Golden Bears still scorching hot

Alberta cruises into semifinals with easy win

Jordan Baker and Daniel Ferguson put on a clinic Friday night as the University of Alberta Golden Bears cruised into the semifinals at the Canadian Interuniversity Sport men’s basketball championship.

The Golden Bears opened an early lead and were never seriously challenged by the Ryerson Rams as the No. 2 seed from Alberta won 81-52 at the Halifax Metro Centre.

Baker and Ferguson combined for eight three-pointers in the first half and finished the game with 49 total points.

The pair seemed to take turns asserting its dominance. Baker, the six-foot-seven all-canadian guard from Edmonton took control in the first quarter, scoring 12 points. It was Ferguson’s turn next, as the six-foot-three guard from Malton, Ont., scored 18 in the second as the Golden Bears went into the break up 49-25.

“We work off each other,” Baker said. “He’s usually going to get the best defensive player on the other team guarding him, so it helps me a lot. I’m very appreciative of that and I’m going to give him the ball any time he’s got any open looks.”

Baker finished with 26 points and was in triple-double territory with eight rebounds and eight assists. Ferguson had 23 points, with 18 of those coming from beyond the arc.

“When you’ve got a guy like Daniel Ferguson that can shoot it from just about anywhere on the court, it makes a big difference,” Baker said.

The Golden Bears have shot up the rankings in recent weeks, from fringe contenders to the team that’s expected to give the defending Carleton Ravens a run for their money should both teams reach Sunday’s final.

Alberta went into the Canada West Universities Athletic Association final four as the fourth seed last weekend, but rattled off upset wins over the Saskatchewan Huskies and Fraser Valley Cascades to win the conference title and nab the No. 2 seed.

Friday’s effort showed they were full value for the ranking.

Golden Bears head coach Greg Francis was pleased with how his players responded Friday.

Ryerson put together a run to start the second half, closing what was a 24-point deficit at the break to 13 points midway through the third quarter. Francis admitted his team lost a bit of focus and intensity on defence for a spell, something that could cost the Golden Bears later in the tournament.

The Rams were a surprise participant at the Final 8. They hadn’t been ranked nationally all year, but qualified with an upset of Lakehead in the Ontario semifinals. They needed to replicate that effort Friday to have a chance, but after shooting just 29.6 per cent in the first half, they found themselves too far behind, too quickly.

“I think mentally we probably had visions of coming out and having a great start and we didn’t,” Ryerson coach Roy Rana said. “I thought mentally that put us in a hole and we struggled to come back from it. But we did show signs of life, we didn’t stop fighting. I’m proud of my guys.”

Jahmal Jones of Mississauga, Ont., was Ryerson’s high scorer with 15 points.

The Bears play the St. Francis Xavier X-men in Saturday’s late semifinal.