Trojans to host CCAA Men's Basketball Nationals

Written by the CCAA

CALGARY, ALTA., (June 24, 2022) -  The Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Men's Basketball National Championship will be hosted by the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) in 2023.

The Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) institution will finally get to host the event in Calgary, AB, from March 16-19, 2023. The Trojans were scheduled to host the event in 2021, but the CCAA Championship was cancelled due to the pandemic.

"This upcoming opportunity in 2023 will help us wrap-up a series of commitments to students, sponsors and our larger SAIT community," said Wade Kolmel, Director of Athletics & Recreation at SAIT and Tournament Director. "Having recently hosted the 2021 CCAA Men's Soccer National Championship, our small team of staff remains excited to once again welcome our partners across the country to the City of Calgary."

Due to considerable facility renovations scheduled at SAIT's main campus venue, all CCAA Championship games will be played at the Jack Simpson Gymnasium, located nearby in the University of Calgary.

The tournament will feature eight teams from across Canada: conference champions from the ACAC, Pacific Western Athletic Association (PACWEST), Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA), Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) and Atlantic Collegiate Athletic Association (ACAA) as well as two wildcard teams and the host Trojans.

In addition to welcoming the top collegiate Men's Soccer programs last fall, the Trojans hosted the 2014 CCAA Cross-Country Running National Championships. SAIT has also hosted many recent ACAC Championships, including the 2022 ACAC Men's Basketball Final Four Championship.

"SAIT has a long history of hosting great championship events and this one will be no exception," said Jonathan Lambert, CCAA Men's Basketball Convenor. "They have been planning this event for several years now so all teams in attendance will be treated to what will be a highlight of their athletic careers."

And having won five consecutive ACAC conference championships from 2017-22, the Trojans aren't your average host. SAIT, which earned CCAA Championship titles in 1986 and 1982, also earned a silver medal when it hosted its only CCAA Men's Basketball National Championship in 2010.

"It should be a tremendous weekend of high-caliber college basketball that the SAIT student body along with the people of Calgary will attend and enjoy, as their Trojans compete for a CCAA Championship," said Lambert.

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