Men's Basketball Season Recap

Calgary, AB | Men's Basketball 2023-24 Season Recap.

Men's Basketball finished off their season this year 4-17. There were many injuries that limited the team's success, but also many opportunities as well. The team had 13 different athletes start games this regular season, and many rookies and 2^nd year athletes earned the opportunity to play a lot of minutes and impact games.  

The Lions opened exhibition this year taking a trip to Vancouver Island to take on some CCAA schools on the west coast. They also went down to the United States in December to take on some schools in Montana. It was a great time for team bonding and playing in some competitive games to start the season off.

For the first time in 5 years the Lions were left outside of the playoff picture this year. The second semester did have many more competitive games, one of the big wins for the Lions was against the Medicine Hat Rattlers which helped them sweep the season series. Going neck and neck throughout the game, the Lions and Rattlers went into overtime where the Lions dominated and ended up outscoring them 13-9.

Throughout the season, the Lions had some outstanding contributions from athletes on their team. With a lot of young players on the team this year, the Lions needed to have large contributions from the entire group. 2^nd year standout, Wisdom Sunday, was a defensive force for the team. He protected the rim with many huge blocks, rebounded consistently and provided massive alley-oop dunks on offence. He was a game changer and momentum builder for the team this year. On the Offensive side, the team had lots of outstanding scorers including Jackson Earle as a 3 point specialist, Mateja Vukic as a playmaker and Ty Schenk's athleticism in transition to name a couple. Neil mentions Rookie, Sunday Kher being an impactful player this year; "Sunday was a stabilizing force for us. He played his role really well, being a  stout defender and great 3 point shooter."

Head Coach Neil Nystrom reflects on this season as it comes to a close. "If I could describe this season in one word it would be: Culture. We focussed a lot of our time and effort into reshaping our culture and identity as a team. We worked hard to hold ourselves accountable as well as creating championship habits as a team. This season we made a lot of growth in these areas!" The Lions are excited to work hard in the off season and get ready for the next year ahead. "We have 10 returning athletes which gives us a base of veterans going into next year. This will be a big offseason of growth and development to ensure we improve how competitive we are as we push to get back into playoffs and compete for a championship." Notes Nystrom.

Season Summary

CCAA Athlete of the Week

Ty Schenk – January 24, 2024

Ambrose Lions Team Stat Leaders

#13 Ty Schenk– PPG (14.2)

#6 Wisdom Sunday– REB/G (9.1)

#11 David Mubagwa – FT/PCT (82.2)

#3 Sunday Kher – 3PT/PCT (43.9)

#10 Mateja Vukic– AST/G (4.2)

#6 Wisdom Sunday– BLK/G (1.4)