|
Brock's Stienstra named player of the year
|
|
|
|
OTTAWA (CIS) Kevin Stienstra of the Brock University Badgers is the Tissot Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) men's basketball player of the year.
Other men's basketball major award winners announced by the CIS on Wednesday were York University's Tut Ruach of Mississauga, Ont., who received Tissot rookie-of-the-year honours, St. Francis Xavier University's Garry Gallimore of Ottawa, named defensive player of the year, Carleton University's Dave Smart, named coach of the year for the second time in three seasons, and StFX's Alexander Stephen of Scarborough, Ont., recipient of the Ken Shields Award recognizing his excellence in basketball, academics and community involvement.
Stienstra, a fourth-year center from Vineland, Ont. received the Mike Moser Memorial Trophy, awarded annually to the player of the year. Stienstra is the first Badger in history to receive the honour. This season, the 6-foot-8, 240-pound accounting student became the first player in Brock history to be named a first-team OUA all-star in three consecutive campaigns, en route to claiming his first OUA West and OUA MVP awards, and the first Badger named to the first All-Canadian team since David Picton in 1995-96.
Stienstra finished the regular season 10th in CIS scoring and third in the OUA with an average of 19.0 points per game, while placing second in the country in blocks (2.7 bpg), third in field goal percentage (.630), and seventh in rebounds (9.7 rpg). He totalled 13 double-doubles in 22 conference games while leading the Badgers in scoring 12 times and in rebounding 15 times. His exploits led Brock to a 19-3 regular-season record good for second place in the OUA West division, the OUA West playoff title, and an appearance in the OUA final.
"Every night the opponent's game plan is keyed on shutting down Kevin, yet he still manages to put up big numbers and win games," comments Brock head coach Ken Murray. "He continually fights through double and even triple teams. There's no doubt Kevin is the best big man in the country. He had an exceptional season leading by example both on and off the court, and is well deserving of the CIS player-of-the-year award."
Ruach, a 6-foot-2 point guard, is the second York Lion in three years to receive the Dr. Peter Mullins Trophy as CIS rookie of the year.
"Tut has been Mr. Everything for us this year," says York head coach Tom Oliveri. "He has scored, defended the opposition's best player and allowed us to transition into offence from the day he stepped onto the court."
Gallimore, a 6-foot-3 sophomore guard becomes the first recipient of the new CIS defensive-player-of-the-year award.
"Garry is one of the most physically as well as mentally tough defenders I have ever coached," compliments 29-year StFX head coach Steve Konchalski.
Stephen, a 6-foot-7 forward, is working on his second degree (Bachelor of Information Systems) and is committed to community involvement at StFX and in the local Antigonish, N.S. area.
"Alex is an exceptional young man with outstanding leadership skills who exemplifies everything the Ken Shields Award embodies," comments Konchalski.
Dave Smart, who claimed is first Stuart W. Aberdeen Memorial Trophy in 2002-03, guided the two-time defending national champion Ravens to a second straight 22-0 regular season in 2004-05, a fifth consecutive OUA East regular season title, and a third straight OUA playoff title.
Joining Stienstra on the first All-Canadian team are forwards Andrew Spagrud of Saskatchewan and Sherone Edwards of UPEI, and guards Philippe Langlois of Concordia and Michael Smart of Carleton, all selected for the first time on one of CIS' two all-star teams. A native of Saskatoon, Spagrud was the CIS rookie of the year in 2003-04.
Laval's fifth-year guard Charles Fortier of Amos, Que. was named to the second all-star squad for the fourth time.
The 2005 CIS men's basketball championship, hosted by Atlantic University Sport, gets under way on Thursday, March 17 with first-round match-ups between the No. 10-Saint Mary's Huskies and No. 7-Waterloo Warriors at 6 p.m. AST, and the No. 9-Ottawa Gee-Gees and No. 8-Brandon Bobcats at 8 p.m. AST. The championship final is scheduled for Sunday at 4:30 p.m. AST and will be televised live on TSN. Saturday's semi-finals (6 p.m. & 9 p.m. AST) will also be shown live on TSN.
For all the info on the Championship: www.cisport.ca/e/championships/m_basketball/2005
TISSOT PLAYER OF THE YEAR (Mike Moser Memorial Trophy): Kevin Stienstra, Brock University Badgers
Fourth-year center Kevin Stienstra is the first Badger in history to be honoured with the Mike Moser Memorial Trophy as CIS player of the year. This season, the 6-foot-8, 240-pound native of Vineland, Ont. also became the first player in Brock history to be named a first-team OUA all-star in three consecutive campaigns, en route to claiming his first OUA West and OUA MVP awards. Stienstra finished the regular season 10th in CIS scoring and third in the OUA with an average of 19.0 points per game, while placing second in the country in blocks (2.7 bpg), third in field goal percentage (.630), and seventh in rebounds (9.7 rpg). He totalled 13 double-doubles in 22 conference games while leading the Badgers in scoring 12 times and in rebounding 15 times.
"Every night the opponent's game plan is keyed on shutting down Kevin, yet he still manages to put up big numbers and win games," comments Brock head coach Ken Murray. "He continually fights through double and even triple teams. There's no doubt Kevin is the best big man in the country. He had an exceptional season leading by example both on and off the court, and is well deserving of the CIS player-of-the-year award."
