Basketball takes center stage this weekend

2010 AUS Women’s Basketball Championship this weekend

This weekend marks the final games of the regular season for one Sea~Hawks team and the beginning of hopefully a long playoff run for another. The women’s Sea~Hawks will travel to Cape Breton University for the 2010 Subway Atlantic University Sport Women’s Basketball Championships in hopes of a division title and a berth in the CIS Championships in March. The men’s basketball team are holding onto very slim playoff hopes. If they are to secure the sixth and final place they will have to sweep Acadia in Wolfville this weekend and rely on UNB to sweep UPEI.

The road to the championship goes through CBU

The season all comes down to this weekend as the Sea~Hawks head to the 2010 Subway AUS Women’s Basketball Championships hosted by Cape Breton University, February 26-28 at the Sullivan Field House in Sydney, NS.
After securing a first round bye with the sweep of the UNB series, the Sea~Hawks have earned a quarterfinal bye.

The championship schedule is as follows:

Friday, February 26th – Quarter-finals
#1: Saint Mary’s (3rd) vs. Acadia (6th), 6:00pm
#2: StFX (4th) vs. Dalhousie (5th), 8:00pm

Saturday, February 27th – Semi-finals
#1: Cape Breton (1st) vs. Lowest Remaining Seed, 6:00pm
#2: Memorial (2nd) vs. Highest Remaining Seed, 8:00pm

Sunday, February 28th – Finals
AUS Championship Game: Semi-final Winners, 1:00pm
*all times AST

The semi-final games, including Memorial's 8:30 pm (NL time) game, will be available through webcast

If you are in the EastLink viewer areas in Newfoundland and Labrador then the games will also be televised.

The Sea~Hawks have a combined record of 9-7 against teams this weekend, with their only sweep coming against Saint Mary’s in a pair of close wins at the Field House back in November. Outside of the number one seed Capers the rest of the field at the championships is wide open. The host team comes into the tournament the clear-cut favourite having dominated the regular season with a 19-1 record including 10-0 at home.

The Sea~Hawks need to be prepared to face either Saint Mary’s, St. FX or Dalhousie in their semi-final matchup on Saturday night. They will get the highest seed remaining in the field, so it is likely that they will face Saint Mary’s. If Acadia pulls out a big upset over the Huskies then Memorial will face the winner of the St. FX-Dalhousie game.

Limiting the offensive attack and athletic plays from Justine Colley will be the focus for Memorial’s defence should they go up against Saint Mary’s, as the Huskies’ will depend on the top rookie in the conference to lead the potential upset.

If the ‘Hawks take on the X-Women they will key-in on Ashley Stephen who can be a difference maker with her combination of athleticism and hustle. Stephen was on another level last Saturday against Memorial when she had 26 points, 17 rebounds and 6 assists. The ‘Hawks did a great job of containing her on Sunday, and will have to continue their defensive intensity through the weekend.

If Memorial takes on Dalhousie, the most unlikely scenario, they will have to contend with the post presence of the Laurie and Leah Girdwood. The Memorial front line will have to be effective in slowing down the inside threat while stepping up their interior intensity. The top six teams in the AUS have shown that they can win on any given night, it will be a true test of who wants it the most come this weekend.

The winner of the AUS Championship will claim a spot in the CIS Championships at McMaster in March.

Over the last eight seasons either Memorial or Cape Breton have captured the AUS title, including five for the Sea~Hawks and three for the Capers. Memorial struggled against CBU in their only meeting of the regular season, but it is a new ball game once tip off comes and the Sea~Hawks are ready for any challenges that come this weekend as Doug Partridge looks to collect his eighth AUS title for the red and white.

If the Sea~Hawks to take home the banner they will have to take their game to the next level. It will be the last chance for point guard Erin Mullaley. The Freshwater native is looking for her fourth title this weekend. Vicki Thistle has also been playing great basketball of late and will be perhaps the key to upsetting the Capers. There is no shortage of talent on the Memorial side with athletic players like Ally Forsey, Brittany Dalton and Grace Fishbein playing featured roles. If all of the Sea~Hawks can find a way do whatever they need to contribute, whether it is to rebound, defend, or dive for a loose ball, then good things will happen this weekend.

Men to try to hold on to fading playoff hopes against Acadia

The Sea~Hawks look to finish their season on a high note this weekend as they head to Acadia for a two game series against the fifth place Axemen. The season has been a disappointing one for Peter Benoite’s team, but has had no shortage of bright spots as Memorial has proven they can compete at a high level for the majority of games.

Acadia are locked into the fifth seed of the playoffs and will face either Saint Mary’s or Dalhousie in the first round due to their separation from UPEI, who are currently in the sixth and final playoff position. Memorial still has an outside shot at playoffs but they will require help from UNB to make it happen. In order to unseed UPEI they will have to take both games this weekend against Acadia while relying on UNB to beat UPEI twice.

If the Sea~Hawks want to secure a win this weekend, the big men will have to hit the glass early and often against Acadia. The Axemen are currently ranked first in the AUS in offensive and defensive rebounding with two of the top ten rebounders in the division (Alexander Traikov – 8.2rpg, Owen Klassan – 7.2rpg, respectively). Look for Acadia to try and use the home crowd to encourage them to go on big runs through hustle plays and second chance opportunities. Acadia has a potential all-star in Halifax native Casey Fox, currently eighth in the AUS. Coming back from injury for the Axemen is Justin Boutlier, who, in his first game back from a broken rib, dropped a career-high 38 points on UPEI last weekend.

Although having great individual scorers, Acadia’s lack of team play is something to look out for. Ranked last in the AUS in team assists, the Axemen look to score in one-on-one scenarios. The Sea~Hawks will have to step up their individual defensive intensity in order to shut down the Acadia offense this weekend.

After a scoring drought in the first match up against St. FX last weekend, the Sea~Hawks showed a much better effort against the X-Men on Sunday with an attack led by Mark Woodland off the bench. With Jason Shepherd and Ante Samodol in foul trouble, the St. John’s native put up an impressive 20 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 assists versus the second best team in the country. Second year Robbie Habib stepped up with 15 points in a team-high 39 minutes, and Ante Samodol contributed with 13 points and 9 rebounds despite fouling out.
The Sea~Hawks played Acadia to a split at the Field House in November. In the loss the Sea~Hawks had a big lead that slipped away with a last second Acadia shot.

Look for the ‘Hawks to give everything they have to stack the cards in their favour in an effort to keep the crack in the playoff window open.

Games begin Saturday evening at 7:00pm and wrap up Sunday afternoon with a 2:00pm tip off time (AST).