Hello all.

Well, we ran into some server issues this week, hence the lack of a podcast and/or anything else on here. But in the words of George Costanza, we’re back, baby!

Alright, enough shenanigans. It’s playoff time in the Canada West conference, and Larks and I have stepped up with a preview of what to expect from this weekend’s divisional semifinals. Larkins will play the straight man and actually attempt to provide you some insight, while I — the veritable prop comic of this entire endeavour — will gussy it up with my own brand of “humour.”

Here’s a breakdown of each series:

GREAT PLAINS DIVISION

#3 Winnipeg at #2 Regina

The most important player in the series will be (And why):
Larkins: Simply for the sake of going against the trends, I’ll just go away from the obvious here and say Jeff Lukomski, the second-year shooting guard for Regina. Undoubtedly Erfan will control whether or not Winnipeg gets into the next round, but if the Wesmen watch the gunner from O’Neill light it up, they are in for trouble. Conversely, if he’s cold and never finds his touch, the Cougs are needing someone else to step up.
Sawatzky: Erfan Nasajpour. This series hinges on Erf’s health, and if he’s unable to go — or if he plays at less than 90 per cent — the Wesmen don’t stand a chance. The second most important person is Regina’s Bryden Wright. Will his bronzed skin be a distraction to the Wesmen? Only time will tell.

Regina will win because:
Larkins: They don’t lose home games in the playoffs. Conspiracy theories or not.
Sawatzky: The games are in Regina, and everyone knows that the refs in Regina — how shall I put this — enjoy it when the Cougars win? Like to favour the home team? Are employed by the university?

Winnipeg will win because:
Larkins: The Wesmen have played the last few games without Erfan and Dan Shynkaryk, so they know what it’s like to be short-staffed. Presuming they get those guys back — it’s the same as donuts on baseball bats — they’ll be swinging with added muscle.
Sawatzky: If Erfan is healthy, I have to believe he’s got at least one more spectacular playoff series in him. A prediction: he puts up 39/11/10 in a stunning upset Friday, has an off night Saturday (think somewhere in the ballpark of 11/4/2 on 3-21 shooting from the field), then rallies the troops with a 42/8/15 performance on Sunday.

Final prediction (in games):
Larkins: Regina in 3.
Sawatzky: Winnipeg shoots 15 free throws all weekend (to Regina’s 94), but emerges with a hard-fought series win. Wesmen in 3.

CENTRAL DIVISION

#3 Saskatchewan at #2 Alberta

The most important player in the series will be (And why):
Larkins: Saskatchewan’s Kyle Grant. We know Andrew Spagrud will get his, but the Huskies are the road dogs in this series and are going to need something big from somewhere. Grant has that capability.
Sawatzky: Andrew Spagrud. Take everything I just wrote about Erfan, and substitute his name.

Alberta will win because:
Larkins: The Bears are deeper, they’re at home and they’re going in having won four straight including at Vic/at UBC.
Sawatzky: Don Horwood secretly runs the Canada West conference. Also, I hear that Alex Steele is a pretty good basketball player.

Saskatchewan will win because:
Larkins: Even money is on the 6-foot-8, 220-pound Spagrud actually tearing out someone’s still beating heart and feasting on it while also going for 30 and 15. That’s just me though.
Sawatzky: Spagrud — for all intents and purposes — is one of the best players I’ve seen in my seven years of following the CIS. If I’m him, I’m not ending my university career with a first round playoff exit. I’m averaging 30/15/5 and carrying my team into Calgary.

Final prediction (in games):
Larkins: Alberta in 2.
Sawatzky: We’re bucking conventional wisdom and predicting the Huskies in 3. Another upset pick: Following their series victory, Saskatchewan coach Greg Jockims cracks a smile, his first of the season.

PACIFIC DIVISION

#4 Fraser Valley at #1 UBC

The most important player in the series will be (And why):
Larkins: Doug Plumb, Fraser Valley. He’s been a great addition to what was just an OK UCFV team prior to his second-semester arrival. He gives them an added scorer and at least a fighter’s chance, which is all the youngsters from Fraser Valley can ask for.
Sawatzky: Chris Dyck. He’s from Winnipeg. He seems like a nice guy. And he has a Mennonite last name, which makes him one of my favorite players in the conference, alongside David Neufeld of Saskatchewan, Devon Krahn of Fraser Valley, and half of the Trinity Western team (I’m assuming).

UBC will win because:
Larkins: No one particularly likes going to War Memorial during the regular season, never mind with the season on the line. Home court advantage plays big-time here.
Sawatzky: They’re a much better team.

Fraser Valley will win because:
Larkins: Who doesn’t like a Cinderella? And UCFV fits the glass slipper better than any other team in the post-season.
Sawatzky: Barnaby Craddock doesn’t know how to lose playoff games — unless a championship is on the line (see: last year’s Canada West Final Four and Brandon vs. Carleton). … Too soon?

Final prediction (in games):
Larkins: UBC in 2.
Sawatzky: UBC in 2. Kevin Hanson was on the podcast more recently than Craddock, and the good karma will rub off on his team. Also, nobody is picking the T-Birds to do much of anything this post-season, so can’t you just see them going on a huge run, sweeping the Pacific division, winning the conference (again), and dethroning the Ravens* in front of 10,000 naïve bandwagon jumpers in Ottawa? Yeah, me neither.

PACIFIC DIVISION

#3 Simon Fraser at #2 Victoria

The most important player in the series will be (And why):
Larkins: A combo act: Six-foot-six Tyler Hass, 6-foot-8 Rob Kinnear and 6-foot-7 Mitch Gudgeon. Hass and Gudgeon are both seniors and Kinnear is a fifth-year senior. Combined they give the Vikes a frontcourt that can neutralize the effectiveness of SFU’s bigs, namely Greg Wallis.
Sawatzky: I’m working on these questions at 6 a.m. and I’m starting to lose interest. Let’s go with SFU’s Jordan Nostedt, because he’s from Brandon and his dad is my neighbor.

Victoria will win because:
Larkins: They can lock down teams like no one else in the conference and are the winners of the Most Likely To Win With 40 Points Award.
Sawatzky: Riding on ferry is detrimental to a person’s legs. How do I know this? Medical journals.

Simon Fraser will win because:
Larkins: The slow-down, drag out halfcourt game isn’t a bad thing for SFU either. As an underdog they want to keep it close to give themselves a chance, and then hope Wallis or one of their other leads steps up when needed.
Sawatzky: Riding on a ferry is good for team morale.

Final prediction (in games):
Larkins: Victoria in 3.
Sawatzky: Victoria in two.