CCAA Gold Medal Match: Humber Hawks 68, Dawson Blues 61
The Humber Hawks defeated the Dawson Blues to claim the 2018 CCAA Basketball National Championship.
The match began and ended like a heavyweight boxing championship bout, each team trading punches until the final bell. Humber prevailed by a score of 68-61.
The pace throughout the game was fast and intense. Early on, Dawson's interior defence was exceptional, denying inside passes and disrupting Humber's inbound attempts. Eleanore Marciszewski provided Dawson with offensive production, making four shots in the opening frame. Humber's Aleena Domingo was key to keeping Humber close. The quarter closed with Dawson up, 23-20.
The second quarter went back and forth in terms of scoring, with seven lead changes. Dawson held onto a one-point advantage at the half, 36-35. In the third, though, Humber found another gear, and engineered a 13-5 run out of the gate. Ceejay Nofuente and Domingo continued to put points on the board in the second half. Dawson received excellent contributions from Nelly Uwusu, Dahomee Forgues, and Roxane Makolo. Humber slowly built their lead to 10 in the latter half of the final quarter, and was able to withstand Dawson's pressure down the stretch for the seven-point victory.
Domingo led the scoring for Humber with 22, to go along with seven boards. Nofuente pitched in with 21. The Blues were led by Dahomee Forgues who notched 14 point and five boards. Eleanore Marciszewski and Roxane Makolo added 13 points each.
Player of the Game: Felicia Velasquez, Humber Hawks
Player of the Game: Eleanore Marciszewski, Dawson Blues
CCAA Semi-Final: Humber Hawks 83, Nomades de Montmorency 72
The first semi-final featured two powerhouse schools, OCAA champs Humber Hawks versus RSEQ runner-up Montmorency. Humber bolted out of the gate with a 9-0 run. A MoMo timeout created only a short pause in Humber's attack; after the inbound the Hawks scored four more. Andrea Torres stopped the run and added two other baskets to stem the tide. But it still felt like 'all Humber'— mid-quarter, the score was Humber 15, Torres 6.
Towards the end of the first, the game turned chippy, both sides feeling the pressure but not willing to give an inch. Montmorency continued to crawl back into the game, and at the end of one had gained a slight advantage, 22-21.
MoMo's Jael Kabunda helped the Nomades build a double-digit lead in the second. Humber then charged back with several scores from beyond the arc; Ceejay Nofuente's three with a minute left in the third tied it up. Humber then made a late two-pointer to lead 39-37 at the break.
The tempo picked up in the third. Both teams went toe-to-toe—the Nomades opened with a three, which was answered immediately by the Hawks; which in turn was answered by MoMo. Near the end of the third Nofuente dropped two threes in a row, helping Humber extend their lead to 61-54.
Humber kept the pressure on to open the fourth, and, like the first quarter, opened up a double-digit lead. Juliette Gauthier nailed a long three, followed by two threes from Jael Kabunda, but Montmorency could come no closer than three. Humber controlled the ball down the stretch, using points from the foul line to earn a well-deserved 83-72 win.
Humber now moves onto the gold medal game Saturday night, where they will take on Dawson. Montmorency will play in a bronze qualifier against Capilano.
Humber was led by Nofuente and Aleena Domingo who each scored 24, Domingo adding 14 rebounds. Leticia Lopez and Miea Campbell-Johnson contributed 15 and 14, respectively. The Nomades' leading scorer was Gauthier, with 22. Torres notched 21. Kabunda added 17 points and 11 boards.
Player of the Game: Leticia Lopez, Humber Hawks
Player of the Game: Andrea Torres, Nomades de Montmorency
CCAA Quarter-Final: Humber Hawks 71, MSVU Mystics 69
Top-ranked Humber Hawks received late-game heroics from CCAA Player of the Year Ceejay Nofuente to withstand a strong challenge from ACAA runner-up, MSVU Mystics. Nofuente calmly made a midrange jumper with 0.8 seconds left on the clock to give the Hawks a two-point win.
Both teams established a fast pace from the opening tip-off. Top-ranked Humber's fast break was challenged by the ACAA runner-up Mystics' active defence. MSVU generated offence through their defence, and with a late run led 23-15 at the end of the first quarter. In a tight second quarter, both teams traded defensive stops, leaving the Mystics with a slim, 38-36 halftime lead.
The second half was a see-saw battle, with neither team leading by more than three points. But Nofuente caught fire in the fourth quarter, and sustained pressure from Humber late on the fourth earned them the victory.
Kate Gallant of the Mystics led all scorers with a 25 point, 11 rebound effort. Mareika Williams, with 16, and Kelsey McGrath, with nine, contributed to the Mystics' offence. Nofuente scored 23 points to go with 13 rebounds. Humber's Aleena Domingo and Leticia Lopez also figured prominently, with 18 and nine points, respectively.
Player of the Game: Ceejay Nofuente, Humber Hawks
Player of the Game: Kate Gallant, MSVU Mystics
Source: Mount Allison University/CCAA Communications