TISSOT ROOKIE OF THE YEAR (Dr. Peter Mullins Trophy): Tut Ruach, York University Lions
Tut Ruach of Mississauga, Ont. is the second York Lion in three years to receive the Dr. Peter Mullins Trophy as CIS Tissot rookie of the year, after current teammate Dan Eves was honoured in 2002-03. The 6-foot-2 point guard stepped in to fill the void left by two-time OUA all-star Tom McChesney, who was lost to graduation. Ruach's 4.91 assists per game ranked second in the Ontario conference and 11th in the country, while his 85.5% success rate from the free throw line was fourth in the OUA and seventh in the nation. Ruach helped guide the Lions to a 16-6 record and a second-place finish in the OUA East division.
"Tut has been Mr. Everything for us this year," says York head coach Tom Oliveri. "He has scored, defended the opposition's best player and allowed us to transition into offence from the day he stepped onto the court."
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Garry Gallimore, St. Francis Xavier University X-Men
Ottawa native Garry Gallimore of the StFX X-Men becomes the first recipient of the new CIS defensive player of the year award. In his second university season, the 6-foot-3 guard has become one of the most aggressive defenders in the country. He averaged 4.8 rebounds per game, including a total of 64 defensive boards, and added 17 steals while maintaining an assist to turnover ratio of 0.7. Gallimore can also chip in offensively, as he proved at the AUS championship when he led the X-Men in scoring in both the semi-final and gold medal game, en route to tournament-MVP honours. Named the AUS rookie of the year in 2003-04, Gallimore has played on the Canadian national Under-21 team for the past three years.
"Garry is one of the most physically as well as mentally tough defenders I have ever coached," compliments 29-year StFX head coach Steve Konchalski. "Night in and night out he draws the opponent's toughest perimeter players, including Duke's All-American guard J.J. Redick, who Garry held three points below his season average. This season, he held Memorial's Jeff Saxby to 33% shooting over two games, UPEI's Sherone Edwards to 39% over four match-ups, and UCCB's Anthony Breland to 42% in three games."
COACH OF THE YEAR (Stuart W. Aberdeen Memorial Trophy): Dave Smart, Carleton University Ravens
Dave Smart of the two-time defending national champion Carleton Ravens is the CIS coach of the year for the second time in three seasons. He claimed his first Stuart W. Aberdeen Memorial Trophy in 2002-03. This season, Smart received his fourth OUA East coach of the year award in the last five years after he guided the Ravens to a second straight 22-0 regular season, a fifth consecutive OUA East regular season title, and a third straight OUA playoff title. In six seasons at the helm, he has led Carleton to an astonishing 136-16 record in conference and post-season play (.895). His Ravens enter the 2005 CIS Final 10 riding a 75-game undefeated streak versus CIS opponents in the regular season and playoffs. Smart has also led the Ontario Junior Boys Provincial Team to the gold medal at the 2000 and 1999 Canadian basketball championships. He is currently working with the Ontario East Regional Camp for Team Canada.
OUTSTANDING STUDENT-ATHLETE (Ken Shields Award): Alexander Stephen, St. Francis Xavier University X-Men
StFX co-captain Alex Stephen of Scarborough, Ont. is the first X-Men to receive the Ken Shields Award recognizing outstanding achievement in basketball, academics and community involvement. On the court, the fourth-year, 6-foot-7 forward averaged 7.6 points per game this season with a .520 field goal percentage. A team captain for the past three campaigns, he was a member of the 2001 CIS championship squad. Stephen completed his Bachelor of Business Administration degree in 2004, and is presently working on his Bachelor of Information Systems degree which he will receive this spring. He has achieved Dean's List status in three of the last four years.
As successful as Stephen has been in athletics and academics, he has had to overcome much adversity in his life in recent years. His mother lost her battle with cancer in the summer of 2002, and after his junior season, he fractured a vertebra in his neck while playing in a summer league, forcing him to miss the entire 2003-04 X-Men season. Stephen is also committed to community involvement at StFX and in the local Antigonish, N.S. area. He is a volunteer with 'X-Project', a group that reaches out to the local Black and Native communities; he is a speaker in the StFX Athletics 'X-Out Bullying' program; he is President of the Xavier Christian Fellowship Group at StFX; has worked on fundraising projects for the Tsunami disaster relief fund; and is a volunteer in the Antigonish School System as a "Big Brother" to students with learning disabilities. He also volunteers with the Antigonish Minor Basketball Association on Saturday mornings and has served as a Counselor at Camp Evangeline in Truro, N.S.
"Alex is an exceptional young man with outstanding leadership skills who has always given of himself to help others," comments X-Men head coach Steve Konchalski. "He exemplifies everything the Ken Shields Award embodies."
2004-2005 CIS MEN'S BASKETBALL ALL-CANADIANS
FIRST TEAM
Position Athlete University Year Home Town Faculty
Center Kevin Stienstra Brock 4 Vineland, Ont. Co-op Accounting
Forward Andrew Spagrud Saskatchewan 2 Saskatoon, Sask. Engineering
Point Guard Philippe Langlois Concordia 5 Varennes, Que. Sociology
Guard/For. Sherone Edwards UPEI 3 Toronto, Ont. BA
Guard Michael Smart Carleton 5 Napanee, Ont. Commerce
SECOND TEAM
Position Athlete University Year Home Town Faculty
Guard Chris Trumpy Victoria 4 Victoria, B.C. Social Sciences
Forward Daniel Eves York 3 Barrie, Ont. Kin. & Health Science
Guard Osvaldo Jeanty Carleton 3 Gloucester, Ont. Commerce
Guard O'Neil Gordon Brandon 4 Toronto, Ont. BGS
Guard Charles Fortier Laval 5 Amos, Que. MBA Management
|
PRINT
THIS STORY