U Sports men's basketball championship
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The U Sports Men's Basketball Championship, branded as the Men's Basketball Final 8, is a Canadian university basketball tournament conducted by U Sports, and determines the men's national champion. The tournament involves the champions from each of Canada's four regional sports conferences. The W. P. McGee trophy is awarded to the winners.
Twenty different schools have won the tournament. Carleton University have the most tournament wins with 17 championships. The University of Victoria has nine championships, Saint Mary’s University, Brandon University, and the University of Windsor have four championships, the University of Alberta, St. Francis Xavier University, and Acadia University have three championships, Brock University, and the University of British Columbia have two championships. Eleven programs are tied with one national championship.
History
Assumption University has the distinction of originating the national championship trophy. In 1963, the University of Windsor Alumni Association donated the award featuring a silver basketball, and named in memory of W.P. McGee for his outstanding contribution as both teacher and coach during the 1920s and 1930s. Assumption won the first McGee trophy, the only time it took the national title under the Assumption name. The University of Windsor would win it four times in that same decade (1960s). For more than 60 years, the McGee trophy has been awarded annually to the U Sports men's basketball champion.
The tournament first consisted of only conference champions (four or five teams) and held that format from 1963 until 1971. In 1972 and 1973, only four teams qualified, regardless of conferences. In 1974, the championship expanded to include eight teams, similar to the format seen today. That was again changed in 1983 where regional championships took place with up to 16 teams participating in up to five different cities with the national championship featuring four teams in the main host city.<ref>CIS Hoops Men's Basketball Championship Game Results</ref>
In 1984, Dalhousie University hosted the championship in what would be the first of 24 straight years that Halifax, Nova Scotia would host. The format reverted to an eight team national championship in 1987, which would be the consistent format until 2004 when the tournament expanded to ten teams. The Final 10 format would last only three years, until it was again reverted to a Final 8 tournament in 2007.<ref>History of Men's Basketball Championship</ref> In 2008, the finals moved to Scotiabank Place in Ottawa for three years. After two years back in Halifax, the next two tournaments were held in the now renamed Canadian Tire Centre (formerly Scotiabank Place). The 2015 championship was hosted by Ryerson University, while the 2016 tournament was hosted by the University of British Columbia.
The 2021 championship tournament was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.<ref name="2021 cancelled">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Format
The championship consists of an eight-team single-elimination tournament. Four teams automatically qualify for the tournament as one of the winners of the four conferences, two qualify as the runners-up of both the OUA and Canada West conference, one qualifies as the host, and one is given an at-large berth.<ref>Playing Regulations - Men's Basketball</ref>
The tournament is played over four days. The quarterfinals are played on the Thursday, the consolation semi-finals on Friday, the consolation final and championship semi-finals on Saturday, and the bronze and gold medal games on Sunday.<ref>Format changes, Super Championship Weekend officially announced</ref> This format has been in use since 2015.
Results
Title by school
| Appearances | Team | Conference | Wins | Losses | Win % | Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | Carleton Ravens | OUA | 17 | 0 | 1.000 | 2023 | 2023 |
| 12 | Victoria Vikes | Canada West | 9 | 3 | .750 | 2025 | 2025 |
| 9 | Saint Mary's Huskies | AUS | 4 | 5 | .444 | 1999 | 1999 |
| 9 | Brandon Bobcats | Canada West | 4 | 5 | .444 | 1996 | 2007 |
| 8 | Acadia Axemen | AUS | 3 | 5 | .375 | 1977 | 1988 |
| 7 | UBC Thunderbirds | Canada West | 2 | 5 | .285 | 1972 | 2010 |
| 6 | Alberta Golden Bears | Canada West | 3 | 3 | .500 | 2002 | 2012 |
| 5 | Windsor Lancers | OUA | 4 | 1 | .800 | 1969 | 1969 |
| 5 | McMaster Marauders | OUA | 0 | 5 | .000 | None | 1998 |
| 5 | St. Francis Xavier X-Men | AUS | 3 | 2 | .600 | 2001 | 2023 |
| 5 | Calgary Dinos | Canada West | 1 | 4 | .200 | 2018 | 2025 |
| 4 | Waterloo Warriors | OUA | 1 | 3 | .250 | 1975 | 1986 |
| 4 | Guelph Gryphons | OUA | 1 | 3 | .250 | 1974 | 2003 |
| 3 | Manitoba Bisons | Canada West | 1 | 2 | .333 | 1976 | 1976 |
| 3 | Lakehead Thunderwolves | OUA | 0 | 3 | .000 | None | 2013 |
| 2 | Waterloo Lutheran Golden Hawks | OUA | 1 | 1 | .500 | 1968 | 1969 |
| 2 | Western Ontario Mustangs | OUA | 1 | 1 | .500 | 1991 | 2002 |
| 2 | Concordia Stingers | RSEQ | 1 | 1 | .500 | 1990 | 2005 |
| 2 | Brock Badgers | OUA | 2 | 0 | 1.000 | 2008 | 2008 |
| 2 | Ottawa Gee-Gees | OUA | 0 | 2 | .000 | None | 2015 |
| 2 | Ryerson Rams/TMU Bold | OUA | 0 | 2 | .000 | None | 2018 |
| 2 | Saskatchewan Huskies | Canada West | 1 | 1 | .500 | 2010 | 2022 |
| 1 | Assumption College | OUA | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 1963 | 1963 |
| 1 | Bishop's Gaiters | RSEQ | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 1998 | 1998 |
| 1 | Laval Rouge et Or | RSEQ | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 2024 | 2024 |
| 1 | Trinity Western Spartans | Canada West | 0 | 1 | .000 | None | 2011 |
| 1 | Dalhousie Tigers | AUS | 0 | 1 | .000 | None | 2020 |
| 1 | Queen's Gaels | OUA | 0 | 1 | .000 | None | 2024 |
See also
References
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