The eighth-seed Laval Rouge et Or, which only qualified for the tournament as host, recorded one of the greatest upsets in U Sports men’s national basketball championship history by beating the top-ranked University of Victoria Vikes 75-69 in the quarter-finals Friday in Quebec City.
It was a staggering result for a Laval team that was only 6-10 in conference and bounced in the first-round of the Quebec playoffs. UVic was 17-3 in conference and 3-0 in winning the Canada West playoffs.
The Vikes players walked off the court in almost stunned disbelief after being ranked No. 1 in the country for most of the season.
“Laval was full value for the win,” said UVic head coach Craig Beaucamp.
Rouge et Or players blanketed the court with a sort of carefree enthusiasm that only comes from a team that feels it has nothing to lose.
“They were energized by the home crowd and played with a lot of emotion,” said Beaucamp.
“They are very athletic and perhaps exposed us for our lack of that.”
The Rouge et Or were also extremely intense defensively in holding UVic to a season-low 32.7 per cent shooting from the field.
“They locked us up. We stumbled offensively,” said Beaucamp.
Laval led by double digits for much of the game before the Vikes cut the lead to three points in the final minute but the desperate rally fell short.
Asked what he told his charges in the deathly-quiet UVic dressing room following the game, Beaucamp said: “That we have to stay strong and stay together. Things don’t always turn out the way you want in sports. But you win together and you lose together.”
The Vikes don’t graduate anybody and return an intact roster next season to likely be the top-ranked team in the pre-season poll.
But it will be a UVic team that will certainly be humbled by Friday’s result and, possibly, better for it.
“Our group learned some lessons to take forward into next season,” said Beaucamp, in his 21st season at the UVic Vikes helm.
U Sports national MVP Diego Maffia led UVic with 26 points with Renoldo Robinson scoring 16. Elias Ralph added 11 points and six rebounds and Shadynn Smid seven points and 11 rebounds. Steeve Joseph scored 17 points for Laval and Sidney Lacombe 14.
In other national quarter-final games, the No. 6 Ottawa Gee Gees upset No. 3 UQAM Citadins 78-71 and No. 2 Queen’s Golden Gaels edged the No. 7 Winnipeg Wesmen 77-76.
UVic will meet the loser of a late quarter-final between Brock and Dalhousie today in the consolation round with the dream of a ninth national championship, and first since 1997, extinguished until at least next season.
