The basketball champions for the Alberta Colleges Athletic League will be determined this weekend at the league finals in Three Hills and at least one of three Olds College squads will be heading in as favourites.
For the Broncos women's team, two more wins will mean a season that ends with a perfect record and – most importantly – their second consecutive ACAL championship banner.
The women's team ended the season with a two-game sweep of St. Mary's Lightning, winning 74-57 at home on Thursday and 84-71 in Calgary on Saturday afternoon. The wins over the second-best team in the women's division meant the Broncos finished the season with a perfect 8-0 record in ACAL play.
In the first round of the final four championships at Prairie Bible Institute, the Broncos will face the Millar College Edge for the right to advance to the championship game. In two meetings this season the Broncos won decisively 90-23 and 73-24.
The other semifinal will see St. Mary's and the host Prairie battle for a championship berth.
In the men's draw both Olds 1 and Olds 2 will be on hand for the final four. Olds 2 will face regular season champion St. Mary's in the first semifinal while Olds 1 will take on the Canadian University College Aurora in the other.
A tough last week for the Broncos 1 squad eliminated them from potentially being the top seed heading into the league final four.
However a 55-53 loss in Lacombe against the Aurora followed by a sweep at the hands of St. Mary's – 72-61 in Olds on Thursday and 73-66 on Saturday – meant the team finished third, just ahead of their OC brethren, although both officially finished 8-4 on the season and didn't play one another.
Last year the teams finished with silver and bronze medals at the ACAL finals but one or both of the two squads would have to win their semifinal in order to have a chance at the same fate this year.
