Tigers set to take on the Final 8

One could have forgiven the Dalhousie Tigers men’s basketball team for taking it easy this past weekend at the AUS Championships.

After all, as hosts of the U Sports Final 8 championships in Halifax this weekend, the Tigers were guaranteed a spot in the national finals — regardless of their AUS result.

But, driven to three-peat as AUS champs following wins in 2015 and 2016, the Tigers came from behind to defeat Acadia 78-75 in the semi-finals before defeating Saint Mary’s 63-60 in Sunday’s final. With the win, the Tigers team has now won five AUS titles in its history.

But Dalhousie has never won a national basketball championship — something AUS Coach of the Year Rick Plato, AUS Defensive Player of the Year Ritchie Kanza Mata and the entire team are looking to change this weekend.

The U Sports Final 8, hosted by Dalhousie, kicks off tonight (Thursday) and runs through the weekend at the Scotiabank Centre in Halifax. Based on their record, the Tigers (regular season record: 16-4) have drawn the fifth seed and will face the fourth-seeded Alberta Golden Bears (14-6 regular season record) Thursday night at 8 p.m. AST.

If the Tigers prevail, they’ll play in one of Saturday afternoon’s two semi-finals. A loss would have them contend in the consolations semi-finals Friday night.

Single game tickets and ticket packages are available from ticketatlantic.ca