You know it's a tumultuous season for a university sports team when even the coach gets caught up in the quagmire.
Capilano University men's basketball coach Dwayne Selby was not allowed in the building for last Friday's game against Camosun College, the result of a strange set of circumstances that led to a one-game suspension for the coach. The week before, Capilano forward Warren Liang was tossed from a game because of comments he made to the referee, an ejection that should have led to an automatic one-game suspension.
The problem was, nobody told the Blues that Liang had actually been tossed. Selby assumed that Liang was out because he picked up his fifth foul, and nowhere on the game sheet or referee report did it mention an ejection. So Liang suited up the following night against Douglas and, two days later, Capilano was hit with sanctions that included forfeiture of their 91-47 win over Douglas (it was changed to 2-0 for the Royals) and a one-game suspension for Selby.
The forfeiture and suspension were tough on the team because they had no way of knowing that Liang needed to sit out, said Selby.
"Nobody said anything. We didn't get a phone call, we didn't get an email, nothing."
Selby's suspension forced assistant coach Tyler Lutton, a former Capilano player not too many years removed from his playing days, to move one seat over and assume head coach duties against Camosun, his first ever game as a head coach at this level. No problem - the Blues won 70-62.
"He's a very good coach, probably one of the best young basketball minds we have in the province," Selby said of Lutton, who kept his cool in the win. "I knew that he'd step up and do a fantastic job. I'm pretty proud of the job he did. I had a chance to watch the game online and he did great."
Lutton found out less than 12 hours before the game that Selby wouldn't be on the sidelines. "I woke up to a phone call from Dwayne and he just said 'Hey, you're coaching,'" he said. "Once the jitters came out I got better at it. I was pretty confident."
The Blues won the next night too with Selby back on the bench, 67-62 over Vancouver Island University. In fact, the Blues have done enough winning this season to put themselves in the thick of the championship race. The fact that they're still in fourth place and solidly in the playoffs is actually kind of remarkable given the adversity they've faced this year, the Selby suspension just being the last of a bizarre set of events.
It started right from Game 1, an 85-76 win over Quest University on Nov. 1 that was later turned into another 2-0 loss because one of Capilano's players, Nigel Palma, was ruled ineligible to play due to his four years spent with the SFU team. It didn't matter that Palma, in fact, never played in the Capilano game, just warmed up and sat on the bench in his uniform. It didn't matter either that the rules for his eligibility are pretty fuzzy, a confusing mashup of CIS, NCAA and CCAA rules that differ on the number of years a player can play collegiate sport.
The trouble continued into the New Year when star point guard Toney Rowe, an import from California, was ruled academically ineligible for the winter term. Then came Liang's ejection, which led to a four-game suspension for the third-year forward, a key contributor for the team. On top of it all, the Blues said goodbye to their heart and soul, second year captain and rebounding machine Daniel Dubois, who left last week - with the team's blessing - for an exchange program in Vienna.
Add it all up and it equals a very strange season for a coach in only his second year at the college level.
"I'm disappointed for our players because they're busting their butts and they're doing a job and we seem to be coming up on the short end of a lot of these decisions being made," he said. "It's been frustrating, at times, but it's also been a learning experience for me. With me being in my second year, this is a side that I've never been accustomed to.. .. I've learned a lot in terms of looking things over with a magnifying glass. Other than that, just focusing on things that I can control."
Through it all, the Blues are playing some pretty good basketball. They sit fourth in the league with a 6-6 record - despite the two forfeits - and have beaten or come very close to beating the three teams above them in the standings.
"I've been really proud of the way we've been able to focus and overcome the adversity that we've faced lately," said Selby. "(The players) have all been in great spirits. I've always told the guys that we can only control the things that we control - and that's going out and playing the game. Everything else you've got to leave to the powers that be, but let's just go out and do what we do. The guys are just taking it in stride."
The Blues are being led by a strong core of players that includes rookie forward Andrew Morris, a St. Thomas More grad who red-shirted at SFU last season; fifth-year forward Lukas Wera, who Selby says is playing the best ball of his long career right now; rookie point guard Gino Pagbilao from Burnaby, who has taken on a huge role in Rowe's absence; and a pair of second-year guards in Asher Lewis and Michael Hunter who both play lockdown defence and are explosive on offence.
The resilient Blues could actually win the whole thing, said Selby.
"We're not afraid to play anyone at any point, especially during the playoffs," he said. "I really like our chances with the way we're playing right now going up against any of the top teams in our league."
The coach doesn't have an answer for why there's been so much drama for this year's Blues, but he's making sure it's not going to stop them from hitting the floor hard.
"It's tough to say why these things have happened," he said. "I'm a pretty positive person by nature so I just take it as a challenge. Our team is being challenged to see what we're made of, and can we overcome these obstacles that are being placed in front of us. So far we have and hopefully will continue to."
The Blues will be back at home for an important pair of games against Douglas Jan. 31 and Langara Feb. 1. Game times both nights are 6 p.m. for the women and 8 p.m. for the men.
