Tyra Blizzard cuts past a defender.First-year guard Tyra Blizzard cuts past a defender; her team continues its defence of the Bronze baby national championship trophy Friday.

Lancer basketballers headed to provincial final four tournaments

Both men’s and women’s Lancer basketball teams will compete for their respective provincial championships this weekend—and both must get past the Ryerson Rams.

The Windsor women are in the hunt for the inaugural Critelli Cup, and will meet the Ryerson Rams in a semi-final Friday in Ottawa. The last time these squads met, November 18, the Lancers topped the Rams 95-79, one of just three Ryerson losses on the season.

The Windsor roster boasts three Ontario University Athletics all-stars: forward Cheyanne Roger, centre Emily Prevost, and all-rookie guard Kaylee Anagnostopoulos. While the program has won five straight national championships and six of the past seven OUA championships, the team is the lowest-seeded in the final four.

Tip-off is set for 8 p.m. The winner will play for the title against the victor of the other semi-final between the Ottawa Gee-Gees and the McMaster Marauders. Read a full preview, “Windsor-Ryerson, McMaster-uOttawa clash in the capital for the inaugural Critelli Cup.”

Windsor’s men are also the lowest seed in their final four, and will face the Ryerson Rams on their home court Friday at 8 p.m. The other semi-final features the Ottawa Gee-Gees vs. the Carleton Ravens.

The Lancers will look to their own all-stars: guard Alex Campbell, who scored 70 points to power his team through the first two rounds of the playoffs, earning himself OUA and CIS player of the week honours in the process, and OUA rookie of the year Isiah Osborne.

The Lancer men also defeated the Rams on their last meeting November 18. The 81-67 loss was one of only two on the year for Ryerson.

The league has produced a preview: “Rivalries renewed as Ravens-Gee-Gees, Lancers-Rams meet in Wilson Cup Final Four.”

Catch all the final four action streaming live on OUA.tv.