB National Championship game, what it meant to U SPORTS, and why basketball fans will be talking about this game for a long time.

For a further glimpse at the reimagined Canadian university sports fan experience, follow PRSVRE on?Instagram , and?Twitter , or visit our?website ?for up-to-date university sports news, stories, and more.

#SportsMedia #SportsBusiness #SportsIndustry #SportsEducation #CollegeSports #Athletes