By TL Reid - sports editor 

Men’s basketball earned their way into the ACAC’s final four this weekend, winning their quarterfinal series against Red Deer College 2-0.  But the Griffins won’t get to rest on their laurels. 

“We have goals to try to win a national championship,” said coach Ryan Dunkley. “I think some of the guys come to a practice today thinking we’re going to be, like, stroking their egos and that’s the exact opposite — I was yelling at those guys within the first five seconds. They’re probably like, ‘What the hell is his problem? We just won.’ I bet’s what they’re thinking.” 

All that Dunkley’s thinking about is beating Mount Royal University on Friday at conference finals. They’ll be playing the top-ranked team in the south division – also the defending national champions, currently ranked third in the country)  – on their own turf. With the north-south divisions in basketball, the Griffins haven’t seen the Cougars since a preseason match that MacEwan won by a single point. 

“They’ve got everything,” Dunkley said. “They got good big guys inside, they got a good point guard and they’ve got good wings, so they’ve got a very solid team.” 

Thursday’s match at home against RDC wasn’t pretty, with less-than-stellar shooting, but the Griffins built up a 20-point lead by the end of the third and hung on to win it 67-56. Lyndon Taylor was player of the game. 

Brett Gaudreau tweaked his ankle and was limping by the end of the night, but was fine for Friday. 

The Griffins have struggled with illness and injuries this year, but had enough depth to keep building through the season. At this point, they’re dressing 11 out of 12 players. Colin James is still in and out of practice, and may be able to play this weekend. 

Dunkley said the team was more relaxed for the second match, despite playing against RDC’s full lineup in a noisy gym. 

Gregg Frankson opened the game with a few three-pointers, and scored another at the buzzer to put the Griffins up 8 at the half. Mitch Lonsberry also had a good weekend, and JJ Russell is playing his best ball of the year, said Dunkley. 

After the match, Red Deer coach Craig Behan gave Dunkley some tape on Mount Royal and shared his thoughts on some of their players, giving MacEwan a leg up as they prepare for their next match. 

“I wouldn’t say we were perfect, but we won the game,” said Dunkley. “That Red Deer game was great experience. We went into a hostile environment against a good team on the road. They’re going to have to be more of that, because I don’t think it’s going to be any easier come Friday.”

In ACAC announcements, Gregg Frankson was named to Men’s All-Conference first team, and Dunkley was named coach of the year for men’s basketball. 

“I told the boys I didn’t make a single layup or grab a single rebound,” said Dunkley. I could have done the same coaching and been on a team that wasn’t very talented and finished fifth or sixth, and I wouldn’t have even had a chance. 

“It looks good on the resume, but really I couldn’t care less. I just want to win. If I win that award and we lose out this weekend… I’d way rather give that award up a thousand times over, and just keep winning.” 

MacEwan goes into this weekend ranked fifth in Canada. To move on to nationals, they either need to win provincials or lose to SAIT – who, as hosts, are guaranteed a spot – in the final. 

Obviously, they’d prefer the first option. 

“Routine is important,” Dunkley said. “Because you don’t want the guys sky-high for a big game and coming out half-asleep for the smaller games. What you want to do is come out the same way all the time, because confidence is built through repeated success.”