The SBP Archives - Your less than frequent dose of SBP!

Tonight, 1,500+ fans went to Carleton U to take in a sold-out NCAA basketball. Sort of. See, when I initially agreed to go, I thought I was going to see an exhibition game between two NCAA schools. Since Carleton U has taken home five consecutive CIS championships, I figured the Americans might feel Carleton is now a basketball mecca up north so it would make sense to showcase the teams up here.

I was surprised to hear that I'd be witnessing the Carleton Ravens play the U of Illinois. Surprised because I thought the Ravens would have absolutely no chance in hell of competing against them. A Canadian team against the Americans? Aren't all the good Canadian players already picked up by NCAA colleges? But I was completely wrong. They put on a great show. Twice they were down by nine points in the 2nd half but they battled hard, tying it up to force overtime. They lost the game by a mere two points with seconds left on the clock. It was a great effort from the players and they just as easily could have won.

Of course, I have no idea if Illinois dressed their best players or if they were mailing it in and could care less about the outcome. Still, there were only a few points away from beating a storied NCAA team. An outcome that definitely would have been a feather in the cap for the Carleton Ravens.

(Sidebar: Jeff Jordan, son of Michael Jordan, played 19 minutes and recorded 6 points. He was the probable reason for the sellout, but he didn't particularly stand out during the game)