Carleton University’s men’s basketball team is back to its winning ways after missing the national championship tournament last year for the first time since 2002.
The Ravens are undefeated through the team’s first five games, leaving them alone atop Ontario University Athletics (OUA) east division.
The hot start is largely a product of Carleton’s depth, as second-year forward Augustas Brazdeikis is leading the team in points per game with 15.8, compared to the national leaders, who are averaging more than 24 points.
It should be noted all of the Ravens’ wins have come against lowly opponents, four of which play in the weak OUA west division. The only other win came against York University, which has yet to win a game this season.
Carleton won’t play another team from its division until Dec. 4, when the Ravens will take on their crosstown rivals, the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees.
That game will be a preview of the Capital Hoops Classic, the annual marquee matchup between the two teams, which is scheduled for Feb. 7 at TD Place.
The Gee-Gees are also off to a strong start this season, as the team is 4-1, with the only loss coming in a tight game against Waterloo.
In the most recent national basketball rankings, which were released earlier this week, Carleton was listed as the seventh-best team in the country, with Ottawa one spot behind.
The University of Victoria, which has won each of the team’s four games this season by more than 25 points, was ranked as the top team in Canada.
Last year, Ottawa was the lone representative from the nation’s capital in the Canadian championship tournament, when they won a bronze medal in Quebec City.
Carleton, which has a historically stronger basketball program, was bounced by Brock University in the opening round of the OUA playoffs, ending the team’s worst season in more than 20 years.
The Ravens will travel to St. Catharines this Sunday for a highly-anticipated rematch with Brock, which is a middling 2-2 to start the year. Before that, Carleton will host Algoma University on Friday night.
Carleton has won 17 of the last 21 national championships.
Brock is also set to welcome the Gee-Gees on Friday, before Ottawa heads back home to play Algoma.
The U Sports basketball postseason is slated to begin in February.
