Volume 53 — Issue 22 — March 11, 1993
Riding an amazing nine-in-a-row winning streak, the Gee-Gees have risen from an uninspiring second place in the league to claim the title of OUAA champions. With a resounding 87-67 victory over the Toronto Blues in the March 6 Finals, the Gees have simultaneously clinched the OUAA East championship as well as a berth in the National Championship Tournament in Halifax.
Ottawa had control of the game from the start, shadowing the Blues on defence and finding the open man on offence. Rod Lee (#4) got off to an auspicious start when he hit the first basket of the game, a three-pointer. He went on to pace the Gee-Gees with 19 points.
Chris Lemcke (#33) was also in rare form, hitting two dunks in the first six minutes of the game. He unfortunately ran into foul trouble, and spent most of the half on the bench. He went on to net 12 points, and pull down four rebounds.
The standing-room-only crowd responded enthusiastically as Ottawa steadily pulled away from Toronto, to end the half leading 47-32. Said head coach Jack Eisenmann, “The guys were just focused and ready to play.” The Blues came out of the locker room with guns blazing, however, outscoring Ottawa 13-2 in the first four minutes of play.
At this point, with the score standing at 49-45, Ottawa turned it up again. Dave Reid (#44) hit two three-pointers in a row and Greg Maillet (#14) added a third, to boost Ottawa out of reach.
In the face of pressure from Toronto, the Gees maintained their composure on offence, running down the clock until someone had an open shot. Thus, even though the Blues remained close behind, they never managed to narrow the gap appreciably.
Finally, in the closing minutes, pumped up by Lemcke’s third dunk of the game, Ottawa dug in the spurs and pulled away to win the game, 87-67. High scorers for Ottawa were Lee with 19 points, Maillet with 18, Reid with 17, and Lemcke and Clarence Porter (#32), both with 12.
“We just threw everyone at them,” said Lemcke. Toronto was led by Scott Bleue (#50) with 30 points, and Jason Ciceri (#33) with 11.
“I’m really proud of the way they played tonight,” said Eisenmann, adding, “It was just a championship-type game.”
Lee echoed Eisenmann’s sentiments, pointing out “Everybody’s stepping up when their turn comes.”
This win, which guarantees the team a berth in the Nationals, marks Ottawa’s first trip to Halifax since 1975. “It’s been a long time coming,” said Lemcke. “We’ve worked so hard for this all year.”
Last season’s ill-fated team seemed to have all the ingredients, but fell short in the league finals against the Concordia Stingers. With a few exceptions, those players have all returned this year to make up the core of this year’s squad.
Obviously, the extra year’s experience has paid off, and this team will do what the Gee-Gees have been unable to achieve in 18 years, represent the University in the National Championship Tournament
The key to the Gees’ success is not immediately apparent. They have no single scoring star, and have never received particular recognition for either their offensive execution or their defensive composure.
Rather, the secret seems to be sorne free-wheeling mix of all these ingrediens. The Gees have no scoring star, striking instead with a balanced scoring attack.
Offensively, they are equally adept at either the fast-break or patient execution. And when it comes together, the Gees’ defence demands respect.
On March 6, Toronto faced a championship team in the Ottawa Gee-Gees. Few teams will be able to match up against them if they maintain that level of play.
Ottawa’s next game is against the Western Mustangs on Mar. 13 at 14h30, in Montpetit Hall for the Wilson Cup and the OUAA Charnpionship.
The Gees travel to Halifax March 19-21 to compete in the National Finals.
About this Article
On March 13, 1993, the Gee-Gees men’s basketball team hosted the Western Mustangs on home court to compete for the OUAA provincial championship.
The Gee-Gees earned their berth in the provincial championship by winning the OUAA East championship a week prior, in a defeat of the Toronto Varsity Blues. This clinched the team’s first nationals berth since 1975.
The Gee-Gees would blow Western out of the water, winning 88-48, and enter nationals on a 10-game winning streak. Their bid for the program’s first national title would eventually fail with a 64-54 loss to St. FX in the CIAU (a precursor of U SPORTS) semifinals. St. FX would go on to win their first of three championships in a nine-year span.
32 years later, the Gee-Gees will again host the provincial championship, when they welcome the Queen’s Gaels to Montpetit Hall. They arrived here after a blowout win over David DeAveiro’s TMU Bold on March 1. DeAveiro, the Gee’s head coach from 2001-10, was an assistant coach for the 1992-93 team.
Though the Gee-Gees have appeared in 11 more national Final 8’s since ‘93, they are still searching for that elusive national title.
Leading the 1992-93 Gees in points per game and rebounding was Clarence Porter, a 6’4″ forward from Toronto.
Porter earned a berth on the OUAA East First Team All-Stars after averaging 16.9 points and 9.7 rebounds per game, shooting 66.4 per cent from the floor.
After finishing his sterling five-year Gee-Gees career after the 1995-96 season, Porter would stick with the Gee-Gees as an assistant coach, a role he remains in almost 30 years later.
