The top men’s basketball teams in the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) converge on southern Alberta this week as Lethbridge College hosts the 2018 Cora Breakfast and Lunch ACAC Men’s Basketball Championship. The eight-team tournament runs from March 1 to 3 in the Val Matteotti Gymnasium.
“We’re very excited that the ACAC is returning to Lethbridge College just one year after we hosted both the women’s basketball and indoor track championships,” says Todd Caughlin, manager of Kodiaks Athletics. “It shows great faith in our organizing committee and volunteers, and we expect another exceptional week. The basketball promises to be outstanding and we will work to make sure that all teams and guests have a great experience in our city.”
The festivities begin with the ACAC awards banquet on Wednesday evening, followed by quarterfinals on Thursday. Semifinals and consolation matches take place on Friday, with placement games, including the ACAC championship game, on Saturday.
The host Lethbridge College Kodiaks enter the tournament as the fourth-seed in the south division following a 13-8 regular season. The Kodiaks will face the top-seeded north division team, the nationally sixth-ranked Concordia Thunder (19-5) in their tournament opener at 8 p.m. on Thursday.
“The Kodiaks are proud to host the top teams in the ACAC,” says Ryan Heggie, Kodiaks men’s basketball coach. “This will be some excellent basketball. Southern Alberta prides itself on its love and support of the local basketball scene, and this will be a ‘can’t miss’ event.”
The Kodiaks struggled to find their footing early in the season, but enter the tournament on a six-game win streak. That is the second-longest current streak in the ACAC, trailing only the 10 in a row won by their first round opponents from Concordia.
There is a distinct southern Alberta flavor to the Kodiaks roster. Winston Churchill grad Keanu Funa (second year, Business Administration, Lethbridge) leads the Kodiaks in scoring, averaging 15.6 points per game. Mid-season addition Colten Murray (fifth year, General Studies, Picture Butte) has added a lot of scoring punch, averaging 14.9 points per game, while finishing fifth in the ACAC in shooting percentage (55.4 per cent) and first in three-point shooting percentage (52.8 per cent). Fellow mid-season addition Grady Taylor (fourth year, General Studies, Magrath) is third in team scoring, averaging 14.1 points per game. Michael Clemons (fourth year, Exercise Science, El Paso, Tex.) led the ACAC in assists with 200 (9.5 a/gm).
Heggie says the game plan is simple: “To be successful, we need to play Kodiaks basketball and compete hard at all times.”
The Kodiaks face Concordia at 8 p.m. on Thursday in the Val Matteotti Gymnasium. Lethbridge beat the Thunder 94-87 in an exhibition game on Oct. 7.
Games run all day on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, leading to the gold medal game at 7 p.m. on Saturday. General admission day passes are $15 and full-tournament passes are $40. Current Lethbridge College and University of Lethbridge students can get day passes for just $2, with student ID. Lethbridge college alumni and current employees can get day passes for $5 with ID. Children under 12 are free.
The full tournament schedule and much more information is available on gokodiaks.ca.
Kodiaks mid-season additions Grady Taylor and Colten Murray give their thoughts heading into the championship tournament: