AUS tourney starts Friday in Sydney
Courtesy Steve Bezanson, The Chronicle Herald

Like many sports, basketball is a game of confidence and momentum. And the Saint Mary’s Huskies got a dose of both when they travelled to Antigonish last Friday and dispatched the host St. Francis Xavier X-Men 87-79.

It was just the second regular season loss of the campaign for the X-Men, who will be one of six teams in Sydney this weekend vying for the AUS men’s hoop championship.

Popular thought was that this year’s event, slated for Friday through Sunday at Centre 200, was going to be a two-pony race with the X-Men and the league- champion Cape Breton Capers easily advancing to the Sunday final.

But with the long-range bombers from SMU (mainly Mark McLaughlin and Joey Haywood) draining 12 threes in their win over X, not withstanding the fact that John Campbell’s Dalhousie Tigers (72-59 winners over Saint Mary’s two weeks ago) are the defending champions, the weekend tourney has ultimately become a dice roll at best.

On top of that, the Acadia Axemen showed they also belong at the party by topping the Tigers 68-62 in the final regular-season game for both teams.

"Anytime you get in a tournament format the formula for success is pretty simple," said Cape Breton coach Jim Charters, in his eighth season at the helm of the Capers. "It’s just whoever plays the best on that weekend and in this year’s tourney I really don’t think there’s enough difference in any of the teams where you can say one team has a distinct advantage over another.

"We’re all going to have to deal with a new environment in that no one has ever played at Centre 200 before. I suppose our one advantage is that we don’t have to travel and we are familiar with the surroundings in Sydney."

Like the X-Men, the Capers finished with an 18-2 record but got the nod for top spot in the conference by securing 50 points from their wins compared to 48 for Steve Konchalski’s X-Men.

And the one thing the Capers proved this year was that they could put the ball in the bucket, leading the country in scoring average by over seven points per game.

"We have shown that we can score," acknowledged Charters, "but in these tournaments points can be hard to come by. We need to improve our half-court game and we have to be able to get some easy baskets. Those are really valuable and I really believe that the team that gets the most easy baskets has a good chance of winning."

The Capers are blessed with veteran leadership and depth, two significant factors in a three-day tourney.

"We have three fifth-years and three fourth-years so we certainly have a veteran club," said Charters. "But you still have to stick to your game plan and maintain focus. That’s going to be critical. In the end, though, there’s no magic formula. You have just have to relax and go play basketball."

Like Charters, Konchalski felt there was plenty of parity in this year’s field.

"Cape Breton, Saint Mary’s and ourselves have beaten each other this year and while Dal hasn’t beaten us or Cape Breton they are a very capable team. I suppose if you were doing odds they might be a longer shot than the three of us. Acadia is a young squad coming on and PEI has enough firepower that on a given night they could post an upset. I just don’t know if they are capable of winning three straight games."

The tourney opens Friday evening with the Tigers facing the Axemen at 6 o’clock, followed by the Huskies against the Panthers at 8:15. Saturday’s semfinals are slated for 6 and 8:15 p.m., while Sunday’s championship contest goes at 2 p.m.

"It’s a new venue for everyone and I guess the advantage Cape Breton will have is the crowd," noted Konchalski. "It will be interesting to see if other teams bring in their fans. Everyone is so used to the trip to Halifax. How many will make the trip to Sydney? The diehards will still come but how many casual fans will show up is yet to be determined."

Regardless of fan support, Konchalski believes he has a club with enough tools to get the job done.

"I like to think we have a team that has the ability to do many things. We have enough experience to win a championship and we have enough offence to win a championship. Having said that, if we win, defence is what’s going to win it for us. Over the course of the season, last Friday aside, we’ve been the best defensive team in the conference."

While lightning-quick guard Christian Upshaw might be considered the key cog in the X-Men machine, St. F. X. also has a number of other weapons.

"Obviously T-Bear (Upshaw) is our leader," said Konchalski. "But the distinguishing mark of the X team this year is that different people have stepped up on different nights. If someone has had a bad night, someone else has stepped in to fill his shoes. And that’s what we need to have happen if we are going to win on the weekend."

The X-Men and Capers will both enjoy a Friday night of game-watching before swinging into action on Saturday, with the Capers facing the Dal/Acadia winner in the early tilt and the X-men taking on the Saint Mary’s/UPEI winner in the late encounter.

HOOP FACTS:

Subway Atlantic University
Sport Men’s Championship
At Centre 200, Sydney

(Seedings in parantheses):
FRIDAY Quarter-finals
(1) Dalhousie (4) vs. Acadia (5), 6 p.m.
(2) Saint Mary’s (3) vs. UPEI (6), 8:15p.m.

SATURDAY Semifinals
Cape Breton (1) vs. winner of quarter-final #1, 6 p.m.
St. F.X. (2) vs. winner of quarter-final #2, 8:15 p.m.

SUNDAY
Champonship game, 2 p.m.
(Winner advances to CIS men’s championship, March 19-21 at Carleton University, Ottawa